Over the last year, Darien’s government has been scrutinized for practices that have many in town questioning its ability to operate openly. Compliance with the Freedom of Information Act has been a problem for several elected bodies, but some say these volunteers should be treated with less scrutiny since they help the town on their own time.
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A school district administrator publicly reported to the Board of Education the results of a desk audit that happened six months earlier, when a state investigator came to Ox Ridge School and found the district was out of compliance with various bullying, sexual harassment and gender equality laws.
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Looking to file a Freedom of Information Act request for emails from elected Darien officials on a certain topic? Chances are you might not get everything you’re looking for, according to a Darien Times investigation.
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Seven of the eight BMWs stolen from the BMW of Darien dealership in August of 2012 have been recovered, and New York authorities have charged 18 people for their roles in a theft ring that resold stolen luxury cars worth $2.4 million. Darien Police were able to recover the stolen vehicles prior to them being resold with help from the New York Police Department, police announced in a Thursday news release.
Educators and a former elected official rallied behind former Superintendent Steve Falcone’s efforts to get a job somewhere else, as the district Falcone led for three years was in the middle of an unprecedented special education crisis.
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Roughly one month after resigning amid state findings that Darien Schools broke state and federal special education laws, Steve Falcone has taken over as head of the human resources department for Stamford Public Schools.
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School lawyers claim the work performed by a public relations firm should not be made public.
The lawyers, Shipman & Goodwin, a firm that represents the majority of public school districts in Connecticut, including Darien, decided that the discussions between the district and Duby McDowell Communications will not be disclosed, citing an exemption clause under the Freedom of Information Act known as lawyer-client privilege.
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Auditors CohnReznick will begin its audit into Darien’s special education excess cost grants sometime in the coming days. Performing the audit will be CohnReznick partner Joseph Centofanti and manager Melissa Ferrucci.
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Town financiers hired one of the nation’s largest accounting firms to perform a forensic audit into the school district’s expense reimbursements from the state for special education costs.
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A desk audit conducted during the summer by state officials found Darien Schools were out of compliance in 16 areas related to bullying, sexual harassment and gender equality in school sports. These findings have opened up a litany of other management issues going back to 2011, as a lack of information from the district administration has prevented the problems from receiving public scrutiny.
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David DesRoches 