Warn Misallocation Of School Stimulus Aid Risks 5,000 Jobs

ALAN LUBIN: 'Schools could lose funding.'

Up to 5,000 statewide education jobs could be at risk, New York State United Teachers announced April 16, after conducting a survey of all state districts' budget preparations and their plans for their Federal stimulus money.

The statewide Teacher union will issue a "math review sheet" to districts that it thinks are misspending the extra funds, instructing them to "re-check [their] math," according to NYSUT Executive Vice President Alan Lubin. The 5,000 jobs statewide do not include figures from New York City.

'Could Lose Federal Funds'

"We tell our students to read the directions carefully, and we'll do the same with the administrators if we have to," Mr. Lubin said in a statement. "If districts fail to allocate the Federal stimulus money as it's intended, they run the real risk of losing the funds and costing local taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars."

Mr. Lubin said that a survey of the union's regional offices found that certain districts were planning to use stimulus money "to lower taxes or to substitute for other funding, a move that could lead to deep cuts to staff and academic programs."

NYSUT noted that the Federal stimulus package was designed to help states and local school districts avoid layoffs as well as create new jobs. Roughly $3 billion will be allocated to New York over the next two years. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has threatened to withhold future stimulus installments if states don't comply with guidelines.

State Education Commissioner Richard Mills also urged local districts to follow NYSUT's advice. "The law is very clear and specific. The funds must be used to protect jobs and advance student achievement," he said in a speech delivered to NYSUT's Representative Assembly in Buffalo.

"The stimulus money allows us to keep Teachers teaching, school staff working and students learning," said NYSUT President Richard C. Iannuzzi in a statement. "Our students have been reaping the benefits of New York's commitment to education, and these funds must be used to maintain that progress."