(From The NY Post’s Knickerbocker blog, March 29, 2010)
By MAGGIE HABERMAN
The news of the omission of New York from the Race to the Top winners today brought a statement from a newly-formed coalition – under the umbrella of Education Reform Now – which will focus on changing the laws governing the charter cap in the state.
The group seems to put several players in the charter-cap debate into one organized effort, and the group’s statement describes them as “a new coalition launched to ensure that New York receives $700 million in federal Race to the Top dollars that will go towards making sure that public school students get the education they deserve.”
It adds, “Members include Democrats for Education Reform, the New York Charter Schools Association and the New York City Charter School Center.”
Education Reform Now was an arm of DFER, whose executive director is Joe Williams, a former education reporter, and being used as an umbrella for the others (NYCSA and the NYCSC have worked on various issues with individual charter schools, including policy and advocacy.
The charter-school cap in New York was known to be an issue in the push to acquire the coveted RTTT funds, and the state’s exclusion from selection wasn’t a surprise. But the new group suggests a more streamlined effort moving ahead.
Lifting the cap has been a major issue for Mayor Bloomberg, who recently said that the state’s inclusion in the RTTT finalist list wasn’t a consolation prize, suggesting New York had virtually no chance at the cash under current state laws.
The statement reads,
“Today, New York State lost out on $700 million in federal funding because it stood still while other states moved ahead. At a time when Albany is slashing services, raising taxes and considering borrowing billions, it only makes the problem even worse when we fail to pass a few common sense reforms that would generate a tremendous amount of new resources for our schools.
“Fortunately, New York still has a shot at a second round of Race to the Top funding. But today’s loss makes crystal clear that if we are serious about winning this race and easing the burden on New Yorkers in this time of fiscal crises, the legislature must pass education reform that includes lifting the cap on public charter schools and equalizing charter school funding.
“With $700 million at stake – and with our schools facing devastating cuts in this year’s budget — New York can’t afford to sit this race out, again. That would be worse than looking a gift horse in the mouth – it’d be spitting in the face of the millions of New Yorkers who work hard, pay their taxes, play by the rules, and expect their elected officials to do the same.”