Educators for Excellence-New York Applauds New Agreement To Extend Mayoral Control

NEW YORK CITY – State officials announced an agreement over the weekend to extend mayoral control of the city’s educational system, a governance model in place since 2002. The renewed agreement maintains the mayor’s majority control of the Panel for Educational Policy (PEP), the primary decision-making body on major educational policies and contracts. Additionally, the mayor will continue to appoint the NYC Schools chancellor, maintaining a streamlined and accountable leadership structure.

Under the new terms, the city will commit to sustaining its financial contribution to the schools and adhering to state-mandated class size regulations. In a significant shift, the designation of the chair for the Education Department’s governing body will now be a collaborative decision involving the Legislature and Mayor Eric Adams, enhancing state-city cooperation.

Marielys Divanne, Executive Director of Educators for Excellence-New York, hailed the extension as a triumph for the city’s educational framework and its recent initiatives aimed at boosting literacy instruction.

“The extension of mayoral control is both a win for our schools and a win for the city’s recent investments in high-quality literacy instruction. Having cohesive and consistent leadership will allow the city’s NYC Reads initiative to flourish and expand to more grade levels. Furthermore, it opens doors for similar large-scale programs in math, which are feasible only with the stability mayoral control offers,” Divanne explained. “At a time of such historic education investments and promising initiatives, maintaining consistent and accountable leadership is crucial.”

The extension of mayoral control is expected to fortify ongoing educational reforms and support the expansion of high-quality academic programs across New York City schools.

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About Educators for Excellence

Founded by public school teachers, Educators for Excellence is a growing movement of more than 35,000 educators, united around a common set of values and principles for improving student learning and elevating the teaching profession. We work together to identify issues that impact our schools, create solutions to these challenges, and advocate for policies and programs that give all students access to a quality education. For more information, please visit e4e.org.