These weren't carpetbaggers or people sneaking across the river. They were FL residents that hit hard times. Are you 2 always so negative? You're like one in the same.

so this kid is in town for 17 years and THAT is the one we are removing? I'd be happy to support that kid with my taxes for one more year. This is where the right thing to do isn't always the right thing to do.

Exactly, Stu.

Chris, Nothing negative about my opinion on this story. I'm glad the system is finally taking action. What you miss , because of your bleeding heart, is that this kid has just gotten a lesson in accountability. His parents have none, so he will now be affected because of it. It is unfortunate, that posters as yourself and Stu will yell foul on the BOE and make them seem to be the monster, instead of acknowledging the fact that this family knowingly stole and falsified records to keep their son in a Fair Lawn school even though they moved. If the family got away with it, this boy would have been led to believe that it is alright to be a liar and a cheat. The rule is pretty clear.

I would wonder if there is a middle ground. The operating cost per pupil of Hawthorne is lower by a few thousand than Fair Lawn (as per 2008 available statistics). Have FL's BOE ask for the per pupil cost from Hawthorne and have the family billed for the few thousand difference and then the kid can stay without any tax burden to the FL citizenship. A break-even.

FL1985-where do you draw the line then? Why even consider a break even? He doesnt belong there.

cause he is my friend.. and i want him to stay? me and him are boys and i dont want him to move away for his last year in the fair lawn school system. I dont understand how you have to have a say in it because you dont even know the kid. what if your best friend had to move away due to economic reasons and his school wouldnt let him stay because he lived in another town. see it from another perspective before you start complaining about taxes

Fair Lawn 68, Taxpayers have every right to question who uses the dollars they supply. He is taking teaching time and attention from students that belong there. I do have some advice for you. You should pay the same amount of attention to your studies as you do your friends situation. Your writing is horrible. Your parents aren't getting there taxdollars worth either.

To all the negative people: I bet if this was your life situation and it was your kid, you'd be outraged. Why don't you put your self in someone else's shoes and show a little sympathy, having parents going thru a divorce is hard enough, now FLHS is gonna tell him he can't attend the school and graduate with his friends? His parents paid taxes for 17 years to the town, cut the kid and his parents so slack here.

How can you call a person a river sneak or carpet baggers ? Ignorant fool ... This family is extremly well know in fair lawn, torey excels in sports and has worked very hard to excel in academics over the year. This isn't a case of a family that came here to rent an apartment for a year and left. This is family who had roots. Torey is a child. A child who's hope in the school system has be ripped to shreds? A town that. prides themselves in there blue ribbon highschhol education is literally taking away the one thing he hasn't lost. This child has to deal with his family being ripped in two and being kicked out of the town he has spent his entire life in. Every case should be individual ... There must be a gray area. Sorry torey ... This is wrong buddy. And to the fair lawn board of ed... You should be ashamed, this is a childs life. A child willing to learn.
- Lorena

First of Kudos to the Super! Frankly they ought to send the parents a bill to reimburse us for their THEFT OF SERVICE. Its also ridiculous that moving in September "entitles" you to the full year's benefits if you are a senior. What basis in law does the board have to give away 9 months (or even 1 day) of service?

That said, this illustrates the absurdity of the lack of parental choice vouchers. Instead of kids being tied to a school based on where there parents live, if the state simply provided a learning grant based on grade to all children living in the state, this would be a non-issue. This could also be done on a more local level. If Fair Lawn led the way on this, other towns would likely follow to keep up.

It also highlights another fact which our council and BoE does NOTHING about. The unconstitutional Abbott Districts which add a burden of 20% to the average property owner's taxes. If Fair Lawn wasn't cheated out of $32,859,105 EVERY YEAR, our taxes would about $2400 less per year on the average property. This in part caused Cuocci to leave Fair Lawn in the first place. We should all demand both the BoE and Council pass a resolution demanding Senator Gordon, Assembly members Wagner and Eustice immediately sponsor legislation to end the Abbott Scam or resign. Let's bring our money back to our town.

To all of you negative, heartless people. Give this family a break !! Tory has been in the FL school system his whole life, what is really the big deal to let him stay 1 more year to finish HS with his friends ?? I would understand if the student were in elementary school or middle school, but a junior in high school ?? Come on people, where are your hearts ?? LET TOREY STAY !!!! Sandy V

thomas paine you're an ignorans fool

Who cares about taxes you donkey let the kid stay for one more year you're an embarrassment what if that was your kid how would you feel.

adolpho you are so ignorant this kid is one of my bestfriend and how about you put yourself in his shoes and see how you would feel you have no right to say anything like that fatass and stop using the patch as a social network nobody cares what you have to say just because this is law does not mean its perfect torey has a year and a not even a half left its jus tthe right thing to do and who says kudos anymore

An adult conversation doesn't involve calling people names just cause they understand how the real world is and aren't sheltered and think that every time something doesn't go there way they can cry and complain to get what they want

Adolpho and Bruce, how dare you comment on this situation without having any knowledge other than what this article has given. How can you possibly blindly agree with the decision that the Board of Education has made without looking at the possible ripple effects it has on a growing child. For example, multiple studies have proven that there is a 15 percent increase in dropout rate in students who switch high schools at least once. Other than those cold hard facts, sometimes it's necessary to realize what's being done and what's ethical. One referendum that all governments have, including our national government therefore including Fair Lawn's as well, is to better children's education. Case in point, President Bush's "no child left behind" act, as well as President Obama's new legislature to require students to stay in school through age 18. What this legislature says is that we are attempting to provide every student with the best possible situation to learn, which in this case is having torey remain in the Fair Lawn School System because of its excellent academic reputation. By disenrolling him you're crippling his chance to learn and that should be criminal. Just think of what is being done to torey's life, and decide if its right.

p.s. don't you dare attempt to criticize my writing because I'm a straight A student through the Fair Lawn Schools System, and I know I can write better than you blindfolded and on drugs.

