Master Services Agreement with Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark
Dear Uncommon Schools North Star Academy,
This is a request for public records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form. Please acknowledge receipt of this message.
Records requested:
A copy of the "Master Services Agreement with Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark" referred in your Board Meeting below:
Board Meeting Date/Time: North Star Academy Charter School of Newark Board of Trustees Meeting 6:00 p.m., Monday June 17th, 2019 North Star Regional Office (18 Washington Pl)
Item: "Ms. Gerald presented the resolution to adopt Master Services Agreement (inclusive of its initial Services and
Fee Addendum) with Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark. After
discussion, it having been moved and duly seconded, the board voted unanimously to approve the resolution as outlined in the Resolution to adopt Master Services Agreement with Uncommon Schools and North Star
Academy Charter School of Newark."
(https://northstar.uncommonschools.org/wp...)
Yours faithfully,
John Kenneth
Hello Mr. Kenneth,
See our response to your request attached.
Best,
Karin
______________________________________________
Karin Gerald
Senior Director
North Star Academy
C: (973) 943-9740
-----Original Message-----
From: John Kenneth <[OPRA #18893 email]>
Sent: Monday, December 7, 2020 7:18 AM
To: Karin Gerald <[Uncommon Schools North Star Academy request email]>
Subject: OPRA request - Master Services Agreement with Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark
Dear Uncommon Schools North Star Academy,
This is a request for public records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form. Please acknowledge receipt of this message.
Records requested:
A copy of the "Master Services Agreement with Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark" referred in your Board Meeting below:
Board Meeting Date/Time: North Star Academy Charter School of Newark Board of Trustees Meeting 6:00 p.m., Monday June 17th, 2019 North Star Regional Office (18 Washington Pl)
Item: "Ms. Gerald presented the resolution to adopt Master Services Agreement (inclusive of its initial Services and Fee Addendum) with Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark. After discussion, it having been moved and duly seconded, the board voted unanimously to approve the resolution as outlined in the Resolution to adopt Master Services Agreement with Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark."
(https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=ht...)
Yours faithfully,
John Kenneth
-------------------------------------------------------------------
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Dear Karin,
Thank you for your response.
As you can see from your own Board Minutes, it's very clear that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and the Master Services Agreement are not the same.
"Mr. Brett Peiser and Mr. Bob Howitt presented an update on the revised Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) between Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy. Mr. Howitt shared
his notes on the negotiations and edits for the current MOU draft."
(https://northstar.uncommonschools.org/wp...)
"Ms. Gerald presented the resolution to adopt Master Services Agreement (inclusive of its initial Services and Fee Addendum) with Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark. After
discussion, it having been moved and duly seconded, the board voted unanimously to approve the resolution as outlined in the Resolution to adopt Master Services Agreement with Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark. Mr. Redburn abstained. "
(https://northstar.uncommonschools.org/wp...)
Using the logic in your response (which is without merit), you can "colloquially" refer any and every document Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to "circumvent the OPRA Regulations."
You claimed that "Agreement is exempt from disclosure under OPRA by virtue of N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1.1, in that it contains “proprietary commercial or financial information” and also “information which, if disclosed, would give an advantage to [Uncommon School’s] competitors.”
OPRA allows Custodians to redact certain information (must be made in a visually obvious manner) with providing a detailed specific reason explaining the lawful basis for each redaction.
This is a request for public records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form. Please acknowledge receipt of this message.
Records requested:
Please provide me a copy of the Master Services Agreement with Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark by redacting the document so that it doesn't contain “proprietary commercial or financial information” and also “information which, if disclosed, would give an advantage to [Uncommon School’s] competitors.
Yours sincerely,
John Kenneth
Dear Karin Gerald,
A correction and clarification:
After I read the response once more, I noticed that the last sentence says " the Agreement is exempt from disclosure ........ also “information which, if disclosed, would give an advantage to [Uncommon School’s] competitors.”
When I read it before, I overlooked the fact that the last sentence was actually saying "Uncommon School" and not the "North Star".
If this letter was written by a Counsel who is working for the Uncommon Schools, please kindly remind him that my request was not for an organization which is not subject to OPRA .
If you, as a public school official, wrote this response yourself, then this is a clear conflict of interest per N.J.S.A. 18A:12-24 and you are violating NJ School Ethics Act.
Since this response has been written for "Uncommon School", it is irrelevant to my request; therefore, I am still expecting a response to my original request.
Thank you
Yours sincerely,
John Kenneth
Hello Mr. Kenneth,
I received your December 16th and December 17th emails. We will provide a response within seven business days. Please be advised that our school is closed for winter break from December 21th to January 4th.
______________________________________________
Karin Gerald
Senior Director
North Star Academy
C: (973) 943-9740
-----Original Message-----
From: John Kenneth <[OPRA #18893 email]>
Sent: Thursday, December 17, 2020 1:14 PM
To: Karin Gerald <[Uncommon Schools North Star Academy request email]>
Subject: Internal review of OPRA request - Master Services Agreement with Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark
Dear Karin Gerald,
A correction and clarification:
After I read the response once more, I noticed that the last sentence says " the Agreement is exempt from disclosure ........ also "information which, if disclosed, would give an advantage to [Uncommon School's] competitors."
