Issue Position: Education & Youth Programming

Issue Position

There is nothing more important than education. As the product of a public education, along with my daughter making her way through the public education system, I know just how important it is we invest in a system that provides crucial teaching and learning to over 1.1 million of our city's youth. Education is the beacon of hope for our future generations and is crucial in building future leaders on the North Shore and across the State. It is how we mentor our youth towards a successful life in which they can achieve their goals and dreams.

During my time at the Mayor's office, I became the point person for Staten Island in implementing the Universal Pre-K program. It was my job to be a liaison between schools that were piloting this program and the Mayor's education team. During this process, I was able to work closely with schools across the borough and learn, first hand, navigating the logistics of implementation, along with many additional issues our community faces. The North Shore needs to move towards a place where regardless of your zip code, a good education is considered a right, not a privilege. Education is the foundation for a life-time of success, and we need legislators in Albany who have lived through the struggles that we continue to face, and are prepared to fight tooth and nail for our city's youth.

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Here is Charles' 6-Point Plan to create Better Schools for a Better North Shore
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1. FAIR FUNDING FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION

We've seen a major uprising across our county -- from Arizona to West Virginia-- regarding the way in which state government funds its public education system and pays its teachers. New York should be part of this scrutiny. We must live up to the promise of the Campaign for Fiscal Equity v. State of New York ruling in 2006; our state did not adequately fund public education. New York has not provided the promised funding under Foundation Aid, along with our local schools being owed over 4.3 Billion in funding. In Albany, I commit to fighting to fully fund the Foundation Aid formula and that the state budget adequately funds increases in investment for education across the North Shore and the entire state. We must also undertake a major endeavor in our state that completely reforms the way in which we fund public education; decouple a funding structure that ties aid to property taxes and move to a place where the quality of one's education is not based off of their income or the zip code in which they live. Additionally, the North Shore of Staten Island has some of the most overcrowded classrooms across our entire city. It is unacceptable that our community has faced these barriers to a sound public education, and I will always advocate that we not cater to big developer interests and add more public school seats within our district.
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2. OUTSIDE OF THE CLASSROOM
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YOUTH PROGRAMMING

As the father of a young daughter, I understand the vital need for youth programs across the North Shore. In Albany, I will advocate for increased funding for after-school programs. As a child, I benefitted from recreation centers such as the Cromwell Center. The state must increase investment in afterschool and summer programs to foster an environment that encourages our youngest generation to succeed.
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EDUCATION BEYOND THE CLASSROOM
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For our youngest population, work within the classroom is only one part of a holistic approach to a well-rounded education. There are many programs across the North Shore that work to accomplish just that. One that I am very familiar with is Literacy Inc. (LINC). In Albany, I would look to increase funding for this program, and others like it, to encompass a broader reach to families across the district. LINC truly engages children and parents to read and gives them the support they need. I would work closely with the local Staten Island chapter, along with many others, to truly understand how the state can assist in investment and expansion of these programs.
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ANIT-GUN VIOLENCE
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Both inside and out of the classroom, students and school administrations must feel safe, and New York must move to a place where we prioritize safety and anti-gun violence programs. Violence interrupter groups (such asTru 2 Lifeon Staten Island) are doing amazing work with a community approach to limiting gun violence. Thanks to partnerships between the NYPD, school administrators, and groups like this, we foster environments that encourage students to thrive. I will work to increase funding so they have programming in schools that will educate students from a young age, based on an age appropriate curriculum, about the dangers of violence in their community.

3. LOCAL CONTROL AND STRONG OVERSIGHT

Albany politics has far too often taken advantage of our youth. We've seen how School Boards were rife with corruption and political favors, and it is a system that we cannot go back to. In Albany, I will always support local control of public schools, with no unrelated, back room deals. Local solutions are the best way in which we can create an educational environment that fosters growth, diversity, and a positive learning environment.

