By Kathianne Boniello
Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Friday he is dedicated to building new schools in Queens despite the city’s budget troubles — a sign of his commitment to education.
During his testimony before the City Council’s education committee last week, the man who said he wants to run the city’s public schools outlined some of his plan. He was the final speaker in four days’ worth of public hearings hosted by that committee on school governance.
“Queens is far and away the worst in terms of not having enough classrooms for its students,” said Bloomberg, who sat with Queens Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott, a Queens resident, at his side.
Bloomberg’s proposed budget cuts to close a more than $4 billion deficit would postpone the majority of the borough’s 14 planned school construction projects for up to two years.
When City Councilman John Liu (D-Flushing) questioned what the mayor would do to relieve the borough’s overcrowded classrooms, Bloomberg said that his efforts to build as many schools in Queens as the city’s current economic situation would allow was evidence of his commitment.
“The days of playing politics are long over,” he said. “We don’t have the money to do that.”
Friday marked the first time the mayor spoke at length about his desire to take over the public school system in any detail.
Bloomberg would like to abolish the Board of Education, blend the School Construction Authority into a current city agency like the city Department of Design and Construction, and eliminate the city’s 32 local school boards and districts in favor of school based management.
“We make the mistake of thinking that all schools are the same,” Bloomberg said. “They are not.”
Bloomberg would like control of the public schools but does not get to make the choice. He said if the state Legislature does not vote in favor of his plan, it will be his fault.
The mayor said the onus is on him to explain “why this is best for our students. The failure is mine. I didn’t make the case.”
Mayoral control of the schools is not the only option the state Legislature could adopt. Some, including the United Federation of Teachers, have supported an expanded Board of Ed.
When City Councilman Robert Jackson (D-Manhattan) pointedly asked Bloomberg whether he would work with an expanded Board of Ed, the mayor did not directly answer.
“I do not think that expansion of the board … will let anybody make the kind of changes that are needed,” he said.
Reach reporter Kathianne Boniello by e-mail at Timesledgr@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 146.
