Reforming the NYC Board of Education to insure public accountability is my number one priority. The current method of appointing members to the Board of Education should be abolished and replaced with a new seven-member board elected directly by the voters. The new Board of Education will be charged with the responsibility of restructuring the entire system. This restructuring will initially affect two critical areas of infrastructure and instruction.

The Condition of our school buildings continues to deteriorate due to gross under funding of maintenance and regular capital improvements. Falling plaster, peeling paint, leaking roofs and broken windows are commonplace. Our children are packed into auditoriums, hallways and yards and expected to learn without the physical resources necessary to accomplish the task. To remedy this historical area of neglect, the new Board will be given a mandate to rebuild our schools into environments that provide adequate space to accommodate our growing student population.

While new and renovated school buildings are essential in creating stimulating learning environments, administration and instructional practices must also be transformed to insure accountability. The system’s low-performing schools, referred to as SURR schools, are those schools that have consistently ranked very poorly in student achievement. SURR schools that require the most intensive intervention are placed into an administrative structure known as the Chancellor’s District. NYC SURR schools and SURR schools placed into the Chancellor’s District should be given the option to convert to charter status. Charter schools, which remain public schools, expand the choice of school options for parents. No student would be excluded from SURR conversion program and parents would have the right to opt-out of the charter system. Charter schools will involve parents in the design, implementation, and education of their children and play a positive role in the community.

(Statement reprinted as supplied by the candidate.)