Hey guys, had to jump in and erase some comments for profanity. I know this is a deeply personal issue to some people, and I understand the emotions. All I can really tell you is that if you want to be heard, you want your point to get across, kinda need you to do it within the context of our terms of use, which basically means no attacking each other and no f-bombs (or the like). Thanks in advance.

GUYS SIMPLE SOLUTION!!!!!!!!!!! grow up...

how bout u delete comments from people that are jerks and enjoys picking on young children like Sal @adolpho 2 you dont even know him and i bet u thinking about my prior comment where i called you out for being a coward behind a key board

It is only fair to let Torey finish out his high school career at Fair Lawn High School. His sister had successfully completed school here and he should have the same right. He should not have to suffer the consequences of a divorce. With the amount of taxes that each individual pays (or should be paying), there should be a suffice amount of funds to allow him to complete high school without it being much of a financial burden to anyone.

Many people have cheated the school system here, but the Cuocci's have not done so in their 17 years of residency.

I fully understand where you all are coming from about where we draw the line and that is certainly something to be thought about.

People who cheat the system from the get-go should be ejected, but it should not be just a senior privilege to be able to stay in the school system. Perhaps the BOE can come to some type of agreement to allow for a better and more effective rule to be in place for these types of cases.

People should stop thinking about themselves and start thinking about those around them and the hardships that every family is facing. If people stopped being so stingy and just helped each other out without arguing over the small monetary repercussions, this situation would not have escalated to what it has become.

Hopefully this can be handled more maturely and effectively than it is now.

Just added a poll to this story. So let your opinion be known. (Also, because we might have to close comments if the tenor of this string continues).

Guys its the law, I am sure they don't catch everyone but they caught this kid. And what about all the other kids that had to go to other schools because of this law, you don't see them crying about it. Quite frankly, you kids are all being selfish.

how are we being selfish we are caring for another person a friend of ours just sticking up for him and just because it is a law it is not perfect you clearly do not understand

Selfish as in you want to bend the rules for one person but what about all the other people?

Sal will be missed :(

The school budget per student is appropiated ( paid ) from the 1st day of school and covers the student until the last day of school. So they already paid for the students enrollment for the entire school year. Kicking him out now did not save any money. In fact, it's a waste of money by not having the student finish out the school year.
Paying for the student next year, if in fact he longer lived in town- would be wrong.
If the student could find a friend's parents, or a relative in town that would assume temporary custody ( power of attorney )of the student for a year, he could remain in the school system. It's kind of a temporary adoption.
What's wrong with Lyndhurst high-school ?

I graduated from LHS in '85. There was nothing wrong with it, but when I had children of my own, I moved to Fair Lawn for the school system. Can those of us who support this family sign a petition or start a collection or something? How can we support this mom who is working, not draining the bigger system...

Given the extenuating circumstances, Torey should have been allowed to complete his junior year. Fair Lawn collects about a half million a year from tuition students, not all of whom are classified. If FL charges, say, $10000 per student, then 400 families donating $25 each would cover it. If Torey still wants this, then I'd be more than happy to send my donation and I don't even know this young man.

Note to Bruce Watson,
Your English Department needs work.

The Fair Lawn in which I grew up would have been compassionate and worked with this student's mother and allowed this eager young man to finish the school year and graduate with his class. The Board of Education, in its lack of compassion and wisdom, has set an ugly example for the students of FLHS and its students.

a word that sticks out to me is "community", i often try to think what makes a certain community better than others. a great community sticks together and helps eachother during times of need. this CHILD has lived in fair lawn for 17 years (his entire life) therefore i deinfetly consider him part of this community.
the kid's parents are going through a divorce and struggling financially, so emotionally this has to be a very diificult time for this CHILD. this is the time this young man needs his friends and his community to stand behind him and help him through difficult times. i want to be part of a community who rally behind eachother during tough times, not turn there back on them.
those of you negative posters who say it is his parents fault (considering the divorce rates and the economy i would villlianize them too much for not being able to afford FL). even if this is the parents fault- who is really being punished. the incicent CHILD is the one being punished.

Dave Marain has an excellent point, Torey can pay to go to FLHS just like 16% of Fair Lawn children have their parents pay to goto other schools. His parents committed fraud, while I don't want to see them prosecuted, they owe us the money. If a fund were setup to pay the $22k it costs us to educate a child, I'm good for $50.

ps- there are no FL residents named adolpho, thomas paine, or bruce knuckle... and by clicking on any of your patch names you can see you 3 nut jobs comment an excessive amount on all different towns. so im assuming you 3 are not FL residents (or taxpayers) just a bunch of clowns who try and voice your opinions all over the patch site.
it would suprised me if adolpho, paine, and knuckle is just one lonely person having conversations with himself.

