Serving The Willistons, Albertson, Herricks, Mineola, and Searingtown
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Friday, April 24, 2015
Vol. 64, No. 17
troupe, station to do radio play
gift of life turns 40
barnett to not run for re-election
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Health groups float deal ideas by Winthrop
a m e r i c a n g i r l fa s h i o n
Employees informed of informal discussions with ‘usual suspects’ By Ja m es G a l l o w ay Winthrop-University Hospital has engaged in informal preliminary discussions with other hospitals — including large systems in New York City — about potential partnerships and possible mergers, a top Winthrop spokesman said. The spokesman, Ed Keating, insisted that at this time Winthrop has no agreement, plan for any agreement or specific organization in mind for an agreement with another hospital. Winthrop has not initiated any discussions, he said. “We are simply continuing to do our diligence and perform our responsibility to our community and the board of directors by talking to whoever wants to talk — but we are not by any stretch close to an agreement with anyone at this time,” Keating said. “We just continue to explore our options.” John Collins, Winthrop’s presi-
dent and chief executive officer, recently discussed the status of the negotiations with the hospital’s employees in a town-hall style meeting. Keating would not name the specific hospitals Winthrop has talked to, but said one could infer the “usual suspects” by looking at the “three or four large hospital systems in New York City.” A hospital employee who asked to not be identified said New York-Presbyterian, NYU Langone and Mt. Sinai were among the health care systems mentioned as being part of the discussions. Winthrop and North ShoreLong Island Jewish have not engaged in discussions, Keating said, adding the North Shore-LIJ model does not fit Winthrop’s mission. “North Shore-LIJ takes over hospitals…those models are not the kind of thing we’re interested in,” he said. “As it stands, Winthrop plans to remain a major academic Continued on Page 52
(C) 2015 MARTHA GORFEIN PHOTOCONCEPTS
St. Aiden’s School hosted an American Girl fashion show Saturday in Williston Park. See photos page 48.
N. Shore students join test opt-out movement BY BILL SAN ANTONIO North Shore school district officials said students who recently opted out of the state assessment in English Language
Arts reflect the concerns of parents and school administrators with a teacher evaluation system that relies heavily on student test scores and a fumbled rollout of the Common Core standards.
About 15.7 percent of students eligible to take the exam in the East Williston, Herricks, Manhasset, Mineola, New Hyde Park-Garden City Park and Roslyn school districts refused Continued on Page 53
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