Randi Weingarten

The head of the United Federation of Teachers, Randi Weingarten, lashed out today against Mayor Bloomberg’s preliminary budget, which warns that New York City could have to lay off about 15,000 educators.

No surprise there: Obviously the head of the teachers union would oppose a plan to fire her members, especially when they make up almost 80 percent of the personnel whose jobs are on the line.

What’s more interesting about the UFT’s press release are the hard numbers Weingarten cites in it. During the 1970s, when the city nearly declared bankruptcy, 10,000 teachers were laid off. As their contract stipulated, when economic conditions improved, they were offered jobs in the system. But only 3,000 of them off accepted an offer to return, Weingarten said in a press release. “We are going to lose thousands of excellent teachers that the city Department of Education hired and spent money to train because they are going to look for other jobs,” she said

Weingarten also explained what 15,000 represents in today’s Department of Education: “Anyone with three or fewer years of service would probably lose their jobs if the city goes through with this threat,” she said.

The UFT’s entire press release is below the jump.

UFT slams mayor’s proposal to lay off educators en masse

Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s proposal to lay off more than 15,000 public school educators if the city does not get the state and federal aid it seeks would hurt a generation of students and cripple the school system, to say nothing about the havoc it would wreak on the lives of the dedicated teachers the system has asked to come and make careers here, UFT President Randi Weingarten said on Jan. 30.

Responding to the mayor’s plan to have educators account for 15,630 of a proposed cut of 19,650 positions – almost 80 percent – in the annual city budget he issued today, Weingarten said, “Every time we lay off a teacher it is a direct service cut to children.”

“I am astonished that at the very same time that President Obama is making public education a first priority, the city is seemingly making education a last priority,” she said.

“We know times are tough and that everyone needs to share in making sacrifices, but this is shockingly disproportionate and unfair,” said Weingarten at a press conference at the Lower Manhattan headquarters of the 200,000-member union representing New York City’s public school educators.

“The union has pledged, and indeed has been, working together with the mayor on the federal recovery and on ensuring we get a fair share from Albany,” Weingarten said, “But making virtually all our first, second and third-year teachers pawns in this political battle is callous and unfair to them and their students. Worse, in blaming Albany, the city itself masks the magnitude of its own cuts.”

Weingarten noted that the city received an additional $600 million in state education aid last year only to have the city cut education by more than $400 million, and the city is planning to cut almost $943 million in the next school year.

“Not since the 1970s have there been teacher layoffs of anything remotely like this, and at that time all city workers shared the pain,” Weingarten told reporters while accompanied by some of the newer teachers who would be at risk of losing their jobs if the proposal is implemented.

“This would be devastating for me,” said Rob Walsh, a third-year teacher from PS 19 in Manhattan. “I struggled to be a teacher. I always wanted to be able to give back to the community. More importantly, the children would be losing so much. We are in an increasingly competitive world and we need to give kids everything we can and not take anything away.”

“Class sizes are already bulging at the seams,” said Tiffany Braby, a four-year teacher from MS 319 in Manhattan. “If we lose 15,000 teachers, that will have a seriously detrimental effect on students.”

Weingarten acknowledged the difficult position Mayor Bloomberg faces in trying to cope with the current fiscal crisis, but said this proposal is totally misguided.

“Separate and apart from the chaos and the service cuts this would mean for next year, if this proposal were enacted, new teachers will not want to apply to work here because they won’t know what’s going to happen to them. And we are going to lose thousands of excellent teachers that the city Department of Education hired and spent money to train because they are going to look for other jobs. After the 1975 fiscal crisis, of the 10,000 teachers asked to return only 3,000 accepted.

“And this is what it would mean for next year: Anyone with three or fewer years of service would probably lose their jobs if the city goes through with this threat. There’s no way that we could lose that many teachers and not have it affect the quality of education in our schools and raise class sizes. It will be only the beginning of a decline that could hamper our school system for years to come and send middle-class families elsewhere,” she said.

Weingarten welcomed the city’s efforts to lobby Albany and Washington for much needed aid, noting that the UFT and its national affiliate, the American Federation of Teachers, have been fervently lobbying Congress to pass the federal economic stimulus package proposed by the Obama administration.

But she added that the city should consider other alternatives to layoffs if such aid is not realized and take its share of responsibility for finding cost savings.

“If this is necessary then the city can prove it by implementing an immediate hiring freeze, a retirement incentive and other cost-saving measures we have proposed that would equal $931 million and therefore avoid layoffs, she said. For example, the union estimates that a hiring freeze alone could save the city $406 million in payroll costs plus fringe benefits. And there are 25,000 educators who could be offered a retirement incentive that could save $300 million. Reducing administrative costs could result in another $225 million being saved, she said.

