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Ex-Camden HS Teacher Gets 4 Years State Prison For Sexually Assaulting Student, Prosecutor Says Ex-Camden HS Teacher Gets 4 Years State Prison For Sexually Assaulting Student, Prosecutor Says
Ex-Camden HS Teacher Gets 4 Years State Prison For Sexually Assaulting Student, Prosecutor Says A former Camden Catholic High School teacher has been sentenced to four years in state prison for the repeated sexual assault of her former student, authorities said.  Bridget Sipera, 37, of Cherry Hill, pleaded guilty to third-degree endangering the welfare of a child on Friday, according to Acting Camden County Prosecutor Jill S. Mayer. Sipera was charged in August of 2020 after an investigation found the sex assaults bean in January 2019 when the student was 17 years old, Mayer said. The assaults continued through March 2020, she said. Under the sentencing agreement, Sipera al…

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by Jon Craig
Schools
39 NJ Public Schools Ranked Among Best In America By U.S. News 39 NJ Public Schools Ranked Among Best In America By U.S. News
39 NJ Public Schools Ranked Among Best In America By U.S. News U.S. News & World Report has released is latest rankings of the best public high schools in America. Thirty-nine of those are in New Jersey and rank among the top 10 percent in the nation. "Families can use the Best High Schools rankings to see how schools compare at the national, state and local level on factors like graduation rates and college readiness," said Anita Narayan, managing editor of Education at U.S. News.  "The rankings also provide insight into academic performance among underserved groups." High Technology High School was ranked the No. 1 STEM school this ye…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Leonia High School Phys Ed Teacher Charged With Sexually Assaulting Underage Teen Leonia High School Phys Ed Teacher Charged With Sexually Assaulting Underage Teen
Leonia High School Phys Ed Teacher Charged With Sexually Assaulting Underage Teen UPDATE: A Leonia High School physical education teacher was arrested after authorities learned of an "inappropriate sexual relationship" with a student, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said Friday. Samantha Krakower, who turned 24 on Wednesday, was charged with second-degree sexual assault by someone with “supervisory or disciplinary power” over a victim 16 to 17 years old, he said. Krakower, a former high school and college softball standout who lives in Palisades Park, also was charged with criminal sexual contact and child endangerment. She remained held in the county lockup Frid…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Wyckoff School District: Principal Might Have Avoided Lengthy Suspension By Cooperating Wyckoff School District: Principal Might Have Avoided Lengthy Suspension By Cooperating
Wyckoff School District: Principal Might Have Avoided Lengthy Suspension By Cooperating UPDATE: Administrative Law Judge Nanci Stokes said she'll tell the state commissioner of education that the Wyckoff Board of Education doesn't have to reinstate Eisenhower Middle School Principal Christopher Iasiello while it continues an investigation. Stokes said Iasiello's appeal to immediately be reinstated doesn't "clearly and convicingly" prove that he's suffering irreparable harm, that there's a "reasonable probability of ultimate success" or that he'll endure greater harm than the Board of Education. It also doesn't establish any legal right to his claim, she found. The principal's …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
NJ Native Who Overcame Great Challenges Dead In Iowa State University Rowing Accident NJ Native Who Overcame Great Challenges Dead In Iowa State University Rowing Accident
NJ Native Who Overcame Great Challenges Dead In Iowa State University Rowing Accident A 20-year-old New Jersey native who overcame great challenges at a young age was among two Iowa State University students who drowned this week in a rowing accident. Yaakov Ben-David, formerly of Lakewood, and freshman Derek Nanni, 19, died when the crew skull they were in capsized during practice last Sunday. Ben-David's body was flown to New Jersey Tuesday, and services were held the following morning at the Lakewood Bais Hakvaros. ISU Chabad director Rabbi Leibel Jacobson said Ben-David was heavily involved in the organization, and described him as an outgoing and "all-around great guy…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
LAWSUITS: 9 More Men Accuse North Jersey Shop Teacher Robert Goodlin Of Sex Assault LAWSUITS: 9 More Men Accuse North Jersey Shop Teacher Robert Goodlin Of Sex Assault
Lawsuits: 9 More Men Accuse North Jersey Shop Teacher Robert Goodlin Of Sex Assault A New Jersey shop teacher previously accused of sexually assaulting a pair of students is facing similar accusations from nine more men, NJ.com reports. The suits were filed in Union and Hudson Superior Courts against Robert Goodlin, who is incarcerated at the Adult Diagnostic Treatment Center in Avenel. In 2019, Goodlin was convicted of sexually assaulting a pair of students at Battin Middle School in Elizabeth, where he taught from 1993 to 2004. Two of the latest suits come from former Elizabeth students, while seven were students in Secaucus -- where Goodlin taught in the 1980s, NJ.com…

