NYDN: Charter school funding balloons during Mayor Bloomberg time in office - DUHHHH!

If they can knock off 10% of the teaching staff with another 10% to come over the next few years, the city can funnel money directly to the charter jails without passing GO. Here are some points made in today's Daily News "Exclusive" -- some exclusive, telling us Bloomberg has shortchanged public schools in favor of charters.

Charter schools received billions of dollars during Mayor Bloomberg’s tenure — while teachers, school aides, principals and classrooms got a smaller share. Meanwhile, the city spent more money on direct services to schools, but reduced the percentage of funds that goes to pay for classroom staffers and materials.....NYDN

Duhhhhh, one might say given the Bloomberg ed deform aim to wipe out entire swaths of public schools and replace them with charters.

Now there are a whopping 159 charter schools in the city — and two dozen more will open in the fall. More than 100,000 students — about 10% of all city students — are expected to be enrolled when all of the schools reach capacity. 

Just watch calls for expansion when the cap is reached - given there are 159 charters in NYC already we are heading in that direction. Not only chains but every social welfare agency and mom and pop people with a vision of getting into the edu-real estate charter business where you can hold of a piece of an entire publicly funded and built building are jumping on the charter bandwagon. No unions, no worries. Think about it. 10% of the students mostly go to schools with non-union teachers. The UFT has to be taking a hit here with the loss of dues with the opening of  every new charter though the ATR deal where people are not fired like they are in other cities keeps dues coming in. But watch the final piece go into place starting this year with the new evaluation system as the city starts going after tenured teachers in droves. The entire purpose of the desperation of ed deformers to get an evaluation deal in place is all about an end run around tenure.

If they can knock off 10% of the teaching staff with another 10% to come over the next few years, the city can funnel money directly to the charter jails without passing GO.

Remember that the Chicago TU lost about 6000 teachers, around 15-20% of its membership.

EXCLUSIVE: Charter school funding balloons during Mayor Bloomberg time in office

Charter school funding, set by the state, has risen from about $32 million to about $659 million over a decade as the mayor increased their number.There were 17 charter schools in New York when Mayor Bloomberg took office. Now there are a whopping 159.

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Charter schools received billions of dollars during Mayor Bloomberg’s tenure — while teachers, school aides, principals and classrooms got a smaller share of a substantially larger school budget pie, according to documents obtained by the Daily News.
Money for charter schools exploded from about $32 million to about $659 million over a decade as Bloomberg increased their number from 17 when he took office in 2002 to 125 in 2010-11, the most recent year for which spending data are available.
Funding for charter schools is set by the state.

Now there are a whopping 159 charter schools in the city — and two dozen more will open in the fall. More than 100,000 students — about 10% of all city students — are expected to be enrolled when all of the schools reach capacity.

“This administration’s unprecedented investment in education created stability and coherence in a broken system,” said Andrew Buher, chief operating officer for the city Education Department.

But the skyrocketing expansion, a key part of Hizzoner’s education legacy, is controversial partly because charter schools receive rent-free space in city buildings and are privately run.

Roughly two-thirds of the schools are located within traditional district schools.

“It’s no secret that this administration has made charter schools a priority, and this can be seen in dollars as well as in the allocation of space,” said Kim Sweet, executive director of city nonprofit Advocates for Children.

Charter schools outperform public schools on many measures, but only 6% of their students are English-language learners, and just 9% of their students have special needs — much lower than the citywide averages.

In a speech last week at the Manhattan Institute, city Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott boasted about“our highly sought-after charter school options.”

Charter school sources said they expect the level of growth to slow down in the next few years — even though there are huge waiting lists — because the schools can’t hire qualified staffers fast enough to keep up with demand as existing facilities reach their full capacities.

Meanwhile, the city spent more money on direct services to schools, but reduced the percentage of funds that goes to pay for classroom staffers and materials.

Teachers received about 34% of the overall education budget in 2010-11, down from roughly 40% of the overall budget in 2001-02. But their starting salaries increased — from $31,190 in September 2001 to $45,530 this year, according to education officials.

Still, teachers union head Michael Mulgrew blasted the city for skimping on teacher salaries, saying instructors haven’t received raises in the four years since their last contract expired in 2009. “If you’re going to lower the percentage you’re paying teachers, you’re not going to be able to hold on to or attract a high-quality workforce,” Mulgrew said.

Bloomberg also allotted smaller shares for custodial services, drug prevention programs and summer school, while boosting payments to private schools for special-needs students who require services district schools don’t provide.

More money was also doled out for debt service and employee benefits.
Since 2002, the overall city budget increased from about $41 billion to about $65 billion in 2011, according to figures from the Independent Budget Office.

The education budget takes up about a third of the overall city budget — and has nearly doubled since Bloomberg took office. It grew from $13 billion in 2002 to nearly $25 billion for next year.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/charter-school-funding-balloons-article-1.1398190