“The city should not repeat the mistakes of the Seventies when education was cut so badly that it took the school system decades to recover,” Weingarten said. “Children don’t get a second chance for a good education, which is why we need to make sure our schools are not hammered by huge cuts in the teaching force and harmful reductions in services to classrooms. The city should be investing in schools, not cutting, because the future of New York City, the state and the nation depends on a well-educated society and work force.”

Weingarten noted that in addition to fighting for a stimulus package in Washington and fighting budget cuts in Albany, the UFT and dozens of other unions, advocacy organizations and civic groups have formed a coalition that is trying to protect the most vulnerable New Yorkers – children, the elderly and the needy – from budget cuts. The coalition is planning a massive March 5 rally for a fair budget for all New Yorkers outside City Hall.

The city is staring down a $4 billion deficit for the fiscal year that begins on July 1, Bloomberg said, larger than what he anticipated just a few months ago. To close the budget gap, he’s proposed a plan that would require city agencies to eliminate nearly 20,000 positions. Most agencies would be able to cut positions simply by not hiring anyone new to replace workers who leave or retire. But the Department of Education would have to fire nearly 14,000 educators whose salaries are paid with state funds.

Those jobs could be protected if the state fills in the holes in its budget with federal stimulus money. The stimulus bill has not yet been finalized but it appears sure to include significant bailout funding for strapped school districts.

“Here’s a chance for Albany to pay for their fair share of education with somebody else’s money,” Bloomberg said.

But he said repeatedly that New Yorkers can’t simply assume that the state would direct enough of the stimulus money to the city. “If there’s ever a chance for us to put pressure on them, it’s now,” Bloomberg said.

And to parents who are concerned about school funding, he said, “Call Albany because that’s what I’m going to be doing.”

Some cuts at the DOE are unavoidable, according to documents distributed at the press briefing. The city plans to let about 1,400 positions go unfilled when educators retire or move away. And the DOE plans to cut expenses by making some operations more efficient, such as by giving projects that might have been completed in the past by consultants instead to DOE employees.

But Bloomberg said there was little room for the DOE to slim down its budget. “We’ve streamlined basically all that we can,” he said.

If you’re planning on doing some window shopping this weekend, be sure to check out Barneys, the high-end clothing store on Madison Avenue at 61st Street.

Art students from Brooklyn’s Abraham Lincoln High School have decorated the windows with portraits of Abe Lincoln himself, in honor of the 16th president’s 200th birthday. The installation is a result of the school’s partnership with the New-York Historical Society, which is staging exhibitions about Lincoln all year long.

Once the paintings leave Barneys’ windows, they will go into private art collections, organizers of the display hope. They’re selling the individual paintings for $100 each (see more on Flickr). Proceeds will go to the high school and are intended to help students pay for further art studies, Laura Washington, the historical society’s vice president of communications, told me.

The DOE launched its annual new schools announcement blitz today with news about six schools, including the two high schools, that will open in September. They are among 22 schools citywide that will move into new or expanded buildings over the summer. The 14,000 new school seats that are being added represent “the full impact” of the current capital plan, according to DOE officials. (The proposal for the next five-year capital plan doesn’t call for as much building.)

Of particular note is Cinema High School in the Bronx, which will be run in partnership with Ghetto Film School, a program that has for years introduced Bronx teens to film production. The school will admit students selectively; it’s among the roster of new selective schools Mayor Bloomberg promised in 2005.

In some parts of the city, new schools are scheduled to open to replace others that are being phased out because of poor performance. Those new schools have not yet been announced. At least the high schools that will open in September will be revealed by the end of next week; they will then try to woo applicants at a new schools fair.

The DOE’s press release and the full list of schools announced today is after the jump.

CHANCELLOR KLEIN ANNOUNCES TWENTY-TWO NEWLY CONSTRUCTED SCHOOL BUILDINGS TO OPEN IN SEPTEMBER 2009

New Buildings Will House 26 Schools, Including A New Selective School in the Bronx

14,000 New Seats To Be Created Across the Five Boroughs

Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein today announced that 26 schools will open in 22 newly constructed school buildings at the start of the 2009-10 school year. The 26 schools include six schools opening for the first time and 20 schools gaining annexes or moving out of antiquated or temporary buildings. Among the new schools are a selective school in the Bronx and the first high school in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. In all, 14,000 new seats will be created Citywide.

“Under the Mayor’s Capital Plan, we are creating outstanding new spaces for brand new schools, schools in temporary sites, and schools in older buildings,” Chancellor Klein said. “The new schools and high-quality existing schools in these spaces will provide great choices for more families in neighborhoods in New York City.”

