By Courtney Dentch
New York state needs to increase its education aid by $9.5 billion to ensure students in Queens and elsewhere in the city and state have an equal opportunity to achieve a Regents-level education, the Campaign for Fiscal Equity announced Tuesday.
The CFE released Tuesday the New York Adequacy Study, compiled by the American Research Institute and Management Analysis & Planning Inc., which found that city schools need a 39 percent increase in funding to ensure their students are on a level playing field with children elsewhere in New York, a news release said.
“In this study, some of the state’s most experienced and successful educators identified the key ingredients students need to meet the Regents’ Learning Standards,” said Michael Rebell, executive director of the CFE. “Now that we know the recipe for an adequate education, it’s time to provide it to every New York public school student.”
The report was a central requirement of the Court of Appeals in the CFE decision, which gave the state until July to reform the school funding policy.
The study was also being faulted for causing the state Legislature to miss its April 1 deadline for passing the budget. The Senate and the Assembly must include the education funds in this year’s budget as required in the appeal decision.
“We were very close to having a budget on time,” said state Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-St. Albans).