While it is a sad tale, I think that there are a few things to consider. I do feel compassion for the student and to the emotional and financial turmoil that the parents are probably going through. However, the fact that they paid their taxes in the PAST and were apparently well-liked residents does not make them exempt from the rules. I don't want to see them prosecuted either, but the fact remains that they did commit fraud, not to mention what a terrible example to set for their child. Perhaps the parents should have spoken to school officials first to see if there what tuition options were open to them. If the BOE had allowed this to continue, what about future similar situations? The line does need to be drawn somewhere. It really isn't fair to the current residents of Fair Lawn who are paying taxes NOW.

If it was important to the child's parents to let him graduate with his friends one of them should have kept residency in Fair Lawn. I find it impossible that they did not know what they were doing was wrong by moving out of the district and driving him to school every day. I think it's very magnanimous of the Board to allow a child to stay in their senior year no matter what but there needs to be a cutoff point.

I have paid property taxes as well for those same 17 years this family has and have not had a child in school during that time. They should look at it like they got something for their money, not that they deserve more. If people want to be generous and compassionate, they should find the family a place to live in Fair Lawn until September. Work within the system. Don't expect the system to bend for them.

To all the "FLHS" posters:
First, you will not get anywhere by taking the bait of a few here and throwing profanity into the mix. It kills your credibility as a person and totally distracts from the main issue.
Second: What happened, given the circumstances surrounding this whole issue, is sad. 17 years should account for something, no?
Third: Organize. You need to take your grievances to a BOE meeting. In an orderly manner, express your displeasure over the ruling. Maybe a change in the rule is in order.

Here is a start: A student has been in the system for at least 6 years and has less that 2 years until graduation. If the parents move out of town due to an economic hardship, that student should be allowed to stay and graduate.

Seems fair, right? Now, go lean on ALL 9 BOE members. Lean on Watson. Send letters. Start a petition. Get a referendum on the ballot.

You may not be able to change the outcome of this situation, but you will do future students a great deal of service should this ever happen again.

That's really the only sound advice I can offer. If there is truly an outcry of support, you may obtain your goal. Good Luck!

Also,
Remind the BOE that it's all about the children. They seem to like that phrase during labor negotiations.

My son graduated Fair Lawn High last year. We moved to Fair Lawn for its high school, (after moving from the Bronx) he made great friends and was involved in wonderful activities, like the Jazz Ensemble and Masques. I remember his graduation as a deeply touching experience.
I can't believe that Bruce Watson and the Board of Ed won't let Torey graduate with his class. After all they were Fair Lawn residents for 17 years. Doesn't that count for anything? Parents going through a divorce is hard enough on a teen, and being torn from the high school from which he thought you would graduate just makes a bad situation worse. I wish Torey the best. Helene Plotkin

I see allot of comments about taxs ... Does a homeowner pay less taxs if they only have one child ? As far as.I'm concerned toreys family payer taxs before he was born ... Is it prorated? Hmmm

* poking fun since its a silly reason to kick a kid out of school ...

What in the world is the big deal? Both parents are working, and living in two separate places -- either Mom or Dad needs to move back to Fair Lawn.

A search on Fair Lawn rentals shows plenty of options.

*rock, please donate the 2500 deposit

Thx :)

Lorena -
Uh, no.

Both parents are working and quite frankly are doing better economically than many Americans are.

They can push it and find a place to live in Fair Lawn, or their son can just go to Hawthorne HS which is also a fine school.

Tell this moose knuckle guy to shut up already clearly he has no heart or he would be understanding. But honestly moose I don't think u understand were not gonna let this happen to Torey to write Negative all you want your just giving us strong ambition to strike

It doesn't matter about what high school he goes to it makes no difference ... His college applications only consider freshmen to Jr year ... Senior year counts for nothing (as long as u don't fail)

You can not say his family is better off than most ... Do you know there financial situation ? His mother is living with a family friend because she can not afford to tackle her debt and a high rent ... Both parents have ruined there credit due to the divorce . Try to rent a two bedroom apartment in fair lawn with bad credit ... Not to mention fair lawn has high rent ... Two bedrooms on the low end are 1600 plus utilities.
First month: 1600
1 1/2 month deposit 2400
Total of 4000

You must be very well off and should thank god you are blessed but I know I could afford to pick up and go on my salary ... (im a banker and have a decent job with a decent salary) how can you asume this mother and son can afford something like that ? Don't you think she tried ? Oh yeah she had to leave her appartment because she could afford to keep food on the table ... Hmm
Let me also remind you the family had to short sale there home ... Don't you think that means trouble ? Would you short sale your home if you were economically stable ?

Think about it. Be thank full for what you have but never asume others have the same.

* he just wants to graduate in the town he grew up in and with the people he's known all this life ...

How about you shove your Bruce knuckles up your ass.

- Mo

J

My parents got divorced when I was in Fair Lawn High School. We had to sell the house, so they each moved to an INEXPENSIVE place in Fair Lawn, so I could continue going to school there, because that's what I wanted. If they wanted their son to continue going to FLHS, they could have just found a cheap place to live. Cheating the system will get you nowhere. They're lucky they aren't being sued for what they did. There are tons of 2 family houses on Bellair and Berdan, where they'd pay about $1000 a month. Once Torey graduated, they could move somewhere else if that's what they wanted. They can't expect to cheat Fair Lawn, and be able to stay in the district. And this whole fuss with the situation won't make the BOE want to take him in any faster. People these days..