“With more than 14,000 seats opening this year, we’re now beginning to see the full impact of the City’s historic $13.1 billion Capital Plan,” Deputy Chancellor for Finance and Administration Kathleen Grimm said. “Between 2009 and 2012, we’ll add more than 34,000 new seats across the City. These new seats will alleviate pockets of overcrowding, and will help to ensure that all students are going to school in facilities designed to best help them succeed.”

“In September, we will proudly open 22 beautiful new school facilities,” School Construction Authority President Sharon Greenberger said. “These buildings include 14 entirely new facilities, plus eight additions or annexes featuring state-of-the-art classrooms, libraries, and science labs. These new buildings will help schools provide students with the resources they need for an outstanding education.”

Six of the schools opening in newly constructed buildings next year will be opening for the first time. These include the Cinema School, the fifth new selective school built by Mayor Bloomberg. In 2005 Mayor Bloomberg promised to create seven such schools; two more selective schools are slated to open over the next two years. Sunset Park High School, a new large Brooklyn high school, will also open. Sunset Park High School will be divided into three small learning communities, providing students with a personalized learning environment within the context of the larger high school. Existing schools moving into new buildings include PS 65, known as “the Little Red School House,” which will move from two different locations into a single building thanks to a close partnership between the DOE and the District 19 community.

“I am very pleased with today’s announcement, and proud that the Cinema School will be located in the Bronx,” Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion Jr. said. “The school will provide students with an ambitious full-time film curriculum while supporting a rigorous academic education. These are the types of innovative new school options that our students and families want and deserve.”

The facilities opening in September 2009 are being constructed as part of the Department of Education’s historic $13.1 billion 2005-2009 Capital Plan, which is set to create more than 55,000 new school seats. In November 2008, the Department of Education released its proposal for the 2010-2014 Capital Plan, which will add 25,000 more seats across the City. After meeting with and collecting feedback from Community Education Councils across the City, the Department of Education will present a revised Capital Plan to the Panel for Educational Policy in February.

New schools opening in newly-constructed facilities will begin with one or two grades and phase in one grade level at a time. Existing schools moving from temporary locations will be able to expand to their fully-planned size. More information about the schools moving into new buildings in 2009 can be found at www.nyc.gov/schools/Facilities/FacilitiesSitePlanning/.

Schools Located in Buildings Opening for September 2009

Manhattan
•    26 Broadway Building
o    Urban Assembly School of Business for Young Women, HS, opened 2005, moving from a temporary location

Bronx
•    Jonas Bronck Building @ East Fordham Road
o    Jonas Bronck Academy, HS, opened 2005, moving from a temporary location

•    James Monroe HS Annex
o    The Cinema School, a new selective high school opening in September 2009
o    Mott Hall V, MS, District 12, opened 2005, moving from a temporary location

•    Bronx Studio School Building
o    Bronx Studio School for Writers and Artists, an Urban Assembly School, MS/HS, opened 2004, moving from a temporary location

•    Reverend James A. Polite Avenue School Complex
o    Peace and Diversity Academy, HS, opened 2004, moving from a temporary location
o    The Metropolitan High School, HS, opened 2005, moving from a temporary location

•    PS 169 Building
o    School program not yet determined

Brooklyn
•    Sunset Park High School Building
o    Sunset Park High School, HS, opening in September 2009
o    Building will include seats for a District 75 program

•    Waverly Avenue Building
o    Achievement First Endeavor Charter School, ES/MS, opened 2006, moving from a temporary location into a new building funded through a charter partnership

•    PS/IS 366 Building
o    Science and Medicine Middle School, MS, District 18, opening in September 2009
o    Second school program not yet determined

•    696 Jamaica Avenue Building
o    PS 65 “The Little Red School House”, ES, District 19, moving from two separate locations into one building
o    Building will include seats for a District 75 program

•    PS/IS 237 Building
o    The Brooklyn School of Inquiry, ES/MS, District 20, opening in September 2009
o    The Academy of Talented Scholars, ES, District 20, opening in September 2009
o    Building will include seats for a District 75 program

•     New Utrecht High School Addition
o    New Utrecht High School, HS, addition to an existing facility

•    PS 229 Addition
o    PS 229, preK-6, District 20, addition to an existing facility

Queens
•    Frank Sinatra High School Building
o    Frank Sinatra High School, HS, moving from a temporary location

•    PS 128 Building
o    PS 128, ES/MS, District 24, demolition of the existing facility and construction of a new expanded facility
o    Building will include seats for a District 75 program

•    PS 49 Addition
o    PS 49, ES/MS, District 24, addition to an existing facility

•    PS 102 Addition
o    PS 102, ES/MS, District 24, addition to an existing facility

•    PS 113 Addition
o    PS 113, ES/MS, District 24, addition to an existing facility

