Schools face budget cuts, debate over mayoral control, and charter school drama

This spring, as students, teachers, and administrators at local schools pack up their books and head off for summer vacation, many will still be wondering where they will learn or teach next year, who will be in charge of the education system, and what programs may no longer exist at their schools.

Budget cuts, charter school controversy, and debate over mayoral control are among the issues the New York City Department of Education has battled with this academic year. And as summer approaches, parents whose children remain on the waitlist for kindergarten spots anxiously await favorable solutions.

Budgetary constraints continue to shape the DOE’s decisions. In mid-November, Gov. David Paterson, CC ’83, proposed an $838-million cut to the state’s public education funding, which would amount to an average cut of $252 per city student, according to the Campaign for Fiscal Equity.

While the city’s public schools will still receive a $450-million increase from last year—totaling a budget of $8.1 million—that number is still 3.5 percent less than the $705-million expected increase. Administrators are still trying to figure out how to balance their budgets while maintaining valuable programs.

The state has also affected the city’s school system by approving the addition of 100 charter schools statewide. A significant number have opened up in Harlem.

Groups such as Harlem Parents United view charter schools, which are public schools that admit students by random lottery and often share buildings with regular public schools, as important vehicles for expanding school choice. In a district notorious for poor standardized test scores and low graduation rates in its public schools, parents like Kyesha Bennett, a founder of HPU, have said charters are “changing Harlem.”

“It’s a civil right to be educated at the highest level,” Bennett added. “Expanding choice means allowing more charters if people want and putting children first.”

“The idea behind charter schools ... is to give those families and communities that tend to have the fewest resources more choice,” Peter Anderson, head of school at Future Leaders Institute Charter School on West 122nd Street, said.

Still, the proliferation of charter schools has met controversy, particularly from community members who feel that the DOE should be dedicating resources to the improvement of the regular public schools instead of charters.

“New charter schools are going through growing pains,” Khadyjah Wilson, parent coordinator at P.S. 180 Hugo Newman, said in March.

Harriet Barnes, current president of the Community Education Council for District 5 in Harlem, said recently that while charters can be a positive addition to the school system, a problem remains over what to do with children who do not get spots. “Why can’t you take that same money and make that charter school a good public schools and run both the same way?” Barnes asked.

April brought additional questions as to how the DOE should deal with failing schools. After parents and community members filed a lawsuit against the DOE for not involving school boards in its move to close three schools, two of which—P.S. 241 and P.S. 194—are in Harlem, the education department reversed the decision.

The DOE’s original plan was to replace these failing schools with charters. While many were enraged at the DOE’s lack of communication with the people affected by the decision, others—particularly those associated with charter school Harlem Success Academy—continue to see charters as the best alternative. While the schools in question will remain open next fall, the department will gradually phase them out and allow charter schools to occupy their classrooms.

“Why is the DOE’s job to house charter schools with small classes?” asked Sarah Morgridge, executive assistant to city councilman Robert Jackson, who represents Morningside Heights and chairs the council’s education committee. “The councilmember is appalled by the lack of collaboration, by the lack of consultation, and the disregard for the structure that’s in place.”

For many, decisions the DOE makes about school closings or the addition of new charters come back to the debate over mayoral control of city education. In 2003, Mayor Michael Bloomberg replaced the public school boards that were formerly responsible for public schools, taking control under his purview. Especially this year, as the mayoral election draws nearer, many are debating what is the most effective way to run the school system.

In May, parents were able to participate in an advisory vote for the Community Education Council elections for the first time in several years. According to New York State law, only Parent Teacher Association and Parent Association presidents, secretaries, and treasurers can officially vote for the CEC. But this year, under the oversight of the DOE, all city school parents had the opportunity to cast straw votes preceding the actual election that will take place later this week.

This advisory vote—the first of its kind in the country because it was conducted entirely online—was meant to extend parent participation in the election and provide official voters with more information about whom their community members favor.

At Teachers College this year, Columbia has taken significant steps to increase its involvement in local schools. The college received a $5-million grant from the General Electric Foundation to launch the Harlem Schools Partnership, a five-year program that aims to help prepare teachers and students for the demands of studying science, technology, engineering, and math.

“For the schools, it’s something they’d hoped to see,” Ann McIver, executive director of Morningside Area Alliance, an education advocacy group, said in December. “They’re looking to see what’s going to come to them in terms of ... improving resources and opportunities.”