Budget cuts hit LaGuardia juniors
Last week, a number of LaGuardia juniors found out that their math tracks are being abruptly ended. As a junior in trigonometry this year, I was expected to take pre-calculus in the fall, and take the Math B Regents Exam in January. Now, because of budget cuts, seniors will not be allowed to take pre-calc. To learn the semester of content and prepare for the Math B exam, tutoring will be offered over the summer. This is not really an option for people (like me) who have summer jobs. Also, the only math classes being offered to seniors next year are Advanced Placement classes. For the juniors are in pre-calc this year, the situation may not be much better. Calculus may be cut next year, too, giving these juniors no way to complete their math track. A letter is being sent to all colleges explaining the sudden death of advanced, non-AP math at LaGuardia.
When I expressed my concern, the assistant principal of math told me, “Write to the Chancellor and Mayor and ask them to stop taking our money away in the middle of the year.” I told her I already had, and that was the end of the conversation. But this conversation is far from over. My school has been forced to make hard choices because of circumstances outside its control. LaGuardia has done its best to maintain its unique dual mission to provide students with both good arts and academic educations. But no school should have to make the choice to end a curriculum like advanced math mid-year, without preparation or prior warning.
If, as the Chancellor and the Mayor insist, cuts must be made, they should not come from the classroom and force schools to make decisions like this one. How can these leaders say they’re committed to rigor and higher standards in education, and then limit funding for motivated math students?
Perhaps the cuts could come from the testing budget. It seems that tests are multiplying faster than rabbits; kids as young as kindergarten are now being tested. Perhaps the needed savings can come from the production and administration of school Progress Reports, which are often inaccurate representations of a school.
The pattern is scary. Mid-year crunches are resulting in the loss of teachers and classes, which are the last things that ought to be taken away. If “students” were a budget item, we’d probably be the next to go.
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Yes, scary. And ridiculous.
Keep making noise. Organize. Get parents and students to write the DOE and every politician and newspaper you can.
Comment by A Dad — May 14, 2009 @ 7:58 am
You are right — it’s unconscionable! Think of all the teachers and valuable educational programs that could be restored or added if the millions spent on testing were redirected.
Comment by a parent — May 14, 2009 @ 8:09 am
Yesterday, I received a call–at dinnertime, natch–from Bloomberg’s campaign phone bank. I said flat-out that I would not vote for him because of specific DOE policies. I encourage anyone who receives such a call to do the same. Maybe Mayor Mike’s ambition for a 3rd term will make room for him to get the message.
The administrators at my child’s elementary school say that what’s most onerous for them are not the cuts per se–which, certainly, they’re not fond of–but this profoundly disrespectful yanking of funds/reordering of priorities midyear. It wreaks havoc in their planning and discourages thoughtful strategizing for how best to educate our children.
Comment by kk — May 14, 2009 @ 8:57 am
The next time I get a Bloomberg call, I will do as kk suggested. When I got a call recently I was just too disgusted to talk. Truthfully, Bloomberg could do so much more for this city as a philanthropist. If he poured even half of his campaign advertising budget into the public schools, schools wouldn’t have to make such drastic cuts.
Comment by Bronx mom — May 14, 2009 @ 3:18 pm
“profoundly disrespectful”.. I couldn’t have put it better myself kk. It truly is an insult to anyone who has devoted themselves to teaching or learning.
Comment by Toni — May 14, 2009 @ 8:43 pm
It’s not only the non-AP math classes that are being cut for next year’s 12th grade students at LaGuardia, it’s also the non-AP science classes. This ought to be illegal.
Comment by a LaG parent — May 14, 2009 @ 9:56 pm
I second the comment of the fellow LaGuardia parent above. I have a sophomore student at LaGuardia, and my child has been counting on taking advanced math and science classes for the following two years (junior & senior year). So kids who are great in the arts but also solid or even better at math and science should just take dumbed down or no courses in those subject areas for their last two years at school? I think the results of funding decisions made by DOE, and to some extent the Feds, is that No Child Left Behind really means No Child Shall Excel. Why are those NYC schools with AP or even just decent advanced science and math classes (which abroad, in Europe and in Asia, are not even considered that advanced for high school) not given the funding they need? And don’t get me started about lack of DOE funding for science lab equipment, science lab supplies, and even creation and/or renovation of science labs. Anyway, I hope that enough parents and students complain to DOE and to the State (as it is a specialized high school) so that LaGuardia gets the funding it obviously needs, and also is pressed to keep those advanced math and science classes. Maybe a few less DOE consultants — like the folks who thought that changing bus routes for elementary school students in the dead of winter was a good idea — would pay for those courses at LaGuardia and other schools with similar problems. You don’t even have to be a “Snapple Cap” to think of that as an option.
