Syracuse New Times - WHAT'S SHAKIN'

School Aid is Mixed Blessing -

Wed, 15 May 13 00:00:00 -0600

While the Syracuse City School District is pleased to have obtained $31.5 million in state aid for seven struggling schools, the head of the city’s teacher’s union says that the money, while welcome, isn’t the answer to the problems his members face every day in classrooms and hallways.

Jazz Fest Lineup Refined -

Wed, 15 May 13 00:00:00 -0600

Although teases of summer have come and gone, regardless of the weather, the season is about to start with favorite summertime fests on the way. The 31st annual Syracuse M&T Jazz Fest, which was announced several weeks back, has a final lineup with a few pleasant surprises.

Socci’s Spirit -

Wed, 08 May 13 00:00:00 -0600

“We would walk in somewhere, I’d turn around, and she’d be in this group of people, have no idea who they were, and they’d have their arms around her, hugging her,” friend Erin Colaneri says of Socci’s ability to draw people in with her charismatic presence.

City Schools Win State Aid - From the Syracuse City School District, at last a good number.

Wed, 08 May 13 00:00:00 -0600

The district is batting 1.000 in its efforts to attain state money for struggling schools. In March, it learned that all seven applications submitted to the state for “Innovation Zones” have been approved by the state Department of Education; $31.5 million will be available beginning with the next school year for seven of the lowest performing schools in the city, designated by the state as “priority schools.”

Commencement with Kristof -

Wed, 08 May 13 00:00:00 -0600

In an April 19 appearance on HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher, New York Times columnist Nicholas D. Kristof chatted with guests about the Boston Marathon attacks and the gun control debate.

Does Saving Money Endanger Lives? - The mayor says no. Firefighters say maybe.

Wed, 01 May 13 00:00:00 -0600

The Syracuse Fire Fighters Union is pulling out all the stops in its battle against Mayor Stephanie Miner’s plan to reduce Fire Department staffing and to take one fire engine out of service.

Outspoken Nun to Speak -

Wed, 24 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

The Roman Catholic nun who in 2012 told the Democratic National Convention that “We Nuns on the Bus care for the 100 percent,” will speak Friday, April 26, 4 p.m., at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs.

Fish Story -

Wed, 24 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

Whether you’re thanking the groundhog for predicting an early spring or just grateful to Mother Nature that the sun has found its way to Syracuse, it seems that winter is finally thawing. With warm weather comes fishing season, and for the 17th consecutive year, the Nine Mile Creek Conservation Council will stock the lower section of the river with trout.

Open the Tent -

Wed, 24 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

The Hebrew Bible’s Book of Genesis includes a story in which the patriarch Abraham sees three strangers on the horizon. To protect himself from potential attack, Abraham opens his tent as a sign of welcome and hospitality.
After Abraham served a feast of fine bread and meat, the strangers said that his wife, Sarah, would bear a child. A year later, when she was 90 and Abraham 100, they had a son, whom they named Isaac.

Giving Voice to Abuse -

Wed, 24 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

It took that long for DeVesty, now 50 and the mother of two young adult boys, to rip that hand from her mouth and speak about what happened to her. In the past three years, she has devoted her life to enabling other abused men and women find their voice and a path to healing through a fast-growing project she calls the Clean Slate Diaries.

QB Makes His Case -

Wed, 24 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

If the crowd attending the Syracuse University spring football game expected to come away with answers about next season’s squad, they exited disappointed. When trying to evaluate a school’s players against each other, the takeaways can be genuinely mixed.

WISE Words -

Wed, 24 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

Dr. Zina Berry, a Syracuse dentist, didn’t sugarcoat the difficulty running a business.
“Business is not something learned in a textbook,” she told about 100 people during an afternoon workshop April 16. “When you’re in school and getting A’s, then you go out to the bank with your business plan and they say, ‘No.’ It’s not an easy task, but once you get it, you hold onto it and work it, work it, work it.”

Boomers Ballin’ at the SWCC -

Wed, 17 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

Lazarus Sims hit the floor at half court last Sunday, April 14, in the Southwest Community Center gym. For a few scary minutes, he lay motionless, a seeming redux of Kobe Bryant’s NBA season-ending spill last week.

Spousal Support -

Wed, 17 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

When Alfonso Davis gathered his supporters at Sophistications Cafe on Saturday, April 13, to announce that he was running for mayor of Syracuse, he never mentioned the name of Mayor Stephanie Miner, the incumbent he seeks to oust.

Chiefs All Wet in Opener -

Wed, 17 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

It had to take two strikes before the Syracuse Chiefs could begin their 2013 hometown season slate. The Boys of Summer had to contend with nagging precipitation on the afternoon of Friday, April 12, scheduled as Opening Day.

Booking Readers -

Wed, 17 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

Shelly House hasn’t always been an avid reader, but you wouldn’t guess it from the way she consumes books these days. House, of Liverpool, visits a library every day and reads four or five books a week.

Five Questions after the Final Four -

Wed, 10 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

No more tossing and turning, wondering how, in the Syracuse University men’s basketball team’s 61-56 Final Four loss to Michigan on Saturday, April 6, the Wolverines’ Caris Levert and Spike Albrecht—who?—scored twice as many points (14) as SU’s...

From Here to Dar - A non-profit with local roots is hosting a charity race with global implications this weekend.

Wed, 10 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

Bid for Life -

Wed, 10 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

Debra Graham is a survivor.In April 2003, she lost her youngest son, Josh, to suicide. Although she says losing a loved one to such tragedy is a horrific pain, Graham found hope through her involvemen

Coaching Hot Spot -

Wed, 10 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0600

Everyone knows that Central New York is the epicenter of college lacrosse. Going into the NCAA men’s basketball Final Four, you could make also make a strong case that Syracuse had become the geo