The state must institute strong oversight over charter schools across our city. We cannot let any institution take advantage of public education laws to cater to a CEO's agenda. It must be about students; expanding educational opportunities while ensuring quality is not diminished. I will be a loud advocate in Albany to ensure there is equal access and opportunity to Charter Schools for all students. I am vehemently opposed to co-location of charter schools in public schools, as it negates needed attention and investment these public schools deserve.
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4. SUPPORTING ALL OF OUR STUDENTS

Our city has seen a disturbing rise in the number of homeless and sheltered school children. As of 2017, nearly 112,000 of the over 1.1 million public school students are homeless or living in temporary housing. That's 10%. We must do better not only as a state, but also as a society. In Albany, I will partner with local elected officials to advocate and provide needed funding for services that enable these students to live in safe housing, have the ability to be transferred to and from school, and be a part of a classroom environment that fosters a positive educational learning experience.

The fight for equal rights for our disabled community is extremely personal to me. In Albany, supporting strong state oversight to prevent the atrocities that were committed at local special-needs schools will be a major priority. There are over 200,000 school students with Individuated Educational Programs. Unfortunately, we see the pitfall when there is a lack of proper government supervision. I will aggressively support the use of Individuated Educational Programs (IEP) and use my voice in Albany to advocate for increased oversight so we do not have students with IEPs who do not have their needs met. We must ensure those with developmental disabilities receive the services they need, and I will work to integrate these students into the classroom so they can receive support and thrive in an environment with their peers.

We must also face the reality that not all youth are ready to make the immediate transition from high school to college. As I neared high school graduation, I was told that my life would amount to nothing if I did not attend college, but that is not the case. There are good paying jobs across various sectors of our economy that do not require advanced degrees. With employers across Staten Island attempting to recruit talent from a pool of skilled workers, we must make state investments in vocational training, expand trade schools, and create a state-wide apprenticeship program that establishes tax credits for small and medium sized businesses to partake in a system of on-the-job teaching and training for the next generation of blue-collar workers.
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5. MAKING HIGHER EDUCATION AFFORDABLE

New York has some of the greatest, world-class institutions of learning. Right here in Staten Island, both public and private colleges have been a life-line for native Islanders to peruse higher education. For the first time in history, student loan debt has surpassed credit card debt. We must encourage our next generation to pursue higher education, and with a 21stcentury economy that demands higher levels of educational attainment, ease the financial burden off of our students. Our state must move to a place where we provide free, in-state tuition for 4-year Bachelor's Degrees at local and state colleges and universities. The Excelsior Scholarship was a major step in the right direction, but we can and will go further. I will be a strong advocate in the Assembly to alter the way in which the scholarship is awarded to students, namely: increasing the individual and family income cap for those eligible; easing the tight restrictions on students only being eligible if they attend full-time; move away from a "last dollar" program -- where the scholarship is added on top of others -- to a system that adds living expenses, books, and miscellaneous fees to costs eligible under the scholarship.

I will also be a strong advocate for passing of the NY DREAM Act. We cannot accept that those who came to this country at a young age are any less than American than those who were born here. We must support and encourage anyone and everyone who seeks to expand their educational capacity, regardless of their immigration status.

We have seen New York slow down investments in public higher education. With the number of students attending public colleges sky-rocketing, the state has not kept up with per-student funding. I will fight during the yearly budget process for increases in needed investments for CUNY and SUNY, especially when it comes to the capital and maintenance backlog, along with adding money exclusively for the hiring of more full-time professors, and bring long-overdue fair salaries to part-time faculty.
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6. END THE PHILOSOPHY OF "TEACHING FOR THE TEST"

Education is where our next generation of leaders develop their talents to be successful in the real world. As technology continues to advance at a rapid pace, we must not forget what skills should be prioritized in the classroom: helping students grow their breadth of knowledge while advancing real-world skills. Standardized testing has seen our state move away from the basic pillars of learning and education, focusing instead on teaching "for the test." In Albany, I will work with our local teachers, school administrators, and advocates to create curriculums that reflect the knowledge and will of our educators in the teaching of their students.

We must also work to diversify our school system, especially Specialized High Schools. We need to have the tough conversations, and acknowledge that not all families have the financial means to help their children prepare for standardized testing. The State Legislature must take a hard look at how we admit students into Specialized High Schools, balancing opportunity for all while still having a strong incentive for students to succeed at opportunities in Specialized High Schools.

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