Why is DOE planning to spend $321 million on contracts, including $200 million on busing we aren't using, when schools are closed and facing nearly a billion dollars in budget cuts?
Sue Edelman of the NY Post just published a story on the proposed DOE contracts being voted on Wednesday, April 22 by the Panel on Educational Policy.
Many of these contracts are simply breathtaking in their expense, especially at a time of school closures and huge budget cuts planned to public schools for next year.
The spreadsheet I created from these proposed contracts shows they add up to $321 million, including extending busing contracts for $200 million for the month of March with an automatic extension for another $200 million in April -- buses we aren’t currently using and don’t need.
The proposed spending also includes $4.4 million to hire nurses for this school year, when we have an oversupply of nurses already on staff, given school closures; and $3.4 million for professional development this year which is also not being used, at a cost of $17 million over the life of the contracts, despite the fact that the Chancellor has said he plans to cut PD next year.
All this is especially incomprehensible given how the Mayor and Chancellor have proposed to slash public education by $827 million in next year’s budget, including $100 million to be taken directly out of school budgets
Among the other items in the list is $1.2 million for Accenture consultants for unspecified "advice" during the Covid crisis, with no hourly wage mentioned, even though in past administrations hourly wages were including in these documents, as well as $40.5 million for IBM to "stage" and send iPads to students. The cost of the iPADs themselves aren't mentioned.
See the letter from Comptroller Stringer, sent yesterday, asking the DOE hard questions about about why they are extending the busing contracts, and pointing out that these CONTINUE READING: NYC Public School Parents: Why is DOE planning to spend $321 million on contracts, including $200 million on busing we aren't using, when schools are closed and facing nearly a billion dollars in budget cuts?