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Friday, April 21, 2023
Vol. 98, No. 16
KIDS GUIDE
NATIVE AMERICAN MASCOTS BARRED
3RD DISTRICT LACKS REPRESENTATION
PAGES 23-31
PAGE 10
PAGE 6
Calls for police oversight
ROBO-CHAMPS
Nassau lacks in transparency: Vera BY R OB E RT PE L A E Z A 2022 study from the Vera Institute had Nassau County tied for the second-lowest score for police transparency in the United States with a ranking of 12 out of 100. Nassau County, according to the report from the nonprofit organization aimed at transforming the criminal justice system, scored a 0 in every category except for an 81 in police contact information and a 100 in policies. The areas were judged on their data being “accessible,” “usable,” and “meaningful,” according to the report. “How data is provided should be determined in consultation with community members, especially those impacted by the criminal legal system, to ensure that data is accessible and useful to the people most affected by policing,” Vera Institute officials said in their general recommendations from the report. Efforts to reach officials from the Police Department for comment were unavailing. The Vera Institute, a nonprofit national research organization, analyzed police transparency in 94 cities and counties across the United States. Chicago received the highest score with a 70 and just 21 of the areas scored a 50 or above. Continued on Page 45
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE GREAT NECK SCHOOL DISTRICT
South High’s Robotics Team won a pair of team awards at the FIRST robotics contest several weeks ago.
Shi drops out of ed board race Petitions to run for incumbent’s seat will be accepted until May 1 BY R OB E RT PE L A E Z Great Neck Board of Education Trustee Jeff Shi withdrew his petitions to run for re-election to the board Friday and said he wants to be able to spend more time with his family. “It has been my tremendous honor to serve as a trustee for the Great Neck Public Schools and support the
education of all the students, from toddlers to teenagers, from adults who continue to seek self-improvement to the students in our Special Dd programs with the greatest needs,” Shi said in a statement to Blank Slate Media. Shi was running for a third term on the board before making his decision to withdraw petitions to run. Dis-
trict officials said petitions to run for Shi’s seat on the board can be submitted until May 1 by 5 p.m. District resident Joanne Chan has already filed to run for Shi’s vacant seat. Board of Education President Rebecca Sassouni reflected on her time serving the public with Shi and said he is an asset the district will greatly
miss going forward. “The number of ideas that he shared with the board, the perspectives he brought to the board and more than anything else, his decency and his kindness that he always brought to the board in every interaction in public in private, he was truly a gentleman among gentlemen and he Continued on Page 46
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