There is no such thing as a two bedroom for 1000 dollars ... Years ago ..maybe.

Try again.

It's a 2 family house, sweetheart. AND I think I'd know because I live in one. Hahhahahahhahaha.

First of plenty of people in this town have no children either never did or there grown and what about the kids that go to catholic schools?? this is truly a legitimate reason to support this boy I dont know him but Im supporting this issue. Ive had 2 children graduate flhs and feel this boy too deserves to how about get rid of the real problems and there are plenty of them. im sure they can use the tax $$$ from residents that do not have children in the school system. Noy everyone is evil like you ^&% make them out to be. you adolpho and some of you otheres need to get a life a job or a mate because you have too much time on your hands and should only hope your never on a tough end of a situation!!!! remember what comes around goes around.

Have a heart ... I agree. To fairlawnn my family is a homeowner in fair lawn and I've rented in fair lawn... Ur wrong buddy rent has inflated over time because more and more families are forced to rent instead of buy. And didn't u read the article? Toreys mom did rent in fairlawn she almost made it a year then started falling behind on rent because she couldn't afford rent food cloths in fair lawn and was forced to leave. As I said in a previous post ... In order to rent u have to think about the deposit, passing the screening (and if u know anything about divorce AND shortsale u know u ruin ur credit, so good luck being considered acceptable) and finding affordable rent .....And I'm not your sweetheart. ...

HAVEAHEART....I would respond to your post, but I think its missing a complete thought.

Btw ... U live in one now. If u move out the rent would go up to mimic the market ... 2 bed room for 1000 non existing in fairlawn ... And basements don't count they are illegal and would be deemed child endangerment by the child services

too bad the parents couldn't suck it up for another year and live in peace so that their child could finish his HS career where he started. Let the boy graduate, then go your separate ways.

Bruce its not missing a thought ... It's pretty complete ... Every fair lawn resident pays to support the school system. They don't all have kids. This situation is a technicality . As I said in a previous post the cuocci family lived in fair lawn for a few years before torey was born ... Are the taxs they paid prorated ? If this is an issue I guess that familiy is owed money hmm

It's not a 2 BEDROOM! Please read what I wrote. I said 2 FAMILY HOUSE. That means one floor is one family, and the other floor is another family. I have 2 bedrooms, one bathroom, a kitchen, a living room, and a dining room. Upstairs, there's another family who has the same. Each family pays the landlord 1000 dollars. You don't know shit. There are tons of these in Fair Lawn.

I guess allot of people are owed money in town ... If this is about taxs dollars that is ...

Find one. While your at also remind me how much u pay in heat and electric .. so its not 1000 any more is it... And like I said when u move the rent goes up. And if u can't have an adult conversation without cursing don't post . The place u live in is irrelevant unless ur willing to move out and give up ur rent for this family . I'm guessing no ?

Actually no one is living upstairs at the moment, so if they looked they could absolutely see that and move upstairs. lol.

And 2 bedroom appartment can also be a two family house. If Uve ever looked for apartments u would know kitchen and dinning rooms come with the apartment

Hmm why don't u email them and let him know. Maybe u could do one good deed instead being negative

That's not illegal than... ;)

I will email them, actually.

As unfortunate as this particular situation is I'd expect the BOE would have offered an alternative to allow this young man finish his high school career. If the mother is solely financially responsible for this child I wouldn't expect her to be able to pay FL's yearly tuition, if that was offered.
The child's parents made a life changing decision. Not just their lives as a married couple but their lives as a family. Divorce affects everyone down right to the family dog!!! There is very little the parents could have done to make less of an impact with their decision to quit their marriage. The parents may have known of the consequences of "out of towners" attending FL's schools. In my opinion the BOE did what their regulations force them to do. Perhaps the parents could have remained in FL for a while longer to make certain their son finishes High School.
Unfortunately we will not know what the specifics are in this case. We all can and will formulate opinions on this matter but none of them will change the results of the actions taken. The young man had to change schools because their family relocated. It happens all the time.
Good luck to this young man and hopefully they all learned from their mistakes.

People need to have a heart, what has this world come to that we're all worried about money and not the happiness of others. This young man is practically a senior and has had siblings graduate for the school system. This boy has been through enough with his parents divorce and moving out of his house. We should all stop and think about how this young man is feeling and what we as a community can do to help a fellow child in need! My mother used to say to me when I was a child if you have nothing nice to say don't say anything at all. I feel that this applies to everyone being negative on this post. After reading this I strongly believe that Fair Lawn is full of heartless and iggnorant people who are selfish and only worried about themselves I am so dissapointed in this community and I feel ashamed to say I live in a community with such negative people.

daffney- you would think the community would rally behind one of our youths when they are going through a difficult time in thier life. it is disappointing to see such nasty comments from people posting and i believe sites like this make it even worse for this poor kid.
if you notice its usaully the same 3 idiots making the negative posts and they probably dont even live in fair lawn. i like to believe that the people who care about the community are out there making it better, not siting on thier computers all day. therefore im sure if you explained the situation and took a vote in fair lawn most people would support the kid- however its is the lonely misrable people who mainly expresss themselves in these forums.
i have faith in this town and believe you will see a lot of people support this young man and try to get the BOE to do the right thing.

