NY Gov. Kathy Hochul roasted for refusing to push charter school expansion

Gov.Kathy Hochul refused to advocate for an increase in charter schools in her $252 billion proposed budget, in what education-choice advocates say was ceding to the powerful teachers union ahead of her re-election campaign next year.“Hochul blinked — big time, to the disadvantage of a lot of kids and families,” said Eric Nadelstern, who served as a New York city deputy schools chancellor under former Mayor Mike Bloomberg.“Unfortunately, Hochul appears more concerned with re-election than doing the right thing.

She is not a strong leader.”New York City has hit the legal cap on charter schools allotted to it under state law, and no more of the popular, alternative publicly funded schools can open without additional action in Albany.Hochul did fight to lift the cap two years ago but after a bruising battle with the union-friendly state lawmakers, only 14 more licenses were made available — and they’re now all been gobbled up.Educators in the charter school sector expressed disappointment, but said they would appeal to the governor and lawmakers to revisit the issue before adopting a new state budget on April 1.“The charter school cap should be lifted.Kids should have access to an excellent education,” said Bishop Raymond Rivera, founder of the Bronx-based Family Life Academy Charter Schools network and a board member with the Black, Latinx, Asian Charter Collaborative.BLACC represents 40 charter schools run by minority educators.“The politicians should be listening to the parents who are voting with their feet,” said Rivera, referring to families who are leaving the city.Jeremy Grace, interim executive director of BLACC, said parents are “desperate for other educational options.”“We have many charter schools with children on waiting lists.

It is important to fight for what’s right,” Grace said.Charter school advocates acknowledge that New York’s lawmakers are wary of standing up to the teachers union, which opposes charter schools �...