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by Cecilia Levine
Lifestyle
Suburban Philly High School Chem Teacher Quietly Marries Jeff Bezos' Billionaire Ex Suburban Philly High School Chem Teacher Quietly Marries Jeff Bezos' Billionaire Ex
Suburban Philly High School Chem Teacher Quietly Marries Jeff Bezos' Billionaire Ex A former chemistry teacher at a Montgomery County  high school quietly tied the knot with Amazon CEO Jeff Bezo's ex-wife last weekend. Dan Jewett and Mackenzie Scott confirmed their marriage in a statement released March 6 on the Giving Pledge website, a campaign that encourages wealthy people to donate a majority of their wealth to charity. Scott -- a philanthropist, author and Princeton University graduate -- has a net worth of $53.9 billion, according to Forbes. She divorced Bezos in 2019 after 25 years of marriage. Jewett taught chemistry at Harriton High School in …

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by Nicole Acosta
Schools
Cliffside Park HS Teacher, Students To Discuss Assignment Turned Memoir On NBC Nightly News Cliffside Park HS Teacher, Students To Discuss Assignment Turned Memoir On NBC Nightly News
Cliffside Park HS Teacher, Students To Discuss Assignment Turned Memoir On NBC Nightly News A Cliffside Park teacher and some of his students who together published a memoir on what it's like living through the COVID-19 pandemic as a teen will be discussing the book Tuesday evening on NBC. Shawn Adler asked his 49 students to document what it's like to be living through a pandemic. Adler and the students took their emotional stories and compiled them into a memoir titled "The Class of COVID-19: Insights from the Inside." "This book touches on all aspects of what it's like to be a teenager during a global plague -- from the young men and woman who have lost the most," the book's …

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by Cecilia Levine
News
LAWSUIT: Lenape Valley Schools Superintendent Alleges Age Discrimination LAWSUIT: Lenape Valley Schools Superintendent Alleges Age Discrimination
Lawsuit: Lenape Valley Schools Superintendent Alleges Age Discrimination The Superintendent of Lenape Valley Schools has filed a lawsuit against the regional board of education with allegations of harassment and ageism. Paul DiRupo says his contract as district superintendent was not renewed because the Lenape Valley Regional Board of Education President Richard Kuncken told him the group was “going younger,” according to a suit filed in Sussex County Superior Court. The comment was made after a meeting among board members regarding their decision not to renew DiRupo’s contract. DiRupo, 64, says he was further discriminated against due to his diagnosis of Multi…

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by Valerie Musson
Obituaries
Solebury School Mourns Loss Of Beloved Athletic Director Robert Eichem, 45 Solebury School Mourns Loss Of Beloved Athletic Director Robert Eichem, 45
Solebury School Mourns Loss Of Beloved Athletic Director Robert Eichem, 45 Robert Howard Eichem III of New Hope died on Feb. 10, 2021. He was 45 years old. He died at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia “following a sudden onset medical event at his home," his obituary says. Eichem was known for his positions as both the Director of Athletics and ESL teacher at the Solebury School where he worked since 2001, his obit says. "Rob’s connections with the Solebury School community are numerous—athletic director, teacher, advisor, administrator, coach, parent, colleague... friend," Tom Wilschutz, Head of the Solebury School said in a statement. "His r…

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by Nicole Acosta
News
Ex-Pennsylvania Gym Teacher Gets 10 Years For Sexually Assaulting Teen Student Ex-Pennsylvania Gym Teacher Gets 10 Years For Sexually Assaulting Teen Student
Ex-Pennsylvania Gym Teacher Gets 10 Years For Sexually Assaulting Teen Student An ex Pennsylvania gym teacher is facing five to 10 years behind bars and will register as a sex offender for the rest of her life for sexually assaulting a 13-year-old male student, The Meadville Tribune reports. Rochelle Cressman, 34, was arrested by Pennsylvania State Police in May 2019 for sexually assaulting the teen multiple times from September 2018 to April 2019, according to court documents obtained by the news outlet. The former Titusville Middle School gym teacher reportedly initiated the incidents, which occurred at her former Oil Creek Township home and another house in Ti…

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by Nicole Acosta
News
Catholic NJ High School Pair In Profane, Racist Video Draw Wrath, Shake Community Catholic NJ High School Pair In Profane, Racist Video Draw Wrath, Shake Community
Catholic NJ High School Pair In Profane, Racist Video Draw Wrath, Shake Community Two seniors at a respected Catholic Bergen County high school used a racial epithet and then cursed “Black Lives Matter” while downing shots in an offensive viral video that has brought widespread wrath on a shaken community. "Don't be snowflakes," one student from the all-girls Immaculate Heart Academy in Washington Township says, before the other utters a racial epithet during a 25-second clip recorded at a Valentine’s Day party in earshot of other underage teens. Laughter is heard, after which the second girl leans into the camera leans and repeats the epithet, then says "Black Lives Mat…

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by Jerry DeMarco