NYC Coalition for Educational Justice

By Richard Moody, Legislative Gazette

Even though New York state has the highest per-pupil spending for education in the nation, its public education system is failing in four of seven categories tracked by the watchdog group Alliance for Quality Education.

During a press conference in Albany last week, parents, educators and lawmakers unveiled a report card showing what New York is doing right, and what it is doing wrong in terms of educating students and preparing them for college.

“It is the right time to evaluate whether the state is heading in the right direction or in the wrong direction,” said Billy Easton, executive director of AQE. “Some say we are being too generous. No one said we are being too harsh.”

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By Beth Fertig, SchoolBook

By Lindsey Christ, New York 1

Parents and children from P.S. 64 in the Bronx came down to the Department of Education headquarters in Lower Manhattan on Monday to ask for help. This spring, the DOE decided to close the school, saying it has failed.

Parents agree, saying the school is really bad. But because the DOE plans to phase out the school slowly, over several years, parents are worried for their children, who will be stuck there in the meantime.

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By Nigel Chiwaya, DNAinfo

NORTHERN MANHATTAN — Parents and politicians from across the city joined forces Tuesday to rail against the potential dezoning of their schools districts.

Through the day and at different points in the city — first at a rally outside theDepartment of Education‘s headquarters and later at a public forum in Washington Heights — parents from districts from Inwood to Greenpoint blasted the department for reintroducing the plan to remove school zones.

“Dezoning is a false choice,” said Natasha Capers, a parent from Community Education Council District 23 in Brooklyn, a dezoned district. “My choice is a struggling school across the street — or a struggling school five blocks away.”

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Associated Press, Wall Street Journal

NEW YORK — Mayor Michael Bloomberg has sought during his three terms to make the city’s sprawling public school system a showcase for get-tough policies such as closing schools deemed to be failing and using student test scores to measure teacher effectiveness.

Educators around the country are now watching this year’s race to succeed Bloomberg because several candidates say they would overturn those policies if elected.

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