FALLS SCHOOLS: Teacher certification issues brought to light

Local News

February 2, 2010

Superintendent’s daughter has worked without certification requirements since 2002

By Nick Mattera The Niagara Gazette Tue Feb 02, 2010, 10:01 PM EST

Three Niagara Falls School District employees, including one with ties to the superintendent, have been employed by the district without possessing proper certification, the state Education Department said Monday.

According to a representative from the state Education Department, Mia Bianco, daughter of district Superintendent Cynthia Bianco, has been employed since August 2002 without meeting state teacher certification requirements.

“In a public school district it is required for a teacher’s assistant to have proper certification,” the representative from the state Education Department’s Office of Teaching Initiatives said. “She is supposed to be certified now and was supposed to be certified for the past seven years.”

Acting Human Resource Director Barbara Joyce confirmed that Bianco lacked certification and said it is something she has been working toward.

“You are required to have a teacher certification to be a (teaching assistant),” Joyce said. “(Bianco) is working toward that now, as are other teacher assistants lacking certification.”

District Superintendent Cynthia Bianco said the issue surrounding her daughter was an oversight and that she was fully qualified to work in her capacity with the district.

“She has completed all of her required coursework, she graduated from Niagara County Community College with honors and it’s simply a matter of a missing piece of paper,” Bianco said.

Bianco said she had contacted Nicole Bensley from the regional teacher certification office, who confirmed the clerical error citing missing paperwork.

School Board President Russell Petrozzi said it was a good learning experience for the district but the matter should have been recognized.

“We should have caught it,” Petrozzi said. “It’s the duty of the employee to make sure their certification doesn’t lapse but its also up to us as a district to ensure all of our teachers are meeting state guidelines.”

The Gazette reviewed the certification standing of 51 teacher’s assistants employed by the district, finding just three employees who lacked required qualifications.

Bianco, Cassandra DiCamillo and April Downey were identified by the state Education Department as teachers who raised a “red flag” in the system.

The SED said that DiCamillo received her certification on Monday but admitted she should have been certified prior to that date. Downey’s temporary license expired in January 2005, and has not yet been approved for her continuing license.

The state Education Department representative said that Mia Bianco submitted documentation applying for certification on Oct. 1, 2009, but the inquiry has not yet been approved. She added that while Bianco was not meeting SED requirements, it is not the state’s responsibility to police school districts.

The district will be reviewing the certification standing of all its teachers, ensuring that they are all up to date, Petrozzi said.

Bianco said that her daughter had completed more than 60 hours of course work, despite just needing six for certification.

“This is a learning experience, we don’t want a situation that may compromise someone’s hard work,” Bianco said. “We want to ensure that all of our staff are up to date on their certification and be sure we have 100 percent certification.”

Information regarding teacher certification can be found on the SED Web site at http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/certificate/home.html.

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