Tough situation, no doubt. However, if you envision a future as 40-year-old in a bar and all you can talk about are the "Glory Days" of high school, then all the education in the world was wasted on you. Is that what you think of this kid? The core curriculum is set by the State. If his grades are good, I seriously doubt that a diploma from Hawthorne is going to ruin his college chances. If Fair Lawn's schools have done their job, he should be ready to excel in any town. A high school junior can still have his "15 minutes of fame" and hopefully a meaningful, long life ahead. It doesn't all end after the senior prom.

I've lived in fair lawn since I was a young girl, my son goes to school with "Torrey" and has bullied my son multiple times at high school. He made some of the classes they had together living hell. I for one am h happy BOE made the right choice and got rid of the tax evasive family. Good bye Cuccis

suzy if one "bully" made your son's classes a living hell your son better toughen up or he ll be in for a rude awakening in the real world. maybe you should have taught your son how to deal with bullies or to ignore them.
dont bring your personal problems with the family into this. people saying he's my friend so he should stay- are not making a legitimate point to why he should stay. and your personal problem of your son being bullied isnt a legitimate point as to why he should go.
i believe he should stay solely because i believe thats what would be best for the kid and think it would be silly to make him switched schools and be there for less than 2 years. if there is any fundraiser to help this kid stay please make it very public so i can contribute.

Its not the primary season but it still matters, he is still evading taxes in our town and I will not fund any money into keeping a bully or any kid that wasn't actually living in fair lawn.

He is basically an illegal immigrant in the fl community, actually he is illegal.

I wish I had the time to read all of the above comments but don't. So, if this question has been answered already, forgive me. But, in other towns, there is an option to claim "Financial Hardship" and remain in the school system of the town they moved out of and not have to attend the school where they moved to. Is this an option in Fair Lawn and, if so, did the family know about it?

ok suzy- can i just ask you a hypothetical question and can you please answer as honest as you can?
if your son had spent 17 yrs in FL and you and husband (assuming you are married) got divorced and you lost your job and couldnt afford to live in FL do you think not allowing your son to graduate when all he has left is a year and a half is the right thing to do? dont you think your son would have enough family and financial problems and shouldnt have to worry about adjusting to a new school as well?
maybe it's because im a caring person but i cant see how anyone with common sense could think kicking this kid out is the right thing to do.

If you don't like the law change it, but this
Is the law and you have to follow the law.

the FACT that the kids lived in Fair Lawn all his life and we wont allow him to finish a year and a half reallly boggles my mind. there is a BIG diference between this kids situation from people who dont live in fair lawn and give fake residences and should be treated differently. yes the kids parents should have handled it different, but the innocent kid is the one being penalized.
it would be nice if during these tough times for this kid he could have his friends, teachers, and guidance counsolers he trusts there to help him through difficult times.

some of you judge a good community on how much the taxes are (dont get me wrong id like lower taxes) but how people treat eachother and help others in time of need is a lot more important to me.

This is the parents responsibility only. Let it go unless you are willing to adopt the child or have him live in your Fair Lawn home.

Fair Lawn- we've taken the "Unity" out of "Community".
Our new slogan.

Can't wait for next weeks patch about how we got Torey back in flhs

This is not about taxs ... There are plenty of homeowners that pay taxs and do not have a child in the school system . This is about a technicality ... TECHNICALITY ... His mother rented an apartments in hopes to hold on long enough for torey to enter his senior year ... This is about the fact he moved out 6 months early . If he was a senior this would not be an issue and he would be allowed to stay ... As I said in many posts already ... Every case should be individual. 6 months is preventing torey from graduating in the town he grew up in. Not taxs

Oh yeah ? Reallyy ? Why was his sister allowed to finish her senior year ? He can't stay simply because he six months short .

His sister graduated . The point is exceptions are granted . And school is free , did u forget its public ? Tax payers pay for the school system regardless if there kids attend. Graduating high school is a milestone for young adults . If the board of ed cares about this generation which I believe they do they should look at individual cases . And allowing a senior to graduate is not a courtesy its mandated by law. The board of ed has the ability to over turn there decision

She graduated and moved with her father out of town , torey moved to an apartment in fair lawn ... and had to leave a few months ago ... The home was short sales over a year ago ... Did u even read the article and consider the variables or are u just being short sighted ?

No residency= no enrollment ..
I think this is a bit more accurate ...

Flhs Student moves < senior year > Flhs student

The inbetween is the gray area .. nice try tho.

It has been brought to my attention there may have been an underage drinking party at the Cuocci home in the Summer of 2007. I do not personally know of the people in the pictures, but there are a few Fair Lawn residents on this site, any of them look familiar? Are any of these people drinking Bud Lights underage?

http://profile.imageshack.us/user/june17_2007/

Folks here are weighing in on two separate issues; 1) the parents situation (decisions, shortcomings and choices) and the kid having to pay the price. Unfortunately, though people are commenting on one or the other, they are inseparable. I agree that if the rules are basically "not a resident = not a student" than so be it. You are not banishing the child to a third world country with nary a meal; you are saying, hey sorry, ya gotta go to school in Hawthorne until you graduate. There are far worse life circumstances. If the two school systems wanted to work together to arrive at a more accommodating arrangement, great; but they are not at all compelled to do so. If anything, the kid should print this all out and use the situation as the basis for a great college essay. However, after hearing more morsels of the story, it seems quite incomplete. The public information show numbers are not adding up. I am a believer that rules are rules in this case. I am tired of people wanting to be the exception to the rule and believing that their case is the one where allowances should be made.