•    St. Bartholomew School Annex
o    School program not yet determined

•    PS 188 Annex
o    PS 188, ES, District 26, annex to an existing facility

•    PS 78 Annex
o    PS 78, ES, District 30, annex to an existing facility

Staten Island
•    PS/IS 861 Building
o    The Staten Island School of Civic Leadership, ES/MS, District 31, new school
o    Building will include seats for a District 75 program

The national organization that places recent college graduates in hard-to-fill teaching positions is dramatically scaling back the size of its New York City cohort this fall, according to an e-mail sent today by the region’s alumni director to former TFA corps members. About 350 TFA teachers will start teaching in the city in September, down from more than 500 this year. Of the 350 teachers, nearly 30 percent are likely to be placed in charter schools, a higher proportion than in the past, the e-mail said.

And the organization says it could reduce the size of New York City cohort even further, depending on how the city’s budget shapes up. (If the layoffs that the mayor and chancellor have warned about actually happen, you can be sure that there won’t be too many 22-year-olds teaching in the city this fall.)

The e-mail also contains a guide to some of the factors that could affect demand for new teachers this fall, no matter their path to the classroom:

• A reduced NYC DOE budget means there is simply less money with which to hire new teachers at the school level; principal budgets will be cut across the board.
• Retirement and resignation rates among all city employees, including central NYC DOE staff, school administrators, and teachers, are expected to decline as a result of the poor economy.
• The NYC DOE recently instituted a meaningful financial incentive for principals to hire teachers from the Active Teacher Reserve as opposed to hiring new teachers through sources such as the NYC Teaching Fellows and Teach For America, or through traditional routes.
• Central NYC DOE staff may go back to working in schools, occupying both teaching and administrative vacancies, as a result of cuts in central staff positions.

The entire letter is after the jump.

January 29, 2009

Dear New York City Alumni,

As stewards of the movement for educational equity, and as stewards of the work of Teach For America here in New York City–our organization’s largest region–it is important to me to keep you informed of major organizational updates. Therefore, I’m writing to provide you with the latest information about our continued impact here in the largest school district in the nation.

As many of you have heard by now, as a result of the economic crisis, both New York City and State are experiencing severe financial constraints that have already begun to result in major budget reductions across most, if not all, government services. Governor David Paterson has proposed a $9 billion spending cut across the state, and nearly $700 million in state-wide budget cuts for K-12 education.

While these cuts are not yet official as New York State legislators will not make a final decision on the size and form of the cuts until this spring at the earliest, the New York City Department of Education (NYC DOE) is currently projecting up to $1.5 billion worth of cuts locally, over the 2008-09 and 2009-10 school years. If you’ve been following the local press, you may have heard that these cuts may result in layoffs, new teacher hiring reductions and freezes, and/or classroom consolidations. As well, it is unclear whether the proposed federal stimulus package will cover some of the budgetary holes this city is faced with in coming years. This letter is intended to update you on the information we currently have concerning the proposed budget cuts, the way we are working with our district and charter partners to handle the situation and the actual and potential implications for placement of the 2008 and 2009 corps members in the 2009-10 school year.

Overview and Context

The Governor’s $121 billion budget for the 2009-10 fiscal year reflects a one percent increase in spending from the current fiscal year. Typically, budgets increase spending well beyond one percent year-to-year. Thus, the majority of the “budget cuts” are actually reductions in anticipated spending by government agencies and programs across the state. However, there are some areas where the Governor is actually proposing cuts to this year’s spending: education is one of them. To date, the Governor has not recommended what percentage of the education-related cuts should be aimed at classrooms and schools versus outside, administrative and central services. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has stated, “I don’t know that 100 percent of it is going to the classroom, but a large percentage of any reduction we get from the state will go to the classroom. That will mean larger class sizes and smaller classrooms.” While the city will look for savings outside school budgets, there is a relatively small amount of funds in the current budget that is not already allocated directly to schools. Of the $21 billion overall NYC DOE budget, more than 60 percent is allocated to schools themselves and most of the remaining $8 billion is allocated to school support services such as food, buses, and debt servicing. Only $600 million of the total $21 billion budget is spent on central expenses and field expenses that do not hit schools directly.

The situation remains in a state of flux, and it was announced on January 28 that the federal stimulus package under development by the U.S. Congress could include significant education aid for New York City. Key influencers including legislators, teachers unions, and district, community, and business leaders are actively debating spending and budget cuts, as well as proposed new taxes. We do not know how the legislative process will affect the Governor’s proposed budget, much less whether the nearly $700 million cuts to education will be lessened. Regardless of how the cuts and ameliorating federal aid play out, it is safe to say that education spending will be cut in the new fiscal year, and that it is likely that spending for the 2009-10 fiscal year by the NYC DOE will be less than in the 2008-09 year. Thus, the NYC DOE has already begun to cut central positions and is prepared to hire fewer central and school-based staff, including teachers, in the coming year.

