Charter School Students Prepare To Rally Over Mayor's Scrapped Plans
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Pupils were preparing this weekend to rally in Albany, after Mayor Bill de Blasio's announcement this week to deny space to some charter schools.
As WCBS 880's Jim Smith reported Saturday, Jeremiah Kittredge, executive director of the charter school advocacy group Families for Excellent Schools, said the message of the rally planned for Tuesday in Albany is simple.
Charter School Students Prepare To Rally Over Mayor's Scrapped Plans
"Treat us fairly -- equal access to buildings, funding and the opportunity to offer pre-K," he said.
Mayor de Blasio will be in Albany himself Tuesday, lobbying for his plan for universal pre-kindergarten and a tax on those making at least $500,000 to fund it. But Kittredge said the more than 90 charter schools from around the state will not oppose that effort.
More than 90 charters from across the state, including the Success Academy Network of schools run by de Blasio rival Eva Moskowitz, said they will bring 2,500 parents and kids to Albany on Tuesday to seek help protecting charter schools.
The mayor said he's not going to get involved with the sideshow.
"There are charter school leaders who are saying no way in hell would they go to Albany to march against pre-K and after school for the kids of our schools," de Blasio said Friday.
Meanwhile Saturday, City Councilman Daniel Dromm (D-25th) was asking whether regulations would be violated if Moskowitz closes all 22 of her charter schools for her students to attend the rally.
"Kids are being used as pawns in Eva Moskowitz's battle for charter schools, and I just don't think that that's right," he said.
But Kittredge countered that the most long-term impact is that hundreds of kids are set to lose their schools in the fall.
De Blasio on Thursday announced his decision to axe three planned charter schools run by Moskowitz, and a former New York City Councilwoman.
The three charter schools being axed by the mayor are among 17 charter schools being promised free space in public schools next school year.
The other 14 charters are scheduled to open as planned, Burrell reported.
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