okay thomas ..
i cant confirm nor deny if that is the cuocci residence.... BUT
I guess Mr Thomas Paine never cracked a bud light before he was 18 years old. and what does that have anything to do with a JR in highschool not being allowed to finish his high school career? What does it have to do with taxs? bla bla bola? how about you throw all the kids in those photos out of school? (which you cant because they graduated in 2007) nice try
BTW im sure who ever thrw the party got into a whole lot of trouble from the parents, i guess you never attended a high school party or college party for that matter... guess you were never invited (my apologize)

fl1985- if toreys family could have stuck it out for 6 more months untill he was a senior he would have been allowed to stay, but unfortunley there was no way ... if he was a senior he could stay but since hes mid jr year they give him the boot ... so the school system already has a loop hole ... and its discreationary, the board of ed can vote which ever way there are ways around it .. and it has been done in the past

Ok Thomas Paine we were asking for a background check. You're just a creep for going out of your way to find dirt on the family

FL- im not saying a party like this with underage drinking is okay... im saying its been done. its no suprise. im also saying thats a photo taken years ago. check out face books of current students in high schooland you will see the majority of them have pictures similar to these. im saying its a seperate issue. an issue that should be addressed by there parents when they had the party. again what does this have to do with the issue at hand?

ps i dont have kids,when i do i prob. wont be a cool mom. i young siblings and by no means am i the cool sister

Thank you for making my point. You are posing your own silogism; ie: if they could have, he would have; but they didn'tn so he can't - no way. And a second one as well; ie: is he was, he could; but he isn't so he can't - give him the boot. You say "the board of ed can vote" on this matter. Please cite examples, I have never heard of them voting for this without some sort of compensation. People have to understand that stamping their feet and crying "it's not fair" and "but I want it" is no way to go about life.

wrong. the board of ed has 24 business days to turn over the decision. so its possible he gets oppertunity to go to flhs. if people like you would back him instead of bash him maybe you could help this young adult achieve that goal. if this happened to one of your loved ones whould you fight as hard as you can? and please dont respond with I wouldnt let it happen, some things are out of our hands.

this country is built on the idea we can question rules, and change policys. torey isnt a number or just another kid. hes a member of our community, we should help lift him up even if he moved, you should never turn your back.

LB
Yes your right its not a big deal hes only one town over, but why dont you think back to when you were a teen.
Everything seemed like it was the end of the world... you should remember in two short years this teen had to move out of a home into an apartment twice, get used to only having one parent around everyday instead of two, living without his sister, hear his family struggle financially, and now switch schools. its a bit much and if i was 17 years old again i prob would have fallen into a down spiral and depression. town rules and laws are only broken when the people in charge feel like it. and ive seen it happen with my own eyes... so once again these rules are not back and white, and if you feel like they are black and white, then why do we have a court of law with a jury? (its an example please dont jump down my throat)
the people on this thread are not at all sympathetic and arnt looking qat the individual needs. every student has a different story. FLHS taught me they care and reach out to kids in need with things like gap and more guidence counslours, drug enforcers,...bla bla bla

FL-im on a smart phone. you know those neat little devices that give you internet access on the go .. if youve learned how to work one you would know the touch screen is a bit tough at times... deal with it or dont respond to my posts. thx

Ok first of all, for everyone commenting on the grammar of the kids, you are all losing sight of the big picture and are looking for any excuse to put him down. The students aren't writing these comments to a professor or an editor, they're writing in slang, which everyone uses when they speak; it's not a big deal. Second of all, Torey is one of my best friends and you know nothing about him or his family. You have no right to say that his parents "could've stayed for six more months". Obviously if they could've, they would've. They wouldn't have tried to let Torey stay in the school system if they didn't want him getting an education here. This has been said repeatedly, but imagine you were in his shoes, or your child was. He isn't an illegal immigrant, that is just an ignorant comment. He has lived here his whole life and is well known around this town. It shouldn't be a senior privilege to finish out one's schooling if one is forced out of their home at the hands of the descending economy. A senior thug that never goes to class or school shouldn't have the right to stay over Torey. He is one of my best friends and I love him to death and am willing to do whatever it takes to let my friend graduate with the rest of us, even if it is taking him into my own home. Find anything wrong with my grammar or anything I just said and get back to me. Stop getting distracted from the debate and focus on the actual topic.

well said peter..

People in Fair Lawn are very very very very very grimy and should let my friend stay because this is getting ridiculous about all you old ignorant people that comment on this post who have no idea who torey even is. So stop with all your nonsense of complaining about this and just let the kid stay jeeze.

wow thomas paine- you have reached an all time low. you posting a link to a HIGH SCHOOL party is one of the creepiest things ive ever seen on internet (and theres a lot of weird creepy things on the internet). the fact that an adult would search the internet to dig up dirt on17-20 year olds truely shows your character. you are a very sad human being and should probably start posting on another fake name because i dont think people will be able to read your future post without thinking how big of a creep you are

let's all not over look the real problem here, which of course, is by far more obstreperous than the fact that Torey is here with out paying taxes because of finacial difficulties. A Mr. Thomas Paine posted a link ealier to over compensate for the mere fact that his point (anti Torey) is lacking much detail and frankly, intelligence. Unfortunately, the link was of Highschool party many years ago involving, as the state would see it, children. Can Thomas Paine please explain the reason for saving such picture other then a sick, twisted desire to stalk and closely examine children. If anything Thomas Paine should be exiled from Fair Lawn due to the fact he may be a boarder line pedophile.

