By WINNIE HU
Published: January 4, 2012
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo says he is taking on a second job: lobbyist for students.
In his State of the State address on Wednesday, the governor pledged to wage a campaign to put students first because all of the other parties involved in public education — from superintendents to maintenance workers and bus drivers — have lobbyists promoting their interests. “It’s not about the business, it’s not about the lobbyists,” Mr. Cuomo said. “It’s about the students, and the achievement, and we have to switch that focus.”
But in a speech devoted largely to job creation and economic development, Mr. Cuomo offered few details on how he planned to fight what he called the state’s growing “public education bureaucracy.”
As expected, Mr. Cuomo announced that he would convene an education commission this year to recommend reforms in two major areas: teacher accountability and student achievement, and management efficiency.
He said only that its members would be jointly appointed with the State Legislature, leaving many unanswered questions about the makeup of the commission and how it would operate.
Mr. Cuomo said the commission needed to find ways to advance a statewide teacher evaluation system, saying that a 2010 state law mandating such a system had not worked.
“Two years and it hasn’t even started yet,” the governor said. “Our children deserve better than that, and hopefully they’ll get it this year.”
A new teacher and principal evaluation system was outlined in New York’s application to the federal Race to the Top program, which netted a $700 million grant, though efforts have stalled as some school districts and teachers’ and principals’ unions, including those in New York City, have been unable to agree on how to proceed.
Mr. Cuomo provided no examples of what he called management efficiency, and his aides declined to elaborate.
“Obviously, there’s a need to address bureaucracy,” said Richard C. Iannuzzi, president ofNew York State United Teachers, representing nearly 300,000 teachers. “But we didn’t learn enough today about how he plans to address it. If the commission is just going to set up some arbitrary dates about arbitrary processes, that’s only going to add more bureaucracy.”
Mr. Iannuzzi added that he disagreed with the governor’s assessment of the law mandating the teacher evaluation system, saying it would take more time to reach agreements that would improve achievement and learning.
Elizabeth Ling, state director of Democrats for Education Reform, an advocacy group, said: “It’s essential that the governor structure the commission so that it can actually achieve real meaningful reform. It would be a squandered opportunity if he appointed the same bunch of hacks who helped create the current mess.”
Still, Robert Lowry, deputy director of the New York State Council of School Superintendents, said he supported the idea of a new commission because it could potentially spur a discussion about balancing public education costs and needs.
“There are a lot of people who would disagree with the governor’s rhetoric and parts of his analysis, but would agree with the big picture,” Mr. Lowry said. “How do we produce more learning for students with the resources our taxpayers can provide?”
Mr. Cuomo, in his address, also proposed to expand a grant program created last year for State University of New York schools, calling them “a precious jewel of this state.”
He said that 60 SUNY campuses would be able to compete for three $20 million grants to promote academic excellence and economic development in local communities.
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