Actual and Potential Impact on 2009 Corps Size and Placements

The NYC DOE is projecting a continued decline in demand for new teachers across New York City. While some of this projected decline can be attributed to positive changes that recent reforms and organizations like Teach For America and the New York City Teaching Fellows have had on teacher supply in New York City, some of the decline in demand can also be attributed to a reduction in financial resources available to schools. As a region, we felt this decline most notably at the end of the placement season for the 2008 corps. For the first time in recent history, a small number of corps members (33 out of 545) were unplaced after the first day of school. While we were ultimately able to secure teaching positions for our entire 2008 corps by mid-October, challenges in the 2008 placement season may serve as an indicator for the placement challenges we could face as a region in the 2009 placement season.

At this time, there are more questions than answers about how new teacher hiring will be affected by budget cuts, and about whether current teachers may be laid off as a result of cuts. We know that the following factors will affect new teacher demand:

• A reduced NYC DOE budget means there is simply less money with which to hire new teachers at the school level; principal budgets will be cut across the board.
• Retirement and resignation rates among all city employees, including central NYC DOE staff, school administrators, and teachers, are expected to decline as a result of the poor economy.
• The NYC DOE recently instituted a meaningful financial incentive for principals to hire teachers from the Active Teacher Reserve as opposed to hiring new teachers through sources such as the NYC Teaching Fellows and Teach For America, or through traditional routes.
• Central NYC DOE staff may go back to working in schools, occupying both teaching and administrative vacancies, as a result of cuts in central staff positions.

Along with my leadership team, I have been in close discussions with New York City Schools Chancellor Joel Klein and his team for the past several months about the potential impact to Teach For America’s corps size as a result of cuts, policies, and the general economic crisis. Chancellor Klein remains committed to Teach For America but is obviously constrained by the realities of the current economic environment. Together, we have determined that the best course of action, in respect of budget and spending cuts as well as risk mitigation factors internal to Teach For America, is to reduce the 2009 incoming corps size to approximately 350 corps members, down from over 500 in the past three years. Several factors have led us to plan for this smaller incoming cohort of New York City corps members, and to plan to place a larger percentage of the incoming corps in charter schools:

• The economic crisis will undoubtedly have a negative impact on our ability to raise sufficient funds this coming fiscal year to support–through both local and national funding–our original projected total corps size of 1,000.
• The NYC DOE and our charter school partners have provided us with enough evidence for us to feel relatively confident about placing 350 incoming corps members.
• Our internal admissions cycle and process requires certainty around regional corps size by late winter, requiring us to decide what our corps size will be months in advance of when the NYC DOE will be able to form a completely clear picture of the operational impact of the current budget situation.
• We want to ensure that we are able to re-place 2008 New York City corps members who lose their positions (or are “excessed”) at specific school sites, but who remain NYC DOE employees.

For our incoming 2009 corps, we project that approximately 250 will teach in district schools, and 100 will teach in charter schools. It is important to note that if the proposed cuts to the City’s education budget create the need for the Mayor and Chancellor to institute a new teacher hiring freeze (i.e., close to no new teachers hired for the coming school year), our district cohort may be even smaller than anticipated. We and the NYC DOE fervently hope that this does not occur.

Your Role

It is our strong belief that absent economic constraints, Teach For America would and should maintain its current scale in New York City. Even with an incoming corps of 350 teachers, we will continue to operate as Teach For America’s largest region (with approximately 850 corps members total for the 2009-10 school year). Further, it is our strong belief that we will be able to re-attain scale of 1,000+ first- and second-year New York City corps members in the coming years. In order to do so, however, it is incumbent upon all of us to ensure we make the greatest impact possible on New York City’s students and continue to strengthen the alumni network–more so now than ever–as we reduce our numerical scale for this coming school year.

I know that this news and the general news of the nationwide financial crisis have created a difficult situation for those of you that may be impacted by the proposed budget cuts and generally across all the sectors in which you work. In such difficult times, it is important for each of us to remember our respective role as a leader in the movement for educational equity. This is precisely the type of obstacle that we have committed to persevering through as a collective force of individuals who believe that all children in this nation can and will have the opportunity to attain an excellent education and that there’s no silver bullet theory that will on its own realize this dream.

