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Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

zfailla@dailyvoice.com

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Equal parts Lois Lane, J. Jonah Jameson and Vicki Vale, Zak! has traveled from coast-to-coast covering small and big town community news in both in print and online for nearly a decade since his graduation from the award-winning Roy H. Park School of Communications at Ithaca College in 2010.

Before settling into the Hudson Valley, Zak! previously spent time in the New York Daily News newsroom and worked for hyperlocal digital news outlets on Long Island. He wrote sports for The Ithacan and The Ithaca Journal before taking his talents to the Pacific Northwest, where he served as the sports editor at the Shoshone News-Press until heading back east to work with Daily Voice.

Zak Failla's Contributions

Schools
Bus Driver Shortage To Affect Large Westchester District On First Day Of School Bus Driver Shortage To Affect Large Westchester District On First Day Of School
Bus Driver Shortage To Affect Large Westchester District On First Day Of School Hundreds of students in one of New York's largest school districts will have to seek alternate routes to make their way to the first day of classes due to a bus driver shortage. Nearly 500 students in the Yonkers School District will be impacted by the national bus driver shortage when they return to school for the first day on Friday, Sept. 3.  School officials said that the district was notified on Friday, Aug. 27 that there were not enough bus drivers to cover all routes, noting that there is a nationwide school bus driver shortage. With short notice, the district was forced to iss…

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by Zak Failla
News
UMass System Gets $50M Gift, Largest In School History UMass System Gets $50M Gift, Largest In School History
UMass System Gets $50M Gift, Largest In School History The University of Massachusetts received a windfall from a pair of alumni that represents the largest cash gift in the school’s history. UMass announced that Robert J. and Donna Manning have provided a $50 million gift that is “aimed at increasing access and opportunity across the five-campus university system.” Moving forward, the first $15 million will be used to endow the UMass Boston nursing program, which will be renamed as the Robert and Donna Manning College of Nursing and Health Sciences in honor of the pair. Donna Manning had a 35-year career as an oncology nurse at Boston Medical…

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by Zak Failla
Schools
COVID-19: Students Quarantined In CT School District After Confirmed Cases COVID-19: Students Quarantined In CT School District After Confirmed Cases
Covid-19: Students Quarantined In CT School District After Confirmed Cases Students in one of Connecticut’s largest school district have been forced to quarantine following newly confirmed cases of COVID-19. A total of 18 New Haven students have entered quarantine due to being close contacts following at least three confirmed cases of the virus, the district announced. This week, the New Haven School District reported that there were positive COVID-19 cases recorded at the Davis Street Magnet School, Edgewood Magnet School, and Beecher Magnet School. In total, nine students are in quarantine at Davis, six at Beecher, and three at Edgewood due to their potential …

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by Zak Failla
News
Nassau County Man Indicted For Decades-Long Role In $15M Bid-Rigging Scheme Nassau County Man Indicted For Decades-Long Role In $15M Bid-Rigging Scheme
Nassau County Man Indicted For Decades-Long Role In $15M Bid-Rigging Scheme A Long Island man is facing charges for his role in a decades-long bid-rigging scheme that defrauded public benefits programs out of more than $15 million, the New York Attorney General announced. Great Neck resident Avraham “Avi” Cohen, age 60, was among five people charged in a 17-count indictment in New York County State Supreme Court for allegedly submitting thousands of false and inflated bids to the state and city. Attorney General Letitia James said that Cohen and his cohorts allegedly billed the New York State Office of Victim Services (OVS) and the New York City Human Resources Adm…

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by Zak Failla
Sports
Acting Mets GM Accused Of Driving Drunk In Westchester, Reports Say Acting Mets GM Accused Of Driving Drunk In Westchester, Reports Say
Acting Mets GM Accused Of Driving Drunk In Westchester, Reports Say The New York Mets took another blow in what's been a difficult season after their acting general manager was arrested for alleged drunk driving in Westchester following a visit to the Fairfield County home of team owner Steve Cohen, according to reports. Acting GM Zack Scott reportedly Mets up and was busted for allegedly driving while intoxicated when he was busted at approximately 4:15 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 31 in White Plains, The New York Post first reported. It is alleged that at the time he was approached by officers on South Lexington Avenue in White Plains, Scott was asleep at the wh…

