DANIEL DROMM, Democrat for City Council

A teacher who has learned hard-fought lessons takes his seat in Queens
by Andrew Cotlov

Danny Dromm thought he was safe when he paused underneath a tree for a moment to savor his victory as he walked to his election night party. A bird, standing on a branch above, thought otherwise.
“I had on a crisp white shirt too,” Dromm said. “They say it’s good luck. That’s when I knew I’d do okay.”

But it was not luck that put Dromm on the Council. The veteran public school teacher won a bitter contest against incumbent Helen Sears, one that saw several candidates drop out once the term limit extension allowed Sears the chance to run again.

The race was marred by charges from Sears supporters that Dromm was arrested for prostitution in 1972 (he was only 16 years old and says he was arrested for being gay) and from Dromm’s side that Sears was unresponsive to a district that grew increasingly diverse over the last eight years.

When asked about the negative turn the race took and the accusations against his own campaign Dromm responded, “It was definitely aggressive, but you have to do what it takes to win. I’m a fighter, since Day 1 in politics I’ve always been a fighter, and I’ll remain a fighter to bring back the resources this community needs. I’ll continue fighting for the people of this district.”

Dromm is used to bitter fights.

In the 1990’s he gained some notoriety after coming out as an openly gay teacher in response to the local school board’s intense opposition to the city’s new Rainbow Curriculum, which was intended to teach tolerance to elementary school students. The new curriculum came under heavy attack from critics, particularly from school board president Mary Cummins, who argued it was teaching children homosexuality.

“There were protests and there was a lot of homophobia. I was literally the front page story of Newsday.” Dromm recalled. “It catapulted me to a leadership position in the gay community.”

Dromm taught at PS 199 for 24 years and saw firsthand, he said, how new education policies have affected his students. He added that it is a priority to bring the classroom’s focus back to teaching and away from standardized tests.

“What happens politically effects what happens in education.” Dromm explains, “I know what goes on in the schools and nobody can pull the wool over my eyes.”

He says he is working already to add new classroom space for students in the neighborhood and to bring a new primary healthcare facility to Jackson Heights in hopes of taking some of the pressure off Elmhurst Hospital, the only remaining hospital in the district.

At his election night party, over loud, thumping music at the gay nightclub The Atlantis, supporters tugged at him and mugged to have their photo taken alongside their new councilman.

“He has some kids on his campaign that were his students, and are high school and college students now, that still have such warm feelings for him,” explained Laura Cadorette, one of his campaign workers and a friend of Dromm’s for nearly a decade. “He provided a very positive influence; the people in the community react that way to him too.”

After the party, Dromm said he was aware there is much work to be done. Still, he added, he may take some time away before being sworn-in to catch up on things that were neglected over the course of two-year-long campaign.

“I love Broadway theater and I am dying to see a new show,” he said. “I want to go soon with my mother.”

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