In a recent team meeting on this precise topic, I imparted on my whole staff that we all need to step up our game if we are to come closer to realizing our vision of educational equity for our students, even in a time of economic uncertainty and unforeseen challenges. For 70 percent of you still working in schools, more so now than ever, I encourage you to continue to work alongside fellow staff, principals, families, communities and fellow educators to ensure your students rise to the high academic expectations you set for them. For all of us, more so now than ever we must forge strong and impactful relationships with colleagues, managers, and community members who are not part of the direct Teach For America family of corps members, alumni, and staff so that we can set individual and collective examples of the importance of the work of our corps members and alumni–3,000 strong–in this city. I am personally calling upon you as stewards of the work of our organization, and as stewards of our students’ life paths in this country more broadly, to also step up your game in the new year. In this time of such financial crisis, it is our kids and their families who are hit hardest; more so now than ever, I am giving my all to our work and our mission and am asking you to join me and our staff in doing the same. …

Best regards,
Jemina

Jemina R. Bernard
Executive Director
Teach For America · New York City

Leonie Haimson, executive director of Class Size Matters, leading a press conference. (Photo courtesy of Haimson)

She is privately (and sometimes not-so-privately) loathed by allies of the Bloomberg administration, dismissed as a rabble-rouser whose loud protests represent just a tiny segment of parents. Yet Leonie Haimson, the executive director of Class Size Matters, who targets the administration on the issue of class size and on other subjects, has powerful allies.

Take just one case: At the State of the State address this year in Albany, Haimson sat in a seat many rows ahead of Schools Chancellor Joel Klein. Did she steal the chair from an unsuspecting innocent? No, it was the gift of Assemblywoman Cathy Nolan, the chair of the education committee, who selected Haimson as her single guest.

“I just love her,” Nolan said. “I feel she’s a real honest advocate and a fellow parent.”

Nolan disclosed this story yesterday in a telephone call. I had just posted a note from Robert Bowen worrying that the teachers union will be the only critical voice heard in the debate on mayoral control. Did Nolan think that was true? I asked.

“Look, I’m a graduate of the school system, and I’m a parent,” Nolan said. “I intend to be as involved as I can be in every aspect of this bill: behind the scenes, in front of the scenes. The person that’s been the treasure for me has been Leonie Haimson.”

The close relationship could elevate Haimson to a powerful role in the backroom deals that ultimately will determine whether the law is scrapped, renewed, or — as increasingly seems likely — revised in some way. In 2002, when the mayoral control law now on the books passed, then-Assembly education chair Steve Sanders was a lead architect

Of course, Haimson herself has often worked closely with the union. But she says she receives no funding from the union, and she helped form a parent commission on school governance that includes some critics of the union, including Bowen. The commission has not yet released its recommendations, but they’re sure to include strong attempts to check the mayor’s power over the public schools.

Haimson said that her bond with Nolan is built on their shared experience as public school parents. “Cathy gets it,” she said. “She has a kid in the public schools, and she understands how parents feel.”

With all due respect, Mr. President, this is the problem with public officials sending their kids to private schools. The real story in Washington this year was how D.C. public schools, usually spooked by a light dusting, didn’t close after Tuesday’s snowstorm, thanks to the tough-it-out policies of Chancellor Michelle Rhee. This is a longstanding gripe of mine, how private schools, even ones located in D.C., following the weather guidelines in Montgomery County, Md., as if they float above the actual city.

UPDATE: As a commenter points out below, Sidwell Friends’ lower school, where Obama’s younger daughter Sasha is in second grade, is in Bethesda, Maryland. So it kind of makes sense for Sidwell to follow the Maryland schools. Also, having gone to Maryland public schools K-12, I have to say that I fully support snow days.

The charter school chain that is expanding to 4-year-olds next year.

State law previously restricted charter schools from admitting pre-kindergarten students; they could go only from kindergarten through 12th grade.

But now Eva Moskowitz, founder of the Harlem Success Academy chain of four charter schools, has found a way to open the schools up to pre-kindergarteners. Success Academy recently petitioned the SUNY Board of Trustees to allow “developmental kindergarten,” which is for 4-year-olds — and won.

The change could pave the way for other charter schools to work with children from an earlier age. Charter schools in other cities enroll 4-year-0lds, mixing traditional aspects of early childhood like play time with the rigorous math and reading focus of many charter schools.

Success Academy spokeswoman Jenny Sedlis told me that Harlem Success Academy 2 plans to enroll 4-year-olds next year. They will take “developmental” kindergarten their first year, and then move onto traditional kindergarten. “We are huge supporters of pre-K and early childhood education and we’re interested in looking at innovative ways to bring excellent programs to more at-risk children,” Sedlis wrote in an e-mail.

CORRECTION: Originally this post said the Board of Regents had to approve Harlem Success’s request. It was actually the SUNY Board of Trustees, which authorizes charter schools.

