NY Ranked No. 13 in Teacher Quality Report

(WASHINGTON) -- Report cards are out and states across the country have been graded on their quality of teachers, according to a report released Wednesday from the National Council on Teacher Quality.

The Washington-based council ranked New York No. 13 in the 2011 report that graded states’ overall teacher quality policies based on five factors:  how effective the state was in delivering well-prepared teachers, expanding the pool of teachers, identifying effective teachers, retaining effective teachers, and booting ineffective ones.

New York was given an overall grade of C, up from the D+ it earned two years ago, according to the report.

No state was awarded an A in the group's report for 2011. Florida received the highest ranking with a B, while Montana received the lowest with an F.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

NY Healthcare Providers Meet Federally Subsidized Program Goals

(NEW YORK) -- With more than 10,000 New York State healthcare providers adopting electronic medical records in 2011, the state successfully met its end-of-year goals for a federally subsidized program designed to improve the quality of care for patients across the state.

The Regional Extension Centers (RECs) program instructs medical professionals how to implement electronic medical records and how to achieve the federally defined "Meaningful Use" of them, qualifying them for reimbursements. Federal and state data has proven that health information technologies improve healthcare and reduce its cost, according to a press release.

New York administers the REC programs via the New York City Health Department which covers the five boroughs. The New York eHealth Collaborative (NYeC), a federally designated public private partnership, covers the rest of the state including Long Island.

The NYC Dept. of Health currently enrolls 4,900 healthcare providers in the program, while NYeC enrolls 5,212.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Schumer Recommends Lorna Schofield for Federal Judge

(ALBANY, N.Y.) -- On Monday, U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) announced that he recommends Lorna G. Schofield as a judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Schofield, 56, is a graduate of New York University Law School and worked at various law firms as well as being an assistant United States attorney in the Criminal Division of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York. If elected to the bench, she would be the first person of Filipino heritage to serve.

"As a top-flight lawyer and former Assistant US Attorney, Schofield has had a distinguished legal career and would make a fantastic judge," said Schumer. "When I select judges, I always look for three things – excellence, diversity, and moderation – and Schofield exemplifies all of these qualities. I’m pleased to recommend her to President Obama for the Southern District Bench."

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

NY Senators to Introduce Sanctions Bill Against Syria

(NEW YORK) -- U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Charles Schumer have announced that they plan on introducing a sanctions bill against Syria, in light of the ongoing tension in that country.

The Democratic senators from New York announced Monday that they will introduce the Syrian Human Rights Accountability Act, which will require Syria's President Bashar al-Assad to identify members of the Syrian government and others who have violated the rights of those calling for reform in the country. Once identified, those individuals will then be denied access to visas to the United States and will not be allowed to conduct financial and property transactions in the U.S., according to a release from Schumer's office.

The bill also aims to crack down on companies which sell technology or weapons to Syria for the purpose of censorship or abusing human rights in that country from doing business with the U.S.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

NY Senators to Introduce Sanctions Bill Against Syria

(NEW YORK) -- U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) have announced that they plan on introducing a sanctions bill against Syria, in light of the ongoing tension in that country.

The senators announced Monday that they will introduce the Syrian Human Rights Accountability Act, which will require Syria's President Bashar al-Assad to identify members of the Syrian government and others who have violated the rights of those calling for reform in the country. Once identified, those individuals will then be denied access to visas to the United States and will not be allowed to conduct financial and property transactions in the U.S., according to a release from Schumer's office.

The bill also aims to crack down on companies seeking to do business with the U.S., which sell technology or weapons to Syria for the purpose of censorship or abusing human rights in that country.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio