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Politician Behind Students' Secretative Cuba Trip

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

NEW YORK (AP) - April 17, 2007 - -- Thinking they might encounter problems in the Communist country, New York Lt. Gov. David Paterson wrote a letter on behalf of Manhattan public high schoolers who traveled to Cuba this month, praising them as "student ambassadors."

What he didn't know, a spokeswoman says, was that the trip may not have been licensed by the federal government.

"He is concerned and frankly shocked" about the matter, spokeswoman Maritere Arce said Tuesday. "He knew that the Department of Education did not authorize it, but he did think that federal authorities had authorized it."

Paterson's involvement, which stemmed from his stepdaughter's participation in a previous trip to Cuba taken by a group from The Beacon School, was the latest wrinkle to emerge in an ongoing investigation into the trips. Students and others involved could face thousands of dollars in fines if they are found to have violated federal laws.

City education officials said they expressly denied permission for the April sojourn because of federal restrictions and were trying to figure out the circumstances of at least two previous trips taken by Beacon School students.

What remains unclear is what the education department can do if the students and the teacher leading the trip, Nathan Turner, acted independently. As of Tuesday afternoon, no disciplinary measures were in the works, education department spokesman David Cantor said.

The U.S. has long had restrictions on travel to the island nation, but they were tightened in 2004.

Molly Millerwise, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Treasury Department, which hands out travel licenses for Cuba trips, said permission is usually granted to graduate and undergraduate students going on trips that last at least 10 weeks. But no such "educational" travel licenses are given for high schoolers, she said.

People who violate the rules can face penalties ranging from warnings to a $65,000 fine. Millerwise declined to confirm or deny if the department was involved in the Beacon School case. It was unclear whether the Beacon School group went under a different category, such as humanitarian or religious, that also can qualify travelers for licenses.

During a press event Tuesday featuring Gov. Eliot Spitzer, Paterson said that under the law, the trip "certainly seems inappropriate." However, he also questioned if the federal rules were intended to keep people from learning firsthand about a Communist regime, saying education can be a tool to fight dictatorships.

Paterson said he hadn't previously told Spitzer of his letter. Spitzer, however, said he is confident his lieutenant governor "did what was appropriate at the time."

According to Paterson's spokeswoman, his office had also called the city Department of Education to see why they had not authorized this year's trip after getting a request from Turner.

"He thought the previous trips had DOE approval," Arce said. "At that point, he found out that in fact the other trips had not been approved either by the DOE. However, the organizers assured him that they had gotten appropriate licenses from federal parties to go ahead with the trip."

In writing the letter, Paterson cited his stepdaughter Ashley Dennis' participation in the past. She's now a freshman at Ithaca College. "He was pleased with his stepdaughter's experience as a student going there," Arce said.

The Beacon School has often sponsored trips to foreign countries. In 2004-05, according to the school Web site, students had to take a class if they wanted to go on a trip to Cuba.

Last fall, Turner used the school's Web site to seek applicants for this year's trip. Though it was unclear how many students actually went on the trip, a Web site posting listed about 30 students selected for it.

Turner did not respond to an e-mail request seeking comment Tuesday. School Principal Ruth Lacey also did not respond to an e-mail request. She has told the New York Post, however, that the school did not officially sponsor this year's trip. (Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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