Courtesy of the Campaign for Better Schools, here are a couple of pictures of the scene at Queens Borough Hall right now, where the first Assembly education committee hearing on mayoral control is underway. Zakiyah Ansari, a campaign organizer, reports that the room is “packed to the roof” with about 200 people. The Campaign for Better Schools, a coalition of community groups, has not yet formally unveiled its position on the mayoral control law; campaign leaders say that will happen soon.

But I’m guessing, based on having been to a number of events that previewed the showdown, that those who are testifying at Queens Borough Hall might be having trouble separating their thoughts on the idea of mayoral control with their views on the way Mayor Bloomberg has ruled the city’s schools since 2002. Learn NY, the pro-mayoral control lobbying group, thinks the distinction is important, but they’re not the only ones: The commission convened by Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum in 2007 to study mayoral control also did so without evaluating Bloomberg’s reforms. That commission ultimately argued in favor of a constrained form of mayoral control.

At Teachable Moment, John has a very good summary of how this distinction complicates the mayoral control debate. He writes:

Our image of mayoral control is so linked to Bloomberg that it’s hard to see it any other way.

This is, of course, not helped by the fact that Bloomberg, Klein, and Learn NY aren’t really even playing by their own rules. They will undoubtedly be highlighting rising test scores and graduation rates as evidence that mayoral control is working. They will point out the major dysfunctions that existed under many of the local school boards that mayoral control replaced. But that isn’t playing fair. If we’re really supposed to look at a governance system as a governance system, then we shouldn’t be looking at the successes under one man (who the system is designed to eventually replace) or the failures of the previous administrators.

What’s going on is a very sophisticated kind of mental jiu jitsu where every success under Bloomberg is hailed as proof that the system works while the failures are faults of the man and shouldn’t affect our view of the system. We’re also being asked to compare the platonic ideal of mayoral control (because we’re not looking at the policies Bloomberg implemented through it) to the very messy realities of the previous governance structure.

This isn’t exactly up is down thinking, but it certainly makes it hard to get a hold of a clear idea of what the terms of the debate actually are.

The city took on a massive school construction program in the 1930s with the help of the giant stimulus package called the New Deal. Between its inception in 1933 and when it was dismantled in 1941, the Public Works Administration added 2,500,000 seats in schools across the country. In fact, the PWA accounted for 70 percent of all school construction projects during that time.

At the end of 1934, the New York City Board of Education requested PWA funds to build 168 schools and additions in three years. The city didn’t end up pulling in $120 million from the PWA, but it did open or break ground on 104 school buildings between 1934 and 1939, providing seats for 180,000 children. (A similar number of seats were created in the earliest years of the 20th century.)

Moreover, the UFT is positioned as the legitimate opposition to mayoral control. Therefore, they alone will be the definers of the whys and wherefores of the disenting voices.

Reminds me of Sharpton being positioned as the voice of African American concerns.

On the heels of news last week that the publisher of El Diario is joining the Learn NY board, this could bring a not-so-covert racial dynamic to the mayoral control debate. Another way Learn NY might make the same point: Among the group’s lobbyists are former Bronx party boss Roberto Ramirez, who heads the MirRam group. Assemblywoman Cathy Nolan, chairwoman of the education committee, just told me MirRam lobbyists have already begun meeting with lawmakers to pitch Learn NY’s stance on the law. Learn NY’s lead spokesman so far has been Geoffrey Canada, the black C.E.O. of Harlem Children’s Zone.

Having the city’s non-white communities stand strongly for mayoral control would be a departure from the historical pattern. In the past, racial minorities have opposed mayors’ efforts to take control. Remember decentralization here in the 1960s, led in part by the black and Puerto Rican communities? The pattern applies to other cities, too, according to this essay (PDF) by Columbia Teachers College professor Jeff Henig:

The most important complaints have come from racial minorities, parents, and teachers. Despite the fact that it is presented in race-neutral language, mayoral control has sparked racially defined responses in a number of cities.

Here’s the full Learn NY press release:

Hispanic Federation, Black Equity Alliance, Asian American Federation Partner with Learn NY
________________________________

Diverse groups come together for grassroots effort to educate New Yorkers on mayoral control of schools

New York, NY – Learn NY is pleased to announce new partnerships with several organizations that will host forums and talk with parents about the current school governance system.  These organizations are the Hispanic Federation, Black Equity Alliance, and the Asian-American Federation of New York.

“These three organizations represent many of the faces of New York City,” said Learn NY Board Chair Geoffrey Canada.  “They are joining us to get involved in education issues and will help Learn NY connect and work with New York City parents.”

“We are partnering with Learn NY to help parents increase their understanding of mayoral control,” said Lillian Rodríguez López, President of The Hispanic Federation, an umbrella organization of Latino non-profits, serving millions of underprivileged Latinos in the areas of education, health, elderly services, child care, HIV/AIDS, housing, immigrant services, arts and culture, and economic development. “Parents must play a vital role in their kids’ schools and to do that, they need to have all the facts.”

