Stephanie Miner says Cuomo school reforms 'scapegoat teachers,' ignore funding inequities
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Mayor Stephanie Miner has once again challenged Gov. Andrew Cuomo, this time by demanding more money for poor school districts like Syracuse.
Saying Cuomo's educational policies "scapegoat teachers'' for the problems of failing schools, Miner said many failing schools do not get as much state aid as they are entitled to by law.
Miner today joined forces with another occasional Cuomo critic, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, to demand better school funding.
They issued a joint news release (see below) calling on the state to honor a 2006 decision by the state's highest court, which held that the state had provided inadequate financial support to New York City and other poor school districts.
In an interview today, Miner said she understands Cuomo's effort to reform schools and to weed out bad teachers, but she said money must be part of the discussion.
"You cannot scapegoat teachers, then say 'We're going to give them more tests and more evaluations,' and walk away from the significant constitutional underfunding that's been going on in this state for years,'' Miner said.
The Court of Appeals, New York's highest court, ruled in 2006 in the Campaign for Fiscal Equity case that the state had failed to meet its constitutional obligation to provide adequate education to New York City students.
The state Legislature in 2007 approved an increase in need-based school funding in response, but reduced school aid again in subsequent years, undoing the progress, according to Alliance for Quality Education, an Albany advocacy group.
Billy Easton, the group's executive director, said he hopes the state Legislature this year will restore funding consistent with the Campaign for Fiscal Equity decision.
He praised Miner and de Blasio for taking a public position on the issue.
He praised Miner and de Blasio for taking a public position on the issue.
"Mayors have a lot of business to do with the state, and it takes a willingness to stand up in order to do this,'' Easton said. "I think it's a very significant thing that these two mayors have stood up.''
Cuomo's agenda this year includes significant education reforms that he says would help improve failing schools. Among other details, the governor has proposed tougher teacher evaluations that would make it easier to fire underperforming teachers, and fewer limits on charter schools.
Miner said she does not oppose those ideas in principle, but said they do not address the core problems of struggling public schools.
Cuomo's office responded with a statement questioning the significance of funding to improving education:
"New York today spends more per pupil than any other state in the nation -- $19,552-- nearly double the national average of $10,608 per pupil. Over the last 15 years, spending on education in New York has more than doubled, from $28 billion to $58 billion, and we spend more per pupil than any other state in the nation, yet our students remain in the bottom half when it comes to results. Clearly throwing more money at the problem isn't working."
Two years ago, Miner publicly criticized Cuomo's leadership, calling one of his budget initiatives to help cities a "gimmick'' in a New York Times opinion piece. Their relationship has been rocky at times ever since.
But Miner endorsed Cuomo for re-election last fall, saying she supported him despite their occasional disagreements.
Asked whether her relationship with Cuomo has become more confrontational since then, she responded: "I have continued to believe that it my responsibility is to stand up Stephanie Miner says Cuomo school reforms 'scapegoat teachers,' ignore funding inequities | syracuse.com:
