Though Mayor Eric Adams scored a victory this weekend, winning the battle of mayoral control over the city’s public schools, not all parents were celebrating with him.
Hizzoner and New York state officials have been fighting all year over who should oversee the country’s largest public school district once mayoral control was set to expire in June. But in an unexpected move, state lawmakers granted Adams renewed authority over the schools during the city’s long-awaited announcement of the state budget on April 20.
Parents and public school community education councils from all the boroughs waited with bated breath to see who would come out victorious in the ongoing power struggle. amNew York Metro spoke to several parents of public school students and other New Yorkers from across the city to get their thoughts on the issue. Many said they were angered, disappointed or concerned at the outcome.
Their reasons for objecting to mayor control ranged from too much power for one person to improperly allocated funds to accountability.
Tony Chiappi of Staten Island simply called mayoral control a “bad decision.”
‘I can write a dissertation on everything wrong’
Other New Yorkers were a bit more open about their opinions. Ana Francisco of Manhattan is concerned about the Adams’ administration’s ability to run not just the schools, but the city as a whole.
“The Department of Education is going up in flames. It’s terrible and I can write a dissertation on everything wrong,” Francisco said. “The mayor…if he can’t run other parts of the city effectively, he should not be in charge of education, which is crucial for the future of the city.”
Morgan Lamb, a mother of three from East Harlem, said the mayor’s track record of supporting education programs is subpar, especially when it comes to funding.
“Mayor Adams has siphoned money away from schools and especially the areas that need it most,” Lamb said. “We need more funding for 3-K and special education. From my personal experience, there are nowhere near enough special education services and we need more oversight on his decision making.”
Lamb also said parents should have more of a say in where funding goes within schools. She is a self-described fan of independent school boards.
“I think my frustration boils down to when you’re the mayor, and you have your hand in all the pies, you’re not able to focus on all of them,” Lamb said. “This is what an independent department or board of education gets you. The funding still comes from the budget, but they decide where it goes.”
A father from Queens, who requested anonymity, agreed with many other parents who said the same thing: Mayoral control is too much power for one elected official.
“Taking control from the mayor would give the schools more oversight,” the Queens dad said. “Mayoral control is too much power for one person. I also feel that the Adams administration has too much nepotism going on. And there are better qualified people for these higher positions.”
What to know about mayoral control
Although Adams will remain in charge of NYC schools, the city-state agreement comes with stipulations.
Per the agreement with state lawmakers, the mayor’s control of the city’s school system will only be for two years, unlike the four years he, along with Gov. Kathy Hochul, has been advocating for.
Additionally, the oversight body for public schools, the Panel for Education Policy (PEP), will get another member. Currently, the panel has 23 members, but will get an additional “independent” chairperson. The NYS Senate, Assembly and Board of Regents will submit three nominations for the chair from which the mayor will choose.
When it comes to funding, the mayor must allocate enough money to reduce class size, a measure that will likely help support the city’s ongoing influx of school-age children and their families.
State Senator John Liu (D-Queens), who chairs the senate committee on NYC education, said the agreement includes a significant commitment to expanding the NYC capital plan by $2 billion “in order to provide our school kids a sound, basic education and reduce class size.”
Liu said he would have preferred to have greater deliberation over the issue of mayoral control and to include more parent input, but underscored the value of having the new stipulations in place.
“We have strong accountability measures to make sure the city does not reduce its funding for public schools, which unfortunately it has the last couple of years, and also to require the city to expand its school construction plan,” Liu said. “Without which, there is no hope that the city will reduce class sizes as required by law.”
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