Comment by LaGuardia Parent — May 15, 2009 @ 12:26 am
I just don’t get this. If there are enough students to make up an advanced science or math class, how does it cost more money to put them all in one class and have the teacher of that class teach them on an advanced level? How is this a financial issue? What am I missing? We had hoped that LaGuardia would be a good option for our very bright arts focused child. We know many families, who might otherwise have forced their creative kids into a specialized school for the sake of the academics, who chose LaGuardia because they believed their child could get a rigorous, challenging education at LaGuardia given LaGuardia’s focus on boosting the academics in admissions in recent years. If this is not fixed, it is a terrible shame.
Comment by Parent of a middle school child — May 15, 2009 @ 10:11 am
People should fight hard over this. My daughter went to LaGuardia and took two years of calculus. We all really valued the school’s giving her a chance to pursue art and advanced academics.
One point, though. This is 90 percent the Bloomberg administration’s fault for wasting money on their spin machine and on assessments and fancy consultants. But the principal does have some discretion. Are there other cuts she could make? Why did she choose this one? Parents and students should demand an accounting and put pressure on her as well.
Comment by gail — May 15, 2009 @ 12:15 pm
My daughter tells me that one of the LaGuardia cafeterias was just outfitted with new tables and chairs which were unnecessary. I suspect the principal doesn’t budget things properly. Personally I think the students should have a right to take 4 years of math, science and a foreign language. Apparently they don’t at LaGuardia.
Comment by a LaG parent — May 15, 2009 @ 7:37 pm
Although it is easy to blame some of the budgeting issues on the principal, she really isn’t to blame for many of the classes being cut.
Much of what LaGuardia is getting now comes through grant money for specific things, and although I don’t know if the new cafeteria tables came from grant money, I wouldn’t be suprised.
I do think it’s horrible that the school has taken out courses that really interest students and can be important for getting into college, but I want to clarify that students at LaGuardia still will be able to take four years of math and science- they just won’t get as much choice.
I’m sure that LaGuardia’s budget could be a lot tighter, but we really need to be concentrating on fighting the city for more money instead of fighting the school.
Comment by LaG Student — May 17, 2009 @ 12:40 pm
I completely agree with that.. As I said in the post, LaGuardia has done it’s best to maintain the dual mission of arts & academics, but has been forced to make decisions like this one because of midyear budget cuts. That’s not to say that we shouldn’t have input in the choices our administration makes, but if we want to fight against something, I agree that the bigger fish to fry are the mayor & chancellor.
What’s more troubling is that other schools, when the time comes to cut, have cut the arts completely. That’s a real tragedy. There needs to be a permanent, minimum funding for arts in every school and that funding should not be sacrificed under any circumstances.
check out: http://www.artsjournal.com/dewey21c/2009/05/changing-education-policy-a-ca.html
Comment by Toni — May 17, 2009 @ 10:35 pm
In answer to commenter # 11, I’m not sure that all the 12th graders will qualify for the AP courses in math and science. If the way foreign languages are limited after the 3rd year to AP courses that are only available to students who get 90 or above is any indication, LaGuardia will not allow all 12th graders to take the AP math and science courses. It appears that the principal is turning LaGuardia into a school where many 12th graders will be attending part-time because they will not be allowed to take a full course load. Science and math in the 12th grade for the top scoring students, or nothing at all. If there were enough seats for all the 12th graders to take math and science, then LaGuardia would be offering non-AP courses in these subjects. By only offering AP courses, she ensures that she won’t have to employ a sufficient number of teachers to teach everybody because of the large number of students who don’t qualify for AP. This is what is known as “doing the math”.
Comment by a LaG parent — May 19, 2009 @ 12:35 pm
It’s true that offering only AP classes is forcing a lot of people to drop science and math, and that’s a problem. But I think - and please correct me if I’m wrong- that our school gets funding specifically for AP classes, and that money cannot be transfered to support a non-AP class.
Comment by Toni — May 19, 2009 @ 3:19 pm
One possible response to your grievance, from the people up high:
How selfish of you. Is it really fair to maintain optional advanced courses, inaccessible to everyone, when others struggle and fail at the base? Moreover, it is really fair that a special, *privileged* school like La Guardia receives more - or even as much - money other overcrowded and struggling regular schools, whose grossly insufficient of funding is obviously the cause of all their grief?
That sort of answer has been given in the past. I hope today people fully realize its perversity. If not, we may expect drastic budget cuts both to your school and to advanced programs across the city.
Comment by NYC alum — May 19, 2009 @ 5:44 pm
Also just out of curiosity, in response to comment 12: why do the arts specifically - and not math, science, foreign languages, or any other area - deserve a permanent claim to funding?
Comment by NYC alum — May 19, 2009 @ 5:59 pm
Just to clarify for everyone: it’s not actually advanced math and science that’s being cut- it’s REGULAR math and science for those students who want to take it in senior year. (Right now, the only senior year options for math and science are AP).
In terms of the permanent arts funding, I say that because I see arts as the subject most often cut completely from a budget. It’s not that other subjects don’t deserve a permanent funding, I just feel like the mayor & chancellor are more prone to give the core academic subjects money at the expense of the arts. Yes, some math classes are being cut in my school, but ALL arts classes are being cut in many other schools. In my experience, arts can do a great job of engaging and motivating kids, and I think they should be given equal priority to all the other subjects.
