Help us amend the City Charter to require smaller classes in NYC public schools

Q. Why is reducing class size so important?

A. Parents and teachers have long known, and research shows, that smaller classes are key to improving learning and narrowing the achievement gap. Students in smaller classes do better on tests, achieve better grades, are held back less frequently, have lower dropout rates, and are more likely to go to college. Smaller classes have also been shown to reduce discipline problems and teacher turnover, and to increase parental involvement. This is why 32 states now provide funding to reduce or limit class size by law.

Q. Why do we need a Charter Amendment on class size?

A. For years, NYC public schools have had the largest classes in the state –and some of the largest in the nation. Class sizes in city schools remain unacceptably high–10-60% larger than those in the rest of the state. We need to reduce class size in all grades, so that another generation of NYC children is not deprived of a fair chance to learn. A Charter Amendment would make smaller classes a matter of law, not annual budget negotiations.

Q. What does the Charter Amendment say?

A. The proposition amends the city charter to require that class sizes in our schools be lowered to levels comparable to those in the rest of the state outside NYC. Public schools in New York State outside the city average about 18-22 students per class, depending on grade level.

Q. Where will the funding come from?

A. Our proposition ties reducing class size to the additional $5.6 billion that the court has already ordered be spent on NYC schools in the Campaign for Fiscal Equity case. It is expected that these funds will begin to flow from the state in the near future. In addition, there is a Council proposal to provide $200-400 million more in city funds to lower class size starting next year, by continuing the personal income tax surcharge on those earning more than $500,000.

Q. Why tie class size reduction to the CFE funds?

A. To amend the city charter, there needs to be a specific funding source provided. We have specified that a minimum of 25% of CFE funds be used, which will be enough to reduce class sizes significantly in all grades. The proposed CFE plan the Mayor submitted to the court would spend just 2% of these funds to lower class sizes, and only in certain grades, despite the Court of Appeals finding that classes in all grades in our schools were too large to provide students with an adequate education.

Q. Where will all the new teachers come from?

A. New York City has seen an increase in the number of new teacher applicants in the past two years. The big problem is in retaining experienced teachers.  Improving working conditions by reducing class size will help keep teachers from quitting the profession after one or two years, or moving to the suburbs, where classes are smaller.

Q. What about the need for additional school facilities?

A. In addition to the $5.6 billion for operating expenses, the Governor has just signed a bill authorizing $11.2 billion in capital funds, which will provide enough schools and classrooms so that class size can be lowered in all grades.  In the short term, the city will have to lease more space, such as some of the parochial schools being closed, acquire more modular classrooms, and, in some cases, place a second teacher in a classroom.

Q. Didn’t the Mayor bump the last class size proposition off the ballot?
A. He did. But in our previous campaign we were petitioning to create a charter commission on class size.  This time we are seeking to amend the charter. The Mayor successfully blocked our proposition for 2005. Now he has to resort to the courts to keep the amendment off the November 2006 ballot. He instructed his lawyers to invalidate the amendment, but the Coalition sued, and the matter is before the state court.

Q. If I don’t have any children in NYC public schools, should this still matter to me?
A. We think so. Investments in education pay off. Economists estimate that the benefits of smaller classes are twice the cost in terms of future earnings alone. Right now, remediation and special education is very expensive, and our high drop-out rates lead to unemployment, poor health and weakened communities. Crowded classrooms also drive out middle-class families, eroding our tax base. The quality of our educational system will help determine the future of this city.  The question is not whether we can afford to reduce class size, but whether we can afford not to.

New Yorkers for Smaller Classes includes ACORN, Advocates for Children, Alliance for Quality Education, Asian-American Communications, Central Brooklyn Churches, Chancellor’s Parent Advisory Council, Class Size Matters, Community Service Society, District 3 Presidents’ Council, District 6 Presidents’ Council, District 25 Presidents Council, Dominican Foundation Culturarte of NY, Educational Priorities Panel, Goddard Riverside Community Center, Greater NY Labor-Religion Coalition, Hispanic Federation, NYU Institute for Education and Social Policy, NY Central Labor Council, NY State Conference of NAACP, Parent to Parent, People for the American Way, United Federation of Teachers, United Parents Associations, Women’s City Club of New York and Working Families Party. (List in formation)