Wednesday, November 30, 2016

NYC TEACHER ADVISORY: Have No Dealings With Former OSI Investigator Iuliana Celik

Think about this. You need a criminal defense attorney. The best ones out there seem to be those that previously had worked in a district attorney's office. You have a tax problem you find someone who worked at the IRS. Need a security consultant you go with an ex-cop. Makes sense, huh?

So if you're investigated by OSI wouldn't it be best to have someone who was a former OSI investigator who can help you with the ins and outs of dealing with OSI?

It might be a dream too good to be true.

The other day a comment was left on this blog post directing readers to the Facebook page (I deleted the link. You will see why in just a bit) of former OSI investigator Iuliana Celik.

Celik left this on teachers.net...

I am a former OSI Investigator and Supervisor, former
Hearing representative and former law enforcement investigator with over
10 years of investigative experience.
I provide consulting services to teachers, guidance counseled, principals
and other NYC school staff who are or believe they are being investigated
by OSI. I bring a wealth of inside expertise and techniques that can help
you successfully navigate your case with OSI.
Do not hesitate to contact me should you need my services and check out
my page for more useful information!

WOW! I thought to myself. This must be really great. Finally, teachers can get int of the brains of OSI.

I immediately called Chaz the Blogger to share this with him and see what he thought.

He was quite skeptical. Chaz thought that even with all that knowledge to share how do you get around the fact that if you are on principal's good side the investigation goes nowhere and you aren't you are screwed. I tried bringing up the fact that according to Celik's OSI Consultation Facebook page she can be an expert witness in your 3020-a hearings and help your defense as well.

I kinda had blinders on but Chaz was making sense. I guess a little voice in my head was saying the same thing since even before I had called Chaz I was planning on calling Celik to find out more before I would post about her service.

I told Chaz I was going to give her a call and Chaz said one important thing. He told me to ask her how to get around that principal thing. If she had plausible  answer to that he would be more receptive to finding out more.

I called Celik. She answered the phone. I said, "Hi I am Peter Zucker. The reason I am calling is that you left a link in the comments section of a post on my blog, South Bronx School."

She replied, "Yes."

I told her that I wanted to find out more about the services she was offering so that when I share her info on these pages so my writing can be better informed.

Her response, and are you ready for this???

"I only speak to paid clients."

Say what? You are starting a brand new consultative business and you want to be silent? You don't want to get the word out?  She can't be shy. Heck, she has photos of herself all over her Facebook page. I decided to try a different tact.

I told her that I was planning to write about her services and this would be a great way to get clients. I told her teachers should be knocking down her door.

At this point she told me she no long wishes to discuss this and at this point hung up.

Something smells rotten.

After consultation with The Crack Team we here at SBSB are suggesting to all teachers and educators within the NYCDOE to NOT HAVE ANY DEALINGS AT ALL WITH FORMER OSI INVESTIGATOR IULIANA CELIK UNTIL SHE IS WILLING TO BE MORE FORTHCOMING!

Think about this. How can someone, someone that is just starting a business not want to get word out to the very constituency it wants to cultivate? This is why I am writing this post, not because I am feel I was slighted but rather at the strangeness and evasiveness of Celik's responses which totally go against the grain.

But upon further investigation by The Crack Team there were other red flags found. Like here, where Celik is advertising to be a dog walker and this misleading line...

I am an animal lover who has left a high paying law career to start a dog walking and pet sitting business in Westchester.

We here at SBSB did not know that being an OSI investigator was such a high paying career and by "law career" it might make one seem that Celik was an attorney. The Crack Team just to be sure searched and found nothing.

I want to believe that Celik's venture is a noble one. I want to believe that Celik saw the light and having knowledge of the damage that OSI has done had decided to use her powers for good and not evil.

On these pages I have touted the fine legal work of Bryan Glass. There have been readers that have reached out to him. Heck, Portelos has done the same regarding Bryan on his many forums and many readers have reached out to Bryan as well. If there is someone out there who is on the side of teachers positive word of mouth spreads fast. Using Bryan Glass as an example, look at him. He is like Ringo in A Hard Day's Night. Being chased everywhere for his services.

Iuliana, or is it Julie, if you want to do this than you need to be more forthcoming, more transparent. Too many teachers have been burned by too many promising the moon.

