By Alex Davidson
The president of Community School Board 27 criticized a crucial piece of legislation passed by the state Legislature Friday that paves the way for new community councils to replace community school boards.
Steven Greenberg, president and school board member since 1991, said he believes the new legislation calling for elected school boards to be eliminated by Dec. 1 and replaced by parent-led councils will further complicate, rather than simplify the city's educational system.
“I am just not sure how they (the councils) are going to function,” he said in a telephone interview. “I hope it is a model that works.”
The state Legislature approved a measure that calls for the creation of 32 new community district education councils to replace the boards. The new councils will consist of nine parents with children in the school district, two more at-large members appointed by borough presidents and one student member from a district high school.
The nine parent members will be elected by parent-teacher groups within each community school district. The new community district education councils will hold monthly meetings with local district superintendents, prepare a yearly evaluation of the school district and its superintendent and communicate with the citywide Panel for Education Policy.
Greenberg said the new councils will eventually have more authority than the present school boards, even though they will not have any direct executive or administrative powers over their individual districts.
School District 27 covers Richmond Hill, Ozone Park, South Ozone Park and Howard Beach.
He said he is not opposed to the concept of the parent-led boards and the new regional system that now supersedes the 32 individual school districts, but questioned how the two systems will co-exist. Greenberg said all the new changes in the city's educational system could potentially increase parents' confusion rather than eliminate it.
“Who knows what the next mayor might want – he might want to decentralize the system,” Greenberg said.
The state Legislature has been working for almost a year on legislation to legally replace community school boards with other bodies since it granted Mayor Michael Bloomberg powers to reform the city's public school system.
Schools Chancellor Joel Klein described the present school boards as “archaic” and commended the state Legislature for passing legislation enabling the city to legally eliminate community school boards.
“(Friday's) agreement allows us to move forward and implement much-needed fundamental reforms for our children's education, and I look forward to engaging and working with these new parent councils,” Klein said.
Reach reporter Alex Davidson by e-mail at timesledger@aol.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 156
