Mayor muddle on charters
TRYING TO HURT SCHOOLKIDS
Mayor Adams had a chance in the spotlight to boost charter schools Wednesday — but instead ducked outright support for them at an Albany budget hearing stocked with charter foes.
Hizzoner actually had several of the Democratic legislators convinced he was anticharter, given his testimony bashing a proposal by Gov. Hochul to lift a state-imposed cap on the schools for New York City as too expensive.
Adams stated that allowing more of the publicly funded, privately run schools to open in the Big Apple would cost the city treasury $1 billion — a figure that was quickly pounced on by charter opponents at the hearing.
“Increasing the cap on charter schools in New York City, as you stated, will impose a severe financial burden on the city of New York,” Sen. John Liu (D-Queens) told the mayor during questioning about his pricey forecast.
“It’s something I adamantly oppose, lifting of that cap,” Liu said, before adding gleefully: “It’s good to hear you’re kind of opposed, also.”
But instead of correcting Liu about being “opposed” to hiking the cap and repeating his previously stated charter support, Adams demurred.
“Is that a question?” was all he said.
“Nope. There’s no question. You don’t have to say anything. You already said what you need to say here,” chuckled Liu, a former city comptroller.
Adams then sought to clarify his position but took a neutral charter position, saying, “I’m clear on scaling up successful schools and I’m not attached to charter, district, public, private . . . scaling up successful schools is what I believe in.”