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by Zak Failla
Business
CT Working To Be Among First States To Make Electronic Driver's Licenses CT Working To Be Among First States To Make Electronic Driver's Licenses
CT Working To Be Among First States To Make Electronic Driver's Licenses Connecticut officials are working with Apple to become one of the first states to make driver’s licenses and state IDs available electronically on the company’s devices. Gov. Ned Lamont took to social media to make the announcement that the state is in the preliminary planning phases to make licenses available on iPhones and Apple Watches. The electronic licenses would be accessible at airports, though further details were not available as the project is in the beginning phases. Connecticut is working to make electronic driver's licenses a realityTwitter/@GovNedLamont “Some tech news: …

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by Zak Failla
News
COVID-19: Hudson Valley Positive-Test Rate On Rise; Latest County Breakdown COVID-19: Hudson Valley Positive-Test Rate On Rise; Latest County Breakdown
Covid-19: Hudson Valley Positive-Test Rate On Rise; Latest County Breakdown The positive COVID-19 infection rate in the Hudson Valley is back on the rise after seeing a slight dip as the region continues contending with the now-dominant Delta variant of the virus.  After falling to 3.65 percent, the seven-day average COVID-19 infection rate in the Hudson Valley rose to 3.70 percent of those tested on Monday, Aug. 30, according to the latest update from the state Department of Health. Twenty-two New Yorkers died of virus-related deaths, according to the latest update from the state, including one in Dutchess County. Other deaths were reported in Queens (five),…

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by Zak Failla
News
COVID-19: Long Island Positive-Test Rate Increases Again; Latest Community Breakdown COVID-19: Long Island Positive-Test Rate Increases Again; Latest Community Breakdown
Covid-19: Long Island Positive-Test Rate Increases Again; Latest Community Breakdown After seeing a slight reprieve earlier in the month, Long Island has seen the positive COVID-19 infection rate rise for the fourth straight day as it continues to hover above 4 percent. On Long Island, the seven-day average COVID-19 infection rate is up to 4.38 of those tested on Monday, Aug. 30, according to the latest update from the state Department of Health, well above the statewide average of 3.35 percent.  In Nassau, there were 311 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases, bringing the total to 198,481 since the pandemic began in March 2020, while there were 382 in Suffolk as the cumulati…

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by Zak Failla
Schools
High School In Region Goes Remote After Substance Found On Walls High School In Region Goes Remote After Substance Found On Walls
High School In Region Goes Remote After Substance Found On Walls A high school was forced to alter its reopening plan after a suspicious substance was found growing on the walls and furniture inside the building in Western Massachusetts. South Hadley Schools Superintendent Jahmal Mosley issued a letter to the community in Hampshire County this week advising that “a black/white” substance was located inside the building, prompting them to open the year remotely. Mosely said that the district called in Fermata Home Services to assist, which took samples of the substance and sent them to a lab for testing. It is unclear when the test results will be avail…

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by Zak Failla
News
Long Island Man Admits To $4.7M Mortgage-Fraud Scheme Long Island Man Admits To $4.7M Mortgage-Fraud Scheme
Long Island Man Admits To $4.7M Mortgage-Fraud Scheme An unlicensed mortgage broker on Long Island has admitted to his role in a multi-million dollar Ponzi-like scheme to defraud his clients, federal officials announced. Commack resident Brent Kaufman, age 50, pleaded guilty to stealing $4.7 million in mortgage refinancing proceeds that were meant to pay off the existing mortgages of his clients. Acting US Attorney Jacquelyn Kasulis said Kaufman worked as an unlicensed mortgage broker and assisted clients in Queens and Long Island with refinancing their mortgages. At the closing for a mortgage refinancing, the money from the new mortgage is …

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by Zak Failla
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