Fixing Norwalk Schools Three Years Later; Lore Arrested

It’s kinda hard to wrap your brain around this, but parents who brought up concerns about Stacey Lore, and Spectrum Kids LLC, have finally seen some criminal action in the matter. Stacey Lore was arrested in New York State Tuesday on the following charges:

The first warrant charges Lore with one count of Larceny in the First Degree, one count of Forgery in the Second Degree and one count of Criminal Impersonation in which the victim was the Norwalk Public School system.  Lore had billed the Norwalk Public Schools a total of $155,781.25 for services rendered in 2007 and 2008.  Lore is being held on a bond of $150,000.00 for this case.

The other two warrants also charge Lore with one count of Larceny in the First Degree, one count of Forgery in the Second Degree and one count of Criminal Impersonation respectively.  Local families, using their own funds, were the victims in these two cases in which Lore was paid $12,706.00 and $21,364.50 for services rendered.  Lore is being held on a bond of $25,000 for each of these cases.

If we dial up the wayback machine, it was October of 2008 when The Hour broke the story about the accounting discrepencies by Spectrum Kids. Then, as in now, we must ask who knew about this and what was being done about it. Well, it turns out that Corda waited till March of 2009 before triggering the Norwalk Police Investigation. What took so long?

The investigation was opened on March 18th, 2009 by the Norwalk Police Department after then Superintendent Sal Corda of the Norwalk Public Schools filed a complaint concerning the credentials that Stacy A. Lore of Spectrum Kids LLC represented herself to have for the services she was providing for Autistic children.

Detective David Orr began the investigation by conducting several interviews and gathering information from the State of Connecticut Office of the Attorney General and the U.S. Department of Education.  On June 4th, 2009 Detective Orr executed a search warrant for the banking records of Lore and then a search warrant at the residence of Lore at 39 Scotsdale Road, Carmel, N.Y. with the assistance of the Putnam County Sheriffs Office.  Numerous business records and documents were seized.

Detective Orr continued on, reviewing numerous documents related to Spectrum Kids LLC and was able to determine that the credentials represented by Stacy A. Lore were fraudulent.  It was determined that Stacy A. Lore had only earned a G.E.D. from the Board of Cooperative Educational Services of New York State (B.O.C.E.S.), a vocational school in State of New York .

Detective Orr’s investigation also identified that Stacy Lore of Spectrum Kids LLC had provided services for several other School Districts in Fairfield County and Westchester County and they will be notified of the Norwalk Police Department’s investigation and the evidence recovered should they wish to file a complaint within their local jurisdictions.

It would seem that former superintendent Sal Corda holds some responsibility in this as well. Why wait? Why drag his feet? Why allow months to trickle by before getting the police involved?

Well, we can assume an answer in that one. For one It wasn’t until Stuart Opdahl resigned as Chief Operations Officer, in March of  2008, that Corda had to take some responsibility for the state of the finances of the district. Back then I called for a forensic audit of the BOE books. Was it ever done? Of course not, because a forensic audit would have revealed lickety-split, that there was far more than mere kitchens and wood working tools that were misappropriated. There was that whole professional services issue to look into.

So we are here today. Corda has gone, but then we are still paying his lifetime benefits aren’t we? Shouldn’t he held personally liable for his complete failure to conduct an immediate investigation? I mean, seriously, The Hour, managed to do one, so how difficult was it?

  • Braemar

    A school district gets audited each year with the city. I’m thinking you need a different kind of financial investigation.

    • turfgrrl

      Braemer: Actually, a forensic audit is very specialized: Application of accounting methods to the tracking and collection of forensic evidence, usually for investigation and prosecution of criminal acts such as embezzlement or fraud. Also called forensic accounting.

    • Reality

      what about Janie R. Friedlander – Central Office – Director, Special Education & Pupil Personnel who is leaving Norwalk public school first week of April, also got pay rise for last year’s performance. She and
      Dr. Bea Krawiecki are the once who hired her.

      • Just Catching Up

        Janie is gone. Now it’s Bea’s time.

      • CT Taxpayer

        Do you really think they could hire her without approval from one or more people much higher within the NPS? The contract was way too big for a director to approve. Ultimately, the board of ed must have signed off, but only after it had gone through the administration.

  • Braemar

    sorry i missed the word forensic- you are correct.
    i hope the guilty person gets to pay for all of that work, and not the district through tax money. or maybe there is a kind of insurance in force…

  • Norwalk students suffer

    Actually, there was an extensive audit done by the Dept. of Education.

    The paramaters, by law, were restricted to complaints filed by special education parents. Thus only an audit of some 200+ special education students was completed.

    Anyone remember the paper sherdding caper before Corda was shoved out the door?

    Some how Friedlander rode out her contract, that wont look good for the districts insurance attorneys in a civil court.

