By Jenny Sedlis, Executive Director of StudentsFirstNY
Three years ago, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio gave a speech at the Coalition School for Social Change in East Harlem to announce what he called “a bold new plan for turning around schools that are struggling in this city, for not giving up on them — in fact, giving them what they need to succeed.” The mayor criticized his predecessor, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, for closing schools like the Coalition School.
This week, de Blasio announced he will now close the Coalition School and eight others in his Renewal Schools program after spending more than half a billion dollars trying to fix them. The mayor’s expensive school turnaround model has failed miserably, and kids have suffered. It’s time for the city Department of Education to admit reality, change course, and pursue evidence-based strategies that have proven successful in improving academic outcomes for children.
Read the full oped in The 74.
