NY Post article about this is here;
For immediate release: July 1, 2022
Contact: Marina Marcou-O’Malley: 518-894-6834, marina@aqeny.org
Leonie Haimson: 917-435-9329; leoniehaimson@gmail.com
Anger and distress at Gov. Hochul refusing to sign
class size bill
Parents, education advocates and elected officials reacted
with dismay and alarm at the fact that Gov. Hochul signed the mayoral control
bill last night without also signing the class size bill, A10498/S09460 at the
same time.
“It is inexcusable and unfathomable that the Governor would
refuse to sign the class size bill when she signed the Mayoral control bill.
The legislature passed this bill almost unanimously. The only thing standing
between smaller class sizes and a better learning environment that students
desperately need is the Governor’s signature. Parents fought for the Campaign
for Fiscal Equity and won. The Governor recognized the need to act on that and
delivered two years of funding for Foundation Aid, so that, among other things,
class sizes can be reduced. Thirty years after the CFE lawsuit was filed ,
class sizes are worse, not better. We urge the governor to sign the bill and
signal that she continues to recognize what needs to happen for our students’
sake,” said Marina Marcou-O’Malley, Policy and Operations Director for
the Alliance for Quality Education.
Leonie Haimson, Executive Director of Class Size
Matters said, “The fact that the Governor signed the Mayoral control
bill without signing the bill that would require him to reduce class size at
the same time is particularly outrageous. There can be no accountability
without smaller classes for NYC kids, which the State’s highest court said were
needed to provide them with their right to a sound basic education under the
State’s constitution. Smaller classes are also the top priority of K12
parents nearly every year on the DOE’s own surveys, and the class size bill
passed 59-4 in the State Senate; 147-2 in the Assembly. It is
particularly outrageous that the Governor has chosen to renew the Mayor’s
control unconditionally, just at a time when he is slashing the budget
for schools, causing class sizes to increase rather than decrease and students
to lose critical programs and services."
“New York City’s parents are sick of our children’s
education being used as a political bargaining chip. We passed the class size
legislation with a considerable bipartisan margin, and thirty-eight elected officials from Congress,
the state, and the city, as well as over 7700 petition signatories urged the
Governor to sign the class size bill this week. There was no such groundswell
for the renewal of Mayoral control. Signing it into law would be such an easy
win for the Governor. The last-minute, late night negotiations have become a
pattern in this administration’s first term, and it is hurting our children,”
said State Senator Jessica Ramos.
“Large class sizes were a main driver behind the Campaign
for Fiscal Equity (CFE) lawsuit I brought against New York State with parents
in 1993. The 2007 court ruling found that, ‘tens of thousands of students
placed in overcrowded classrooms is enough to represent a systemic failure,’” said
Senator Robert Jackson. “New York City governance must make class size
reduction a priority. It is a shame that the class size reduction legislation
was not signed into law with Mayoral Accountability. The resulting impact of
school budget cuts will harm students further as class sizes increase,
affecting educational outcomes. I urge the Governor to follow through on the
state’s obligation under the CFE ruling and sign S9460 into law. Answer
the call of families across the city, sign that bill!”
“We ask that the Governor sign the class size bill as soon as possible, which would also help to limit the Mayor’s damaging cuts to school budgets, which if left unchecked will further undermine the ability of NYC children to receive the quality education that they desperately need now more than ever before,” said State Senator Julia Salazar (SD-18).
The Governor must make good on her promise and sign the class size reduction bill. It was part of the deal for renewing mayoral control. The Mayor's dyslexia initiative needs smaller classes to be effective. As a former teacher of deaf students, I know just how critical smaller class sizes are to students’ ability to succeed. Small classes improve outcomes for all students, especially those of color and those from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Parents and educators are reeling--stretched to the limits by the pandemic and now with school budget cuts--and we can't let them down,” said Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon.
As eminent education historian and advocate Diane Ravitch concluded, “ Governor Kathy Hochul is double crossing the students, teachers, and parents of NYC.”
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