    The resultant, both state and federal, D.O.E. compliance mandates, of those investigations have been playing out for some time.

    Significant damage has been done.

    Lost years, lost students are gone forever.

    Unacceptable.

    Simply unacceptable.

    Can’t take Corda and Friendlanders homes but their careers are toast , with our butter, unfortunately.

    What we can do, is, we can make it right for the students that suffered so dearly and ensure we dont hire any more incompetents in charge of our students future.

    • Rick Otto

      “Significant damage has been done. Lost years, lost students are gone forever”

      Very dramatic, but the reality is that there is no way to quantify that.

      The diagnosis of autism is subjective and there is no ‘normal’ to compare the ‘victims’ to, so it becomes a contest between the ‘experts.’ Some will testify that the services provided helped the children and the prosecution’s will swear that irreparable harm was done. The therapists working with the children were certified, so the kids were receiving what was being paid for.

      The whole matter focuses around credentials. The school accepted them and provided her the credibility to hire a properly qualified staff. Her fault was to suck at business (particularly the part of distributing the funds to employees) and lie about her background. Stupid and certainly in violation of the law, but hardly on a par with Tim McVeigh or the Son of Sam, particularly since she would not even need the GED to form the LLC and have her agency approved as a vendor to the district.

      In ethics and law, “Let the punishment fit the crime” is the principle that the severity of penalty for a misdeed or wrongdoing should be reasonable and proportionate to the severity of the infraction. (Wiki) This same sentiment is borne out in Gilbert and Sullivan’s ‘Mikado’ and goes back to Cicero’s DeLegibus in 50 BC. This woman should be chastised and vilified, but not imprisoned for years for trying to help the kids her group served.

      “What we can do, is, we can make it right for the students that suffered so dearly”

      Absolutely!
      Give them an Individualized Educational Plan and services to provide them the ability to receive a Free, Appropriate, Public Education in the Least Restrictive Environment throughout their school career and until they are 22 years old.
      Guarantee them acceptance to college and provide them low cost tuition to some of the best schools in the state.
      Include a monthly stipend, low cost health care and a host of services to help them achieve independence and success as adults, including housing and transportation.

      Actually, they already get all of that, and a whole lot more, as soon as they are diagnosed and Classified on the autism spectrum. They, and the legion of others on the spectrum, are entitled to all of that under state and federal law, so those needs are met.

      Then, what more should they ‘get’ for their involvement in this charade? Why do they really ‘deserve’ anything for their ‘pain and suffering?’ Without ‘proof’ that they were ‘damaged’ and the government’s promise to provide for them for the rest of their lives, a public apology from all of the folks who were responsibly should suffice.

      The idea that the court system should reward the child and their parents for their angst by levying an award against the school district which only serves to punish the taxpayer is absurd. They should be publicly commended for their doing civic duty in identifying an un-credentialed administrator and for helping to see that the necessary safeguards are established to insure that contractors and employees are properly vetted before they are approved or hired. Maybe an awards ceremony and a plaque.

      “What we can do, is, . . . and ensure we dont hire any more incompetents in charge of our students future.”

      That’s up to YOU. You elect the School Board that sets the rules and policies. If you feel they failed their responsibility, generate a movement of fellow reformers to oust the existing members, gather a team of replacements who can do a better job and run.

  • Hmmm . . . the Teflon Central Office

    So, we have an Asst. Supt. for Curriculum to whom the Dir. of Pupil Personnel Services is supposed to report, and he buried his head in the sand.
    Of course, let’s not forget how a number of folks tried to blame the parents for recommending Stacie Lorie in the first place.
    But hey, shouldn’t we also ask why the Human Resources Director never looked into someone who was getting lots of money from the City?>
    Finally :) , we can all ask ourselves why the Human Relations Director, who is supposed to protect our kids’ civil rights, never did a darn thing to stop the abuse of these kids (and robbing kids of time who need immediate and constant help is abuse).

  • One man’s opinion

    Angry parent who was ignored for too long over this fraud.

    This is what happens when a Board of Ed that doesn’t want to oversee its superintendent and wants to ignore parent input to show their unity. Well, thank you Rosa Murray and company– you and your cronies were united in harming our kids. Your gang ignored our emails and phone calls telling you something was wrong with Stacey Lorrie.

    None of you said a word to Marsha Moses (who we all know had close ties to Janie Friedlander) when she tried to whitewash her report. Moses actually claimed that there wasn’t enough evidence to indicate that there was real fraud. If this new board lets her firm do any work they all need to be replaced too!

