Filed under: News, Politics, President Obama
Mayor Bloomberg ratcheted up his campaign against teacher seniority rules on Sunday, taking his case to a prominent black church in Brooklyn.
"Albany rules say when it comes to teaching, talent doesn't matter, results don't matter," Bloomberg told hundreds of parishioners at the Christian Cultural Center in Canarsie. "I say enough with Albany rules!"
As he anticipates laying off as many as 21,000 teachers if Albany makes deep cuts to education, Bloomberg is pressing for changes to rules requiring that junior teachers get the ax first.
"That would mean laying off some of our best teachers, while keeping some that just aren't the people we want in front of our kids," Bloomberg told congregants at the influential 22,000-member mega-church.
Churchgoers greeted the mayor with warm applause. The church's influential pastor, the Rev. A.R. Bernard, endorsed Bloomberg three times and sits on the board of the city's Economic Development Corp.
Still, the issue remains controversial.
The teachers union, which has great power in Albany, has warned that tearing up seniority rules would let schools protect younger teachers because they're paid less - not because they're better.
"The mayor's propaganda campaign isn't fooling anyone," teachers union President Michael Mulgrew said Sunday in a statement. "Everyone knows that laying off teachers sends class sizes skyrocketing and hurts kids. The mayor should be working with us to prevent layoffs."
Source: NY Daily News
Kevin Eason is a freelance editorial cartoonist and illustrator from New Jersey. His brand of satire covers news events in politics, entertainment, sports and much more. Follow him on Facebook.