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The ABCs of A Better Capital Plan for Our Schools

September 23, 2008


Councilmember Jessica Lappin and I spoke to PS 158 PTA President Erinn Deri this morning before class started to distribute postcards as part of a campaign to encourage Mayor Bloomberg and Education Chancellor Klein to give schools more capital support.

For the next few weeks I will be visiting schools throughout our communities asking parents, teachers, and concerned residents to sign postcards to Mayor Bloomberg and Chancellor Klein asking them to give students the small classes they need to learn and grow.

It clear that school overcrowding is a growing problem throughout New York City and especially on the Upper East Side—and it is a problem that will not go away until the Department of Education and the Mayor take action to make a proactive change. I am a member of Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer’s Task Force on School Overcrowding. Since January, we have been working to create a comprehensive plan to submit to the City which we believe would help solve the overcrowding dilemma. This November, it is critical that the City’s new five-year capital plan for school construction take into account the projected growth in population and residential construction, especially on the Upper East Side.

To that end I am working with the Borough President to promote “The ABCs of A Better Capital Plan”. The ABCs would:

Address overcrowding and implement the city’s state-mandated class-size reduction plan: 20 students per class in K-3 and 23 in all other grades.

Be proactive and plan ahead to add school seats as neighborhoods grow.

Correct the way school capacity is calculated so the loss of art rooms and other critical spaces to overcrowding is acknowledged.

If you are interested in signing a postcard please stop by my office. Together we can ensure that the next generation of New York leaders receives the education that they deserve in schools that we can be proud of.

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Written by Micah · Filed Under Blogroll, Community, Upper East Side 

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