If teacher's are going to spend money on the services of Ms Cerlik than teachers have a right to know more. Simple as that.

Monday, November 21, 2016

Open Blog Post for SiriusXM's Michelangelo Signorile

It used to be that on my way home I would turn on WFAN and listen to the bloviating of His
Popeness, Mike Francesa. Hasn't been that way for a few months now.

I have found a new voice to listen to, that of Michelangelo Signorile on SiriusXM Progressive Channel 127. I have to tell you, I am hooked. Heck, I don't even listen to Sternthology in the afternoon.

Michelangelo has had me mesmerized with his take on the entire 2016 election and it's aftermath. The way he has deconstructed Trump's petty excuse of living has me on the edge of my seat as I drive up the Major Deegan in the afternoon. His progressive agenda, his realistic look at the world has let know that I, and others who feel the same, or not alone in the screwed up, messed up, crazy country we live in nowadays.

Michelangelo is a true defender of those who need defending. Whether they be of the LGBTQ community, African-American, Hispanic, Asian-Americans, Jews, women, or just anyone in need, and anyone being shat upon by those with the privilege to be in power. Death

Listening to him mock Steve Bannon, the Alt-Right, Trump, Christie, Palin, Guiliani, and all the other Trump hangers on and sycophants have left me in stitches so often I have almost driven off the Sprain!

But, and I say this with a heavy heart, Michelangelo has disappointed me in one regard. His silence and lack of understanding on Herr Trump's stance on education.

Right after the election I got a phone call from a friend of The Crack Team who happened to be in a panic. She was convinced that Reichsführer Trump will annihilate education in this country, sending billions of dollars away from public education and in the process putting the final nail in the coffin of teachers unions and urban education.

I did my best to reassure her that it won't happen, that Trump is all talk and he will never shut down the Department of Education and besides she, as well as myself, have just over 4 years till retirement and hopefully we'll be out before the proverbial doody hits the proverbial fan.

So back on November 10 I decided to call into Michelangelo's show and share with him what teachers are thinking and how horrible a Trump presidency will be to education in this country. I felt the need to do this due to the fact that of all the things that Trump is for not once had I heard Michelangelo bring up Trump's threat to education.

So Mike, I hope you are reading this. You took my call during the 5 o'clock hour. I told you I was Pete from White Plains and that I am a NYC teacher. I told you about Trump's plan and how teachers are scared. I told you how he will be wanting to take monies away from public education and put those monies into charter schools and vouchers for parochial and private schools as well as into homeschooling. Oh, and I shared how with being able to fill Scalia's seat teachers run the risk of Friedrich's being reheard and losing our right to organize. I will give you credit. You heard me. But you did not listen.

All I got from you Mike was, and I am paraphrasing, "Don't worry, your unions are too strong to allow this to happen." Say what? I tried to get in a word but you just kept talking over me.

Guess what? Our unions are not strong enough to fight back. Have you seen what has happened alone in New York State with education? With the testing, the BS evaluations, junk science, etc...? Who do we have to thank for this? The United Federation of Teachers. OUR UNION!!! That of course acts this way due to the directing of the AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS!!!

Have you noticed a trend across the country? In Wisconsin, North Carolina, California? Where have you been?

Where were you when Eva Moskowitz's name was being floated as Education Secretary? Do you know about Eva? Just in case you don't, check this out! Were you appalled that Princess Trump visited her Success Academy 1 School to tout her as an innovative educator  whilst ignoring the GREAT WORK of the teachers in the same building who teach our most needy students?

Where were you when Michelle Rhee was floated as Education Secretary? Yeah, that Michelle Rhee who I wrote about on the Huff Post in 2010, you know, about duct taping her student's mouths shut.

And guess who enabled the Moskowitz's, the Rhees, and the countless education deformers of the world? The DEMOCRATS! Yeah, without the Democrats, we never get NCLB and Race to the Top. If Democrats can't stop Republicans, or at the very least roll over for the Republicans, how can Trump be stopped?

How can Trump and the Republican controlled Congress be stopped when our unions have been rolling over, throwing teachers under the bus for 15 years?

Hey Mike, how about putting up that same fight for our children, the communities, our unions, and teachers that you put up for everyone else?

I know you can, and I know you are a good person that can make a change.