  • Reality

    Its not all the parents wanted her, that was only for 2 of the children she worked. For other kids Stacy Lore worked the school Dr. Bea brought her in. Dr.Bea and Jenie F cornered the parents saying if your child should be provided ABA as he needs then the school provides StacyLore. The Two parents who initialy had her very soon reported to the school that Stacy is not doing what she is hired for… inspite of that the school Dr.Bea and Jenie con’t using Stacy for other children ignoring the parents voice that’s the worst part. You can read that in the older The hour issues and CREC report. Dr.Bea and Janie found easy to give one check for every child to one person.. they didn’t even want to take the strain to write more checks. And each of them are paid in $200K per annum. Bea and Janie are personaly responsible.

  • fay must go

    What about Fay Rutuolo?

  • OLD TIMER

    Due diligence is the process where a buyer(BOE) does a little homework to determine the seller(LORE), and the item being sold, is legitimate before committing to any agreement to spend serious money. Somebody was responsible for due diligence before this crook got a dime. That person should be held accountable. A few phone calls, before making a deal, would have determined if the claimed credentials were valid, or not. Who knows what else this investigation may reveal ? Ms. Lore is now in a position to do what she can to either stay out of prison or try for a reduced sentence. We may even learn of kickbacks, which could bring the feds in. They love municipal corruption cases. The police detective who did the work on this did a great job, and has lots of questions for her. If she pulled the same scam in several states, the Feds may already be very interested.

  • Reality

    here she writes about her self stacy lore in her blog: http://www.myspace.com/birdsong31

  • Just Catching Up

    Looks like the whole NPS is rotten from the bottom to the top. The fact that kids were being damaged did not become a priority for NPS. The only concern was to protect NPS from the damage – NPS is a victim. It’s ridiculous. For years they have been victimizing parents of children with special needs in Norwalk – coldhearted and ignorant Spec. Ed. staff. It’s time to pay!!!!

  • Amy

    This mess was totally preventable which is the appalling and heartbreaking part. The Daily Norwalk has a good piece— shows just how culpable the district is: http://www.thedailynorwalk.com/schools/phony-austim-therapist-stacy-lore-arrested-0

  • Update anyone?

    Does anyone have an update, did Lore make bond today or is she on her way to Niantic?

  • LORE WATCHER

    One CT site lists Stacey Lore as inmate at York w/$350K total bond
    The Ct Judicial site lists next court case on April 14…
    3 cases related to 3 different dates: April 2007, June 2007, May 2007.
    Each case lists the same 3 charges related to each of those dates:
    Larceny, 1st degree.. class B… Felony
    Forgery, 1st degree.. class D… Felony
    Criminal Impersonation.. class B… MISDEMEANOR
    Sad that the most destructive charge sounds the less damaging.

    There may be little doubt about Stacey but please hold judgement on Dr. Bea, insanity to think she could knowingly put these kids in such danger… However, knowing the others involved who had the screening/hiring responsibilities it’s a different story… time to “GO GET ‘EM”…. Time to take a look at Human Resources and evaluate the damage done to both staff and students in the past decade … when no one was watching.

    • Watching Closely

      I agree with Lore Watcher. Norwalk definitely dropped the ball but I don’t think it’s fair to make Dr. Bea the scapegoat for this mess. Norwalk special ed dept has long lacked leadership. Between this mess and the CREC report, I hope serious changes are made.

  • Insider

    The truth is…..
    Stacy Lore is at York Correctional Institution for Women in Niantic, CT.
    She is charged with Larceny 1, Forgery 2, and Criminal Impersonation. 3 counts each.
    Total bond is $200K. Next Court date is 4/14.

  • ana

    Here are emails to stacy from two of the woman involved, both now saying that damage was done.

    From: Svetlana Rodina-Brien [mailto:srodina-brien@pd******
    To: ‘Stacy Lore’
    Subject: RE: This week

    Hello Stacy,

    Hope you are doing well. Daniel had so-o much fun during my father’s and nephew’s visit. Actually, he can describe his impressions without pictures. His processing gets better every day. For a couple of weeks he was expressing his emotions – I am mad, I am sad, and so on. That is awesome. He told me he loves me. That was so-o cute. Thanks a million for everything you are doing!!!!!

    From:
    “Margaret Bustell”
    View contact details
    To:
    “Stacy Lore”

    Hi, Stacy. I’m re-sending it (attached), but it’s this Friday at 11:15. Also, thanks for redoing the report and for your impending visit. He is doing so well there in only a short time; I am really excited about it!!

    Talk to you soon,

    Margaret

  • CT Taxpayer

    Pardon me for my simple question, but how is it possible for a person with a GED to deceive experienced professionals into believing that she is an expert on autism or any other disability? Wouldn’t a number of professional conversations eventually raise doubts and concerns?

    Another simple question: When a teacher or administrator is hired, he/she has to produce proof of the appropriate certification and endorsements. How is is possible that the school system never bothered to check Lore’s? I’m sure that there are numerous people who have already protested, “It’s not my job!” But it must be SOMEONE’S responsibility to do this. Also, it is SOMEONE’S responsibility to see to it that the necessary policies and procedures exist for appropriate hiring.

