Democrats for Education Reform released the following statement from New York State Director Elizabeth Ling on January 23rd, 2012 in response to a proposal by the Alliance for Quality Education (AQE) that would slash Governor Cuomo’s competitive school district grant program by $200 million.
“AQE is proposing that the state put the interests of the education bureaucracy ahead of the needs of our students. Throwing money at the bureaucracy without demanding better results and performance has made New York number one in spending and 38th in results. For the sake of every public school student across the state, that needs to change now.
“A performance-based grant program will push schools to raise the bar and reward high-need districts that demonstrate their ability to help struggling students improve. This is a key part of the reform agenda that New York needs to move our schools forward.”