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TESTIMONY
Leonie Haimson, Executive Director of Class Size Matters, on DOE's Policies on Class Sizes and Lack of Transparency
3:00:47
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4 min
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Leonie Haimson criticizes the Department of Education's (DOE) failure to reduce class sizes and its violation of transparency laws.
- Haimson questions the DOE's claim that higher needs schools have smaller classes, arguing both research and state formulas show larger class sizes in these schools.
- She outlines the negative impact of DOE's budget cuts and shrinking teaching force on class size reduction efforts.
- The reduction in new school seats and funding in the capital plan, along with its lack of transparency, violates state laws and agreements with the city council.
- Haimson emphasizes the urgency of DOE's action to avoid further educational disruptions and potential state funding withholdings.
- She reflects on the DOE's inaction over two years, noting the challenges faced by principals in reducing class sizes without adequate support.
Leonie Haimson
3:00:47
My name is Leeny Hanson.
3:00:49
I'm the executive director of class size matters.
3:00:51
I'm here with my associate, my go ramps.
3:00:54
I'm gonna not read my testimony, which is very long.
3:00:58
I wanna respond to some of the things that DOE said today.
3:01:03
They keep on making this point that the law is somehow inequitable because the highest needs schools already have smaller classes.
3:01:10
There are 2 reasons why that's a ridiculous assumption.
3:01:14
Number 1, the highest needs students benefit the most from smaller classes.
3:01:18
As shown by research.
3:01:19
And number 2, when you use the state formula, which looks at both the percentage and the number of high need schools in students in schools.
3:01:29
The highest needs schools have the largest classes.
3:01:33
So this and this is a formula.
3:01:36
This the state education department devised in order to determine how which schools should get the contract for excellence funds.
3:01:48
Class sizes have gone up for the last 2 years of on average in elementary and middle schools and high schools as well.
3:01:55
And so the notion that they've provided more money to schools this year is simply untrue.
3:02:02
They keep on increasing class sizes, and we expect that to continue into the future, especially as their their plan.
3:02:10
The financial plan says $700,000,000 in cuts to DOE over the next every year for the next 4 years.
3:02:19
Simply cannot lower class size with this level of cuts, and the financial plan also says, that they intend to shrink the teaching force by another 3000 over the next 2 years.
3:02:33
And the idea that DOE doesn't know that the plan is completely unbelievable.
3:02:39
Secondly, the capital plan is an outrage.
3:02:42
They've cut the number of seats by 50% since the law was passed and the amount of funding for new seats by 2,500,000,000.
3:02:52
Is simply impossible that that will that will not create more overcrowding in our schools in the years to come and the transparency, the lack of transparency does clearly violate 2 state laws, as well as MOU with the city council.
3:03:10
Because it's not just that they haven't quite figured out where to build the schools.
3:03:15
The plan specifically says they will never divulge from now on where they intend to build schools until they've already acquired the space and the plan is in the process of design.
3:03:28
And there are 2 laws which specifically say they have to specify where these schools are going to be built.
3:03:35
The class size law says they have to specify where should be built in order to be able to reduce class size.
3:03:44
I was a member of the class size working group, and they have they today said could not make a commitment on a single proposal that we made or a simp even a simple single step that they're prepared to make in order to reduce class sizes next year and in the years beyond.
3:04:02
And I just wanted to make another point, which is the longer they wait, the more disruption is going to happen in our schools.
3:04:09
And the more chance that the state education department will have to hold back funding.
3:04:14
And we do not want that.
3:04:16
They've had almost 2 years now.
3:04:18
To start planning, and they've done nothing except go in the reverse direction, make it more difficult for schools to lower class size.
3:04:26
And I really feel for principles because they are being given an impossible task.
3:04:31
It is not a 0 sum game.
3:04:33
There's only a 0 sum game if the DOE refuses to spend an extra penny on our schools.
3:04:40
And, of course, they have the funding to do that.
3:04:42
They have a a city surplus that's projected of more than $3,000,000,000 next year aside from the additional funding that we've gotten through the foundation age.
3:04:52
So I'm gonna turn it over to Michael, and he's gonna make a few other points about where we are now, but it is simply unexcused acceptable that that that they're dragging their feet, and they have not made a a single taken a single step to move in the direction that we know that we have to move.