RCSD supporters fight for more aid; teachers union wants more district oversight by state
Three busloads of people headed from Rochester to Albany on Tuesday to demand an increase in education funding.
Rochester City School student Maya Adams led a chant,“Whose money! Our Money! Our Schools! Our Schools!” from the well of the state Capitol. She’s part of a group including students, teachers, and Rochester residents hoping to prevent further layoffs in the district. The district laid off about 100 teachers mid-year because of an estimated $65 million budget shortfall.
Randi Weingarten, President of the American Association of Teachers, spoke at the rally and said it’s the state’s duty to help.
“We need to make sure that a place like Rochester is not abandoned,” said Weingarten. “If the market abandons it, the public good must come in to save it for the families that want to live there and want to thrive there.”
School officials including Superintendent Terry Dade and Board of Education Commissioners Natalie Sheppard, Ricardo Adams and Amy Maloy were also at the Capitol, meeting with lawmakers, and the state education department in hopes of closing the gap. To do that, Dade said more cuts and at least $20 million in state aid CONTINUE READING: RCSD supporters fight for more aid; teachers union wants more district oversight by state | WXXI News
