East Ramapo school board cancels meeting

The East Ramapo School Board canceled its meeting Tuesday night due to the absence of some of its members.
Parents and concerned community members packed the school before the meeting was supposed to start, with the crowd overflowing into the hallway and out the school's doors.
Many in the community say they are outraged over actions by Superintendent Joel Klein and the Orthodox Jewish-controlled school board. They claim the needs of black and Hispanic public school students are being ignored. Some also took to the meeting to renew calls for Klein to step down or be removed.
The last-minute cancellation was due to not enough board members in attendance for a quorum, caused by unexpected developments in some members' personal lives, says the board president.
The president also apologized for what he called an "uncomfortable environment" at the education center. He says the board plans to hold future meetings in a gymnasium or larger auditorium where space will not be issue.
He went on to say that the board will enhance its efforts to ensure the proper number of members are present for meetings.
News 12 is told that someone concerned about the meeting room's capacity called police.
The board hopes to reschedule the meeting for early next week.