And for Thomas Paine, I will not simplify my comment so it can be understood by the simple minded like yourself.... Stop touchy kids, and leave Torey alone

- Mo

*like*

Whats Torrey's gpa anyways?

I will not run and hide, I will not change my user ID. I stand behind my posts. Maria is an adult who published those photos in the public domain. All the people were properly dressed, and likely committing a crime. The idea that somehow makes me a pedophile is slanderous and absurd. And of course a first time poster mocking my name is classic. Ben Dover, sophomoric at best.

I would have linked to Maria's profile directly, however, her profile named names, and frankly had additional photos and comments. I simply searched the last name, and there it was.

Thatguyy you accuse me of touching kids without any basis in fact. That's an insult to every child ever sexually abused. You should be ashmed of yourself, its comments like yours which demean the seriousness of that horrible crime. Read my posts, I support Torey's desire to stay, I even pledged to donate to this cause.

I question the moral character of the parents. I wonder how the parents of the other young adults would have felt if they knew their kids attended that party and illegally drank. I wonder how many of those "kids" may have driven a car after attending that party.

The Cuoccis stepped into the public light to criticize our board of education for preventing them from stealing from us. That fact remains, they stole from us. They should have handled this differently. They made a mistake, then compounded it.

Paine-
The comment that was made was a bit harsh but the post you made was very childish ... A word of advice ... The parents of those children pay a large role in fair lawn ... Pretty well known people. Who would be pissed that u posted that .

And yes I know those kids I know there parents too ... *Childish

I love him!!!!!

I just wonder if you have a right to judge torey for attending a high school party because you were a young teenage once I assume and attended the same high school party as the harsh pictures you posted... maybe I am wrong but you seem as though you are superior to a innocent young man who was taking part in the same rituals as you were years ago... it just seems wrong.

Bringing what could have been an underage party into this is completely not pertinent to the real situation. its appalling that you would not only bring his sister into this but something so irrelevant. the fact of the matter is Torey has every right to stay in Fair Lawn. You selfish imbeciles are making this whole situation for the Cuoccis even worse with your ignorant, pathetic comments. If you idiots could recall, George Bush's act passed in 2001, the 'no child left behind' act, it states that schools are required to make learning more flexible. Having Torey, after a divorce, switch schools after 17 years of being in the same learning environment with the same people he is now so comfortable with all because his parents unfortunately cannot live & pay taxes here anymore for the remaining last few months of Torey's junior year, is NOT what i call flexibility. The fact that all of you assholes along with the BOE find the fact that the money is more important than this childs education is extremely unsettling and it says alot about this town. It doesnt make Fair Lawn look so great, that is for sure. You are all just a bunch of egocentric, arrogant, ignorant, greedy, heartless people.

You wanna talk about how crucial it is for his family to pay their share of taxes for the school? how about the fact that the schools are constantly increasing their budget, which in turn, increases our taxes, and for what? more smart boards? more recent text books? I have yet to see where all of our taxes are going. I am sure that the schools will not miss whatever Toreys parents can't pay

who the hell you and mr knuckles are to pass judgement on me and my family what you did digging up pictures on my daughter was unapprioate and has nothing to do about my son staying in fairlawn and to the other i did owe a house in fairlawn and also after we sold it i moved to river roads and i just couldnt do it on my owe i you only know what it is to be a single mother and women . and by the way i still have a mortage to pay for you jerk. you and the others went way beyond and digging up dirty things about my family thats not why i talk to the paper i wanted to let me son stay one more year. and i didnt cheat anyone i was just that you i paid my taxes and i lived in a apartment up to when i moved out this year so there. i not going to comment on that party it happen long time ago and i handle it with her. stop it and stop digging up garage on my family you are hurting them...................

The photos have been deleted, but the facts remain. The Cuoccis stole from the people of Fair Lawn. They showed NO remorse and just tried selling us excuses and slammed our Board of Education. Maybe it was the way Zak reported the story, I'd love to hear from them. They owe us an apology before they appeal for any additional help. I still stand behind my pledge to donate.

The ironic part of this whole thing, is I that multiple times in this comment section I have highlighted some of the very things "FairLawn07410" is calling me an idiot about. And frankly, probably a few you didn't even know about. (yet I'm "ignorant"?)

For example I pointed out how Fair Lawn taxpayers send over $32,000,000 each year to Abbott districts like Hoboken. Considering our budget is $83m, and school taxes are the bulk of our taxes. That's real money. It's 38.5% of our school budget! I pointed out how previous and current councils and the BoE won't pass a resolution calling on our State Senate and Assembly people to correct this by sponsoring a law or resigning, particularly since there are NO Abbott Districts in our state assembly district. Where is the outrage on that? BTW Those 31 districts are the 31 most expensive in the nation, bar none.

Before this article ever came out I have challenged all kinds of other municipal expenses which added to Cuoccis financial problems, coincidentally I was attacked for that too.