“Our forums will ensure that the number one stakeholder in the education of New York City’s 1.1 million school children—parents—are fully informed, engaged and empowered to make the best decision possible for their children,” said Joyce S. Johnson, President and CEO, Black Equity Alliance.  “The bottom line is that we’ve got to create a system that delivers for our children and step one in that process is ensuring that parents, educators and community members are educated about the key issues involved in the effective management of our city’s schools,” Johnson added. “Black Equity Alliance supports all efforts to increase opportunities for open, comprehensive dialogue among all concerned with the welfare of New York City’s public school children. We appreciate the work of Learn NY and this outreach partnership with our fellow federations. “

Black Equity Alliance is a nonprofit organization promoting the economic and social sustainability of New York City’s 2 million blacks and working in collaboration with several hundred nonprofit, faith-based, business and human service organizations in the New York City area.

“We want parents to be engaged in their children’s schools, so it’s important that their views are heard,” said Cao K. O, Executive Director of the Asian American Federation, a nonprofit leadership organization which represents 42 member agencies in the New York metropolitan area working to advance the civic voice and quality of life of Asian Americans in the New York metropolitan area.

Learn NY has made open dialogue with parents a priority.  Over the past several months, Learn NY has been working with leaders of religious and school communities to talk to parents about the school system.

In November, we participated in a neighborhood forum on mayoral control in Brooklyn, attended by approximately 1,000 parents and community leaders.  In December, another community forum was held, with about 600 Queens parents and residents attending.

We have also held small educational meetings in Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn.  To date we have met with hundreds of parents and clergy leaders through these smaller meetings.  Learn NY has also attended, and continues to participate in, public forums to engage directly with parents on all sides of the mayoral control issue.

Learn NY has an interactive website, www.learn-ny.org/, that gives parents the tools they need to get the facts on mayoral control, learn about what to expect grade by grade, find a calendar on public hearing on education issues, check out the latest news about mayoral control, and read about the results in our schools.  On our website, parents can also share stories about their schools and ask questions about mayoral control.  Most of the tools are in both English and Spanish.

The kid really did return the lost wallet, which had $500 inside.

My beef here is that assignment editors now have to choose between this adorable photo op, featuring a kid who might be the next coming of Spider-Man, and the sure-to-be-deadly-dull, yet extremely important Assembly hearing in Queens on mayoral control. The chancellor’s event is at 11 a.m. The mayoral control hearing is at 10 a.m.

]]> http://gothamschools.org/2009/01/28/department-of-ed-press-releases-say-the-darndest-things/feed/ 3 http://gothamschools.org/2009/01/28/halfway-through-the-year-state-approves-does-spending-plan/ http://gothamschools.org/2009/01/28/halfway-through-the-year-state-approves-does-spending-plan/#comments Wed, 28 Jan 2009 22:44:08 +0000 Philissa Cramer http://gothamschools.org/?p=8431

Testifying in front of the State Senate today, Chancellor Joel Klein mentioned that the Department of Education and the state had reached an agreement, finally, on how the city will spend $387.5 million in restricted funds.

The money is part of the Campaign for Fiscal Equity settlement, which promised annual funding increases to needy school districts. To get the funds, districts must develop a plan, called a Contract for Excellence, that shows that they will spend the money on certain kinds of programs and to help the neediest students.

The state and the city have wrangled in the past over how much flexibility the city should have over allocating the funds. The agreement, quietly released yesterday, signals that the state has approved the city’s Contract for Excellence for this year and will disburse the funds.

The breakdown of spending in the DOE’s final plan (shown by program type above) is similar to what the department originally proposed back in July. The department will pay for a mix of school-based and citywide programs such as special education, prekindergarten, classes for students learning English, and principal training. (View plans by district.)

One thing that appears to have been yanked since the July plan: bonus pay for high-scoring schools. In July, the DOE proposed paying for the school-wide bonus program using Contracts for Excellence money. That’s not listed as an approved use of the funds in the plan released yesterday.

Most districts had their plans approved at the beginning of October. One possible reason for the delay in the DOE’s approval: a reprise of what insiders described as a bitter battle between state and city officials over the spending rules back in 2007, the first year the new funds were doled out.

Klein alluded to a drawn-out battle during his testimony in Albany. “They were tough but they were cooperative,” Klein said about state education officials with whom the DOE negotiated.

This contract might be the last one the DOE negotiates for a while: Governor Paterson has said the fiscal crisis could cause the state to delay disbursing the rest of the Campaign for Fiscal Equity funds. Outgoing Education Commissioner Richard Mills today urged the state not to stop increasing funding for needy districts.