Comment by Toni — May 19, 2009 @ 6:19 pm
how sad what is happening to LaGuardia. Bloomberg is a lot of hype like Guiliani. I also think that comment 15 the “people on high”: We need to fight for a great education for all the kids in all the schools. Are the charter schools getting money and resources at the expense of the regular schools? Is this Mayor in charge via Klein thing really working? All the testing statistics prove is that they can get some teachers to teach to a test to make them look good as they cut and cut everyone. There isn’t a real high school in the world that doesn’t offer pre-calc. It means if a student needs this in college, they would have to take preliminary courses to be elligible for a math major, pushing high school courses to the colleges.
Comment by former LAG mom — May 19, 2009 @ 10:10 pm
As a parent of a LaGuardia junior, I totally agree with Toni’s letter. My daughter planned on taking forensics in her senior year only to find out that the class has been cut. How can math and science classes be cut when students like my daughter are preparing to go to college in the near future? LaGuardia is one of the best New York City public schools and should not have to choose between which classes they have to cut. I understand that money is tight…it’s tight these days for everyone. But instead of cutting classes, the Mayor and chancellor should scrutinize the city budget and find money elsewhere that can be cut. What makes a school like LaGuardia unique is it’s devotion to academics as well as the arts. Now the school administration is being forced to choose and that just is not right. If something isn’t done to rectify this situation, our kids will be the ones to suffer.
Comment by a LaGuardia parent — May 20, 2009 @ 7:39 am
My daughter is in Junior. She planned to take pre-calc and forensics in senior year, but she found out that those classes wil be gone. This is the critical time for her to think about college. Now, she is nowhere to go. The school offers only AP classes for math in senior. I expect that so many kids have no classes to take and maybe go to school just as a part time.
I am an immigrant came from Japan, I’ve never heard of the budget cuts affect the public school system and affect children’s lives in my country.Actually, we don’t have AP or honors at high school, but every single classes are excels and every child have the same oppotunities to learn.
Comment by Anonymous — May 20, 2009 @ 9:00 am
I am shocked to get this info on an independent website (though it is wonderful) and not from the school! This was obviously decided after the students made their choice for next years classes, which now leaves Sophmores and Junior at a severe disadvantage. You cannot take AP calculus if you haven’t taken pre-calc, so if it’s not available we have to pay for an aftter school college class??? Not great if a parent is out of work, like in my family.
I was waiting for the ax to fall on what used to be the basic need to take four years of math and science to get into a 4 year college. I doubt very selective colleges will care that NYC public schools short-change their students.
Comment by Parent of a Sophmore and a 2007 LaG graduate — May 20, 2009 @ 10:10 am
Though this doesn’t make up for the gap, LaGuardia is including information about these cuts in the letter they send to all colleges/our school profile, and our college counselor has explained it to some of the top schools. She said they were very sympathetic and explained that they were making some cuts of their own and adjusting their standards to the current situation. So while it is representative of many larger issues (weird priorities, communication issues, disrespect from the powers that be- to name a few), I think that students will find their college options mostly the same as before.
Comment by Toni — May 20, 2009 @ 5:31 pm
First of all for NYC alum and others, LaGuardia and the Specialized High Schools (at least Bronx Science, Stuyvesant, and Brooklyn Tech — I don’t know about the “new” ones) ARE different. Because of some dumb chancellors and mayors, these schools have an existence outside of the NYC Board of Ed (yes, that’s the Department of Ed’s legal name). They are established in the state Education Law, and the city may not discontinue them as it has chopped up so many schools.
Second, because of their special status, it may be that a lawsuit to require that the city maintain its level of funding would be successful.
As for the cuts to the other schools, perhaps they violate the funding requirements and settlement agreement of the Robert Jackson lawsuit. On the other hand, I would suggest that funding is not the issue. There is, overall, a fundamental incompetence in the city administration. Does LaGuardia, for instance, need a half dozen security guards? How come it was able to operate without guards 30 years ago? Wouldn’t it be better to trade 3 guards for 2 teachers?
Comment by Eugene Falik — May 20, 2009 @ 9:03 pm
As the parent of a Laguardia student who will be a senior, I’m still waiting for the courtesy of a letter from the principal explaining the situation. My understanding is that my child cannot get math or science because he did not have a grade of 90 or above in his junior classes. Is he less worthy of being taught? Why would we put money into AP classes and sacrifice all the other kids’ educations? When the principal examines the school budget, is she choosing classes such as audition technique and musical theatre (and they are wonderful, I’m sure) over science? Maybe Laguardia could help explain how we present the lack of skills to colleges. Or, perhaps the school can help seniors attain internships - something to fill the kids’ time in a productive way.
Comment by Laguardia parent of an upcoming senior — June 16, 2009 @ 10:14 pm