Revised School Control Bill Has Safety Agents Facing Added Scrutiny

GREGORY FLOYD: 'Unfairly targeting dedicated staff.'

The State Senate approved continued mayoral control of city public schools in an Aug 6 session, ending months of political wrangling in a deal that imposed added oversight for the Department of Education.

The Senate passed four separate amendments and created a select committee on school governance. Teamsters Local 237 President Gregory Floyd vocally objected to one of the amendments, which focused on School Safety Agents.

Just Needs Governor's Okay

The primary bill, which was identical to one approved by the State Assembly in June, will now go to Governor Paterson for final approval. The Governor supported the renewal of mayoral control and pushed for the State Senate to swiftly pass the Assembly's bill after a leadership dispute left it paralyzed for five weeks.

Democratic Conference leader John Sampson refused to comply without his members having a say in the law, thus producing a compromise under which the law is confirmed before the start of the school year, but the chapter amendments are also passed and can be voted on separately by the State Assembly when it re-convenes sometime this fall.

JOHN SAMPSON: Predicts 'real improvements.'

"The reforms to school governance are a real step forward for our schoolchildren and their parents, and give us confidence that when we look down the road, real improvements will be made," Mr. Sampson said in a statement.

Majority Leader Pedro Espada Jr. said the bill would "allow greater parental involvement in their children's education, increased curriculum oversight by senior school officials, and decision-making input at the school level by superintendents, Principals and parents on such issues as academic programs, transportation, school safety and nutrition."

'Singles Out Safety Officers'

The amendment that upset Mr. Floyd was introduced by Sen. Eric Adams, a former NYPD Captain, and states: "each school or an established committee thereof shall hold meetings at least annually, open to parents and persons in parental relation, during which they shall discuss safety concerns in that school, including matters related to School Safety officers."

ERIC ADAMS: Concerns about 'over-policing.'

In a letter to Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver urging him to reject the amendment, Mr. Floyd, who represents more than 5,000 School Safety Agents, said that the amendment "unfairly singles out School Safety officers as a special subject of scrutiny," adding, "these unarmed, dedicated peace officers risk life and limb daily to help maintain an orderly environment that facilitates learning and achievement."

'Demoralizing' to Workers

Mr. Floyd said that Local 237 had no problem with the parental meetings, just their specific focus. "To single out School Safety Agents as a special subject for statutory scrutiny is demoralizing to the dedicated people who safeguard our schools," he said.

Mr. Adams said that the bill dealt with parents who "have often felt uncomfortable interacting with school safety officers and NYPD personnel and voicing their concerns over both underreported activities and possible over-policing tendencies." He added, "This bill aims to get to the heart of these concerns by providing an environment where parents can talk about school safety matters, including the role of the NYPD, and can make suggestions for improvement."

Don't Need Assembly Sign-Off

Mr. Floyd's appeal to Mr. Silver may not have any impact, because the city has reportedly pledged in negotiations to enact the amendments with or without the approval of the Assembly. In a radio interview two weeks ago, Mr. Silver acknowledged that the DOE could enact the reforms without any legislation being required.

Mayor Bloomberg issued a statement praising the Senate for "[preserving] a system of clear accountability for our schools that has produced clear and dramatic results for our students." He added, "With the governance question resolved, we can now move full steam ahead with efforts to ensure that this school year is marked by more great progress."

Three other chapter amendments were also passed. One, which provides money to create a parent training center at the City University of New York, was backed by the United Federation of Teachers and is designed to help parents understand and participate in the DOE.

Another creates an arts advisory committee to issue reports on educational policy involving arts education, and the third clarifies the role of superintendents in the system, empowering them to review the quality of curriculum and instruction when monitoring Principals.

The bill also removes the Schools Chancellor as head and voting member of the Panel for Educational Policy, as well as requiring PEP approval of all no-bid contracts and all contracts over $1 million. These reforms were all part of the Assembly's bill. The law will sunset in six years.

Creates Oversight Panel

In a last-minute move, the Senate also approved by a voice vote a special panel to oversee school governance, which will contain four Democrats and three Republicans and will have subpoena power. On the Senate floor, Sen. Bill Perkins said the committee would "curb the excessive use of the influence of the Mayor and the policies that have shown themselves not to have been good for the children of the city of New York."

Republican Minority Leader Dean Skelos told the Daily News that he believed the "redundant" committee was created at the last minute to ease the passage of mayoral control with some holdouts. "They felt that there would be more of a comfort level with certain members that aren't happy with the school governance bill that passed the Assembly," he said.