Feb. 7, 2024 Here and below is our Feb. 1 testimony to the State legislature on the budget, and how DOE is doing nothing to comply with the new class size law. In fact, as we point out below, class sizes have increased in most schools over the last two years, a trend that is […]
Feb. 6, 2024 Below is the presentation I gave last night to the Education Committee of the NYC Bar Association, on the history and the myths surrounding Mayoral control. Below that is my longer testimony on Mayoral control to the State Education Department, that goes into more depth on these issues. NYSED is supposed to […]
Jan. 5, 2024 NYC has plentiful options for raising billions in more funding with the help of the state, including more than $170 million annually if our district was treated the same as any other district in the state by being eligible for charter transition aid and exempt from being forced to pay for charter […]
December 20, 2023 In June 2022, NYC students, parents, and teachers had a great victory with the passage of a new state law that would require class sizes be lowered in our public schools, starting this fall. In 2023, we at Class Size Matters worked to try to ensure that the law will be followed […]
Below is a draft resolution for CECs and other community and advocacy organizations to consider passing, urging the DOE to adopt the recommendations in the report of the Class Size Working Group and begin to lower class size in compliance with the class size law. So far, resolutions urging the DOE to implement plans to […]
For immediate release: December 11, 2023 Contact: Leonie Haimson, 917-435-9329; [email protected] Class Size Working Group members urge the Chancellor of NYC schools to implement their recommendations without delay Here are quotations from the Class Size Working Group co-chair and some of the parent leaders, advocates, and working teachers and other school staff who were […]
December 11, 2023 Our testimony at today’s NYC Council Finance hearings about how the Mayor’s proposed cuts to education would prevent the DOE from complying with the class size law and likely cause even sharper class size increases than students experienced over the last two years. Also available here.
Yesterday, Class Size Matters and AQE sent a letter to the State Education Commissioner, urging them to demand that DOE produce a class size corrective action plan, as it is clear that they have taken no steps to allow them to comply with the law. Our press release is below. A Daily News article about […]
Nov. 28, 2023 Thanks to the 100+ parents and teachers who attended our Class Size briefing yesterday, co-sponsored by AQE and NYC Kids PAC. The presentation as a pdf is here and below, in case you missed it or want to take a closer look. The video of the briefing, along with the Q and […]
See the UFT media release below about the press conference this morning at the Landmark Elementary school in Brooklyn, K599. Some news clips: City & State, ABC7, Gothamist, NY1, Fox5 NY. Along with UFT President Michael Mulgrew, co-Executive Director AQE Zakiyah Ansari, and me who are quoted below, others speaking eloquently at the press conference […]
Sign here to urge NYC to implement a real, multi-year strategy to lower class size, as the law intends, without exempting up to half or more of all students.
Talk out of School radio show and podcast airs Sunday night at 7 PM on WBAI 99.5 FM or online at www.wbai.org when Leonie Haimson and Daniel Alicea interview guests and discuss issues affecting public schools in NYC, the state level and nationally. You can stream or subscribe to the podcast here; or at iTunes, Spotify or Google.
We held our annual Skinny award dinner Wed. June 28, 2023, honoring Rep. Jamaal Bowman, former Bronx principal and now a progressive trailblazer who is fighting in Congress to protect and improve our public schools. More photos on Facebook .