I have advocated for empowering parents with school vouchers. If Lyndhurst or Hawthorne had those, there would be no problem with Torey finishing school here. The law is what it is. The Cuoccis point out they paid taxes for 17 years, they don't now. Its like complaining you paid Bally's last year, but can't go this year. I regularly visit an elderly neighbor of ours, she has been a tax payer in town for 50 years, her family doesn't use the school system. 16% of the kids in Fair Lawn don't either.

You are right about the school budget always going up, but each year we see signs "For the Kids" when they should really read for the Teachers and their union dues which get funneled to the Democrats. When they announced the school board elections were going to be moved to November, the only one that commented was me. I called out the board member who had the audacity to say he was voting for it because it allowed them to raise the budget 2% without a vote.

Where are my critics on all of this?

Money is not more important than Torey, but the rule of law is. Stand up and challenge the law. Stop voting for people who bribe you with our own money.

Can we end this now? This has gone way off topic.

thomas paine is right. everyone is attacking him but he is stating the facts AND offering to help fund something to let torie stay in fair lawn. he's giving everyone the best of both worlds, without being unrealistic..

It wasn't even Torey's party! That was in 2007, 5 years ago. No 6th or 7th grade kid is having parties. Be realistic here.

Any way you slice it, brother's party or sister's party, the focus is still on lack of parental supervision. And the fact that pictures were posted goes only to further that notion.

Please this town is a disgrace!

Newt could fix the economy. Then everyone would have jobs and the US wouldn't have to spend 1T+ per year on dumb programs.

FL - what does a party have to do with a towns lack of understanding on a child's home situation ? And how dare you make the asumption that there is a lack of parental supervision ? Do you know this family ? Because if u don't you have no right to say such a thing. A small party is being attacked ... I'll say it again ... Sorry that you had no social life in your younger years and never attended a high school/college party. The issue was handled years ago .. stop trying to dig up dirt on irrelevant issue

Wow ..
FL - when did u become so miserable? Did u know new jersey is ranked among the rudest and most disrespectful states in the us (particularly our area) ? Perhapps it's because of people like you who simply don't care about others. And arnt willing to lend a helping hand ? Maybe its because your hiding behind a computer...who knows.
This family spends time in fair lawn .. even though they currently don't live here they still support local businesses by making every day purchases. I no longer sleep in fair lawn but I still go to sugar flake when I want a cheese cake ... If I want Chinese food ill go to six happiness ... For a hero ill eat at gios ... I live over 30 min away and will make a stop in fair lawn on my way home . The point is just because they don't live here it doesn't mean they are thrown out of our community . And maybe u should care about others in your community ... Allot of people on this thread should learn to care for others. It's so sad to see how selfish people can be.

Relax with these posts people ... It's starting to cross the line. Don't lose sight of the fact this is a family your posting on.. living people. A certain ammount of respect is called for

How are u paying for his school ? Do your taxs go up per student every year ? Or does fair lawn propose a budget ? A budget that includes everything from the pointless rec center to markers for kindergarten ? Or is one senior gonna rock the boat ? Because as I said before there was a time the family paid taxs and didn't have kids in the system . I know it doesn't work this way but hmm I guess they paid for hoodwibks

You obviously have no clue as to how budgets are arrived at nor implemented. Also, how the school budget differs from the borough budget. At close to 20k per fraudulent student you bet taxes and education are affected. For every 2 fraudulent students that one teacher's salary.

I'm obviously being sarcastic. And Sure it is.

when did money become such a large issue? It is one child who has spent majority of his life in this town growing up with your children. Stop being so greedy with your precious tax dollars you can't take the money to the grave people it is one more year. As for the immature adults arguing with teens and bashing Fair Lawns education system, you should be praising it for teaching the young teens to stand up for something they believe in. Odviously the future business leaders of America are on the right track.

thanks for the definition, as if no one knew it already. Walking into a corner store, threatening the cashier and taking all the money is stealing, allowing a child to stay one final year in the school is not.

arguing with people like you is pointless. I understand your view point with the parents being in the wrong for what they did but you have odviously not put yourself in a struggling parent's shoes. You lack the compassion in your argument, the parents were wrong.. maybe they were. Were they doing what any loving parent would have done for their child, lying ... yes. Put the rest aside if any parent were put in the same predicament they would do
what torey's parents did.

I'm at a loss. Since the mother is reading this maybe she can answer some questions. Why should her child not be treated equal to others but special from others? Why, if your intent was not to cheat, did you not give the school a change of address when you moved? We're told to be generous, charitable and give to those in the community. What has the family done in the community in the past 17 years that should deserve special consideration? Are they volunteer firefighters or EMTS? Do they volunteer anywhere? Is one full year in school for free not compassionate enough? They say it's only 6 months more, but it also would have only been 6 more months of a struggle for the family. If they had 50 friends give them $100 each that would be $5000. I'm sure that would be more than enough to cover whatever rent increase for the 6 months needed until he became a senior. Actually you'd only need 49 people. Thomas Paine already said he would give $100. Does the son have a job to help the family? Have they gone to their house of worship and asked for help? Basically what has the family and their friends done to help themselves before telling strangers to be generous. There is an easy way to solve this. Residency for 6 months.

Hi everyone. I'm going to close comments on this story. Thanks.