    This is a school system that has too often hired the wrong people. This is a school system that has too often hired individuals for the wrong reasons. This is a school system that has too often overlooked real talent and given jobs to people who seem more concerned with fattening their own bank accounts and investment portfolios than doing what is right for the students of Norwalk.

    I don’t know who is to blame, but I do know that the board of education ought to be hanging its collective head in shame for not hiring the best people to assure that the schools and the school system are run effectively and professionally.

  • Fed up

    Thanks CT Taxpayer–I bet the six-figure cadre of do-nothing admistrators in the Central Orifice would take umbrage with your accurate assesment.

  • CT Taxpayer

    They will get over it, I’m sure.

  • Hmmm . . . the Teflon Central Office

    The shame of all of this is that the horrors of Corda and company, and Murry and her ilk, will long haunt our kids.

    As long as Tony Dadonna, Fay Rutola and Dan Cook stick around– and as long as Marilyn Liberator keeps going from one interim job to another- that gang will keep circling the wagons to prevent any reform.

    My only hope is that Colarossi holds a finance committee hearing to investigate the costs of this autism scandal and helps the public find out why so many adults did so little to protect so many kids.

  • NorwalkSpectator

    I truly think you are barking up the wrong tree by having Dan Cook in the same batch as Fay Ruotolo and other long term administrators.

    If I am not mistaken, when Dan arrived, he promptly started working on the $140,000 school lunch program debt and although it has taken two years, it’s now down to about $9,000. My math says that’s $131,000 in non-hemorrhaging red ink, which works out to a lot of burgers and fries, or possibly a couple of teacher’s salaries. A side benefit is that by working with the schools to aggressively market the Free and Reduced Lunch program, the allocation of Title One funding has increased.

    Dan’s been working with Steve Colarossi on the legal fees, a major chunk of BOE expenses. For the first time in anyone’s memory of over twenty years, the District is sending out an RFP for legal fees. They are also considering joint services with Corporation Counsel for basic services because Special Education Legal issues is a specialized field.

    Health care – well, that one has everyone up in arms. The District switched to HSA’s and people want to know where the big savings are. Part of it is eaten up in the switch from one plan to another, and I think another chunk is yet to be realized because it’s not June yet.

    I know $140,000 is peanuts when reconciling a 2.8 million budget shortfall, but he’s done alot more than the previous administrator did. I think you need to attend a few BOE finance committee meetings and listen to the quarterly budget reports.

  • turfgrrl

    The blame for hiring practices, lack of credentials, continued lack of credentials or substantive performance reviews lies squarely in the realm of human resources, human relations and the former superintendent. This is not just about Stacey Lore. It’s about a systemic lack of holding anyone within the administration, and I do mean central office, accountable.

  • NorwalkSpectator

    Fair enough. My major concern is that the positive work that is being done to untangle the huge mess that Dr. Corda and Co. left is being ignored because there are so many problems and so many people want answers yesterday before the questions were even asked.

    Believe it or not, Dr. Corda hasn’t been gone a full year yet. And alot has changed in the District since last June, like….oh, the joint BOE/BET meetings, quarterly budget reports, the budget process starting almost 60 days earlier and work on evaluating the legal fees.

    I fully agree with you that the responsibility for the problems lies with the human resources, human relations and Dr. Corda. Just as Rome wasn’t built in a day, these issues didn’t occur overnight and they are going to take some time to correct. One critical question that everyone should ask themselves is “Regardless of when the administrative employee was hired (which will mitigate some of the ‘let’s start with a clean slate’ issue that really should be up to the new Superintendent, whoever that is), is the current administrator improving the situation or impeding it?” And it’s important to remember that regardless of how much the salaries are, these employees, like the rest of us only have 24 hours in a day.

    BTW, I happened upon an interesting bit of information the other day. I haven’t had a chance to verify it yet, but Dr. Ramos, who I believe was here in Norwalk before becoming the Superintendent of Schools in Bridgeport, supposedly makes more than $230,000 a year. That’s a sizable chunk of change. And for some cold comfort, Bridgeport has 18 failing schools.

    • turfgrrl

      NorwalkSpectator: Yes there’s positive work being done. But in light of the delay by Corda and the personnel administrators, to investigate Lore, and put in polices of accreditation checks, it’s clear that the next step for the BOE is to build a civil case for termination of individuals who knowingly ignored basic practices to avoid Lore’s criminal misrepresentation. Then there’s always Bruce Morris, who does not hold a college degree and yet he is in personnel.

      • NorwalkSpectator

        I couldn’t agree more, as long as the people who are truly responsible are the ones in the cross hairs and not someone who arrived late to the party and are working hard to get things back in shape.

  • Just Catching Up

    ….