When I read it before, I overlooked the fact that the last sentence was actually saying "Uncommon School" and not the "North Star".
If this letter was written by a Counsel who is working for the Uncommon Schools, please kindly remind him that my request was not for an organization which is not subject to OPRA .
If you, as a public school official, wrote this response yourself, then this is a clear conflict of interest per N.J.S.A. 18A:12-24 and you are violating NJ School Ethics Act.
Since this response has been written for "Uncommon School", it is irrelevant to my request; therefore, I am still expecting a response to my original request.
Thank you
Yours sincerely,
John Kenneth
-----Original Message-----
Hello Mr. Kenneth,
See our response to your request attached.
Best,
Karin
______________________________________________
Karin Gerald
Senior Director
North Star Academy
C: (973) 943-9740
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this UNIQUE email address for all replies to this request and no other:
[OPRA #18893 email]
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=ht...
View this OPRA request & responses online:
https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=ht...
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will be delayed.
If you find this service useful as an OPRA custodian, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's website.
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CAUTION : This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
Mr. Kenneth,
Please see the attached correspondence.
Regards,
Craig Dashiell
Counsel
Lowenstein Sandler LLP
T: 973.597.2370
F: 973.597.2371
[1]vCard [2]Bio [3]LinkedIn
From: John Kenneth
<[4][OPRA #18893 email]>
Sent: Thursday, December 17, 2020 1:14 PM
To: Karin Gerald <[5][Uncommon Schools North Star Academy request email]>
Subject: Internal review of OPRA request - Master Services Agreement with
Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark
Dear Karin Gerald,
A correction and clarification:
After I read the response once more, I noticed that the last sentence says
" the Agreement is exempt from disclosure ........ also “information
which, if disclosed, would give an advantage to [Uncommon School’s]
competitors.”
When I read it before, I overlooked the fact that the last sentence was
actually saying "Uncommon School" and not the "North Star".
If this letter was written by a Counsel who is working for the Uncommon
Schools, please kindly remind him that my request was not for an
organization which is not subject to OPRA .
If you, as a public school official, wrote this response yourself, then
this is a clear conflict of interest per N.J.S.A. 18A:12-24 and you are
violating NJ School Ethics Act.
Since this response has been written for "Uncommon School", it is
irrelevant to my request; therefore, I am still expecting a response to my
original request.
Thank you
Yours sincerely,
John Kenneth
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
-----Original Message-----
From: John Kenneth
<[6][OPRA #18893 email]>
Sent: Wednesday, December 16, 2020 8:57 PM
To: Karin Gerald <[7][Uncommon Schools North Star Academy request email]>
Subject: Internal review of OPRA request - Master Services Agreement with
Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark
Dear Karin,
Thank you for your response.
As you can see from your own Board Minutes, it's very clear that the
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and the Master Services Agreement are
not the same.
"Mr. Brett Peiser and Mr. Bob Howitt presented an update on the revised
Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) between Uncommon Schools and North Star Academy. Mr.
Howitt shared
his notes on the negotiations and edits for the current MOU draft."
([8]https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=ht...)
"Ms. Gerald presented the resolution to adopt Master Services Agreement
(inclusive of its initial Services and Fee Addendum) with Uncommon Schools
and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark. After
discussion, it having been moved and duly seconded, the board voted
unanimously to approve the resolution as outlined in the Resolution to
adopt Master Services Agreement with Uncommon Schools and North Star
Academy Charter School of Newark. Mr. Redburn abstained. "
([9]https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=ht...)
Using the logic in your response (which is without merit), you can
"colloquially" refer any and every document Memorandum of Understanding
(MOU) to "circumvent the OPRA Regulations."
You claimed that "Agreement is exempt from disclosure under OPRA by
virtue of N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1.1, in that it contains “proprietary commercial
or financial information” and also “information which, if disclosed, would
give an advantage to [Uncommon School’s] competitors.”
OPRA allows Custodians to redact certain information (must be made in a
visually obvious manner) with providing a detailed specific reason
explaining the lawful basis for each redaction.
This is a request for public records made under OPRA and the common law
right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form. Please
acknowledge receipt of this message.
Records requested:
Please provide me a copy of the Master Services Agreement with Uncommon
Schools and North Star Academy Charter School of Newark by redacting the
document so that it doesn't contain “proprietary commercial or financial
information” and also “information which, if disclosed, would give an
advantage to [Uncommon School’s] competitors.
Yours sincerely,
John Kenneth
-----Original Message-----
Hello Mr. Kenneth,
See our response to your request attached.
Best,
Karin
______________________________________________
Karin Gerald
Senior Director
North Star Academy
C: (973) 943-9740
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this UNIQUE email address for all replies to this request and
no other:
[10][OPRA #18893 email]
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
[11]https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=ht...
View this OPRA request & responses online:
[12]https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=ht...
Please note that in some cases publication of requests and responses will
be delayed.
If you find this service useful as an OPRA custodian, please ask your web
manager to link to us from your organisation's website.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
CAUTION : This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not
click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know
the content is safe.
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