When Community Education Councils (CEC) candidates walked into school cafeterias and auditoriums across the city this month to declare why parents should vote for them, they got a shocking reality -- few parents showed up. During the past two weeks, public school parents were invited to meet the CEC candidates who would represent them as the parent voice within the Department of Education bureaucracy .“Who are we talking to? Nobody’s here,” said District 12 CEC Candidate Winifred Coulton, looking out at only five parents in a large school auditorium. This sentiment was echoed at a District 13 meeting in Brooklyn, attended by about 12 parents. “Are there any PTA presidents, secretaries, or treasurers here? They ain’t here. We don’t see any of them here. That’s a problem,” said the Rev. Robert Townsley. Only votes from PTA officers count toward electing a CEC member, however, this year, all public school parents can vote at an online straw poll, April 6-22, to advise their PTA officers on how to vote.

In 2002, when Mayor Mike Bloomberg took control of city schools, he abolished community school boards. One year later, he created the Community Education Councils to be the new parent voice. Critics say they have far less authority than the old school boards. “The word out there is that the CEC has no power,” said Carmen Taveras, a District 12 CEC member appointed by the Bronx Borough President. “They think, ‘for what? Why would I go out there [to a CEC meeting]?’”

<!--more--> Turnout varied from district to district

A few of the more active districts saw a bigger turnout at the candidate forums; Manhattan’s Districts 2 and 3 each attracted about 40 people. In District 2 there were about 24 parents in an audience of 40, according to Michael Markowitz, a CEC member. “We have a pretty good sense of what’s fluff and what’s real. The CEC candidate forums and process looks like such as sham from the get go,” said Markowitz, who added that District 2 parents go directly to their elected political officials for change, not the CEC.

According to Julie Androshick of Grassroots Initiative, which organized and publicized the candidate forums under the name powertotheparents.org, it is not accurate to say attendance was low. “When you say low turnout, you’re looking at the turn-out relative to what,” said Androshick. She noted that, if during the last election, only two parents attended the forums, and this year 20 parents came out, then that amounts to about a “900 percent increase.”

In District 13, Family Advocate Precious Jones-Walker moderated the meeting, which was attended by 12 people. “I would like to have had representatives [at the forum] from all schools in my districts. That’s about 46. I don’t think that’s unrealistic,” she said.

District education councils are composed of nine elected public school parents, two borough president appointees, and one high school senior. This year, 11 district elections will be uncontested, which means they have nine or fewer candidates running. In contrast, in the last election in 2007, only seven CECs had nine or fewer candidates.

Vacant seats

Many districts across the city have vacant CEC seats. District 13 had just two members serving this year; District 28 in Queens, had six members, which is just enough to hold an official meeting. With only five candidates running for the upcoming election, District 16, which covers Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn, has the lowest number of candidates of any district.

Long criticized for excluding parents from decision-making, Chancellor Joel Klein is now cheering the effective role of the CECs. In a press release issued on April 6, he points out that “more than 500 parents applied to be candidates for their CECs.” Applicants and candidates, however, are not the same. Many parents, who initially expressed interest in running, dropped out.

“Comparing candidates to applicants can be a bit like apples and oranges because a significant number of applicants are deemed ineligible or withdraw from the ballot during the application process because they don’t want to step down from their PA/PTA officer position or have some kind of conflict of interest,” writes Jeff S. Merritt, president of the Grassroots Initiative in an e-mail message. Of the 500 plus applicants, 428 candidates are eligible for election – a drop from the 690 candidates in 2007.

Candidates’ experience varies widely

Of the eligible candidates at the forums, some appeared ill-informed while others expressed clear ideas on changes they would like to see in schools. In District 3, candidates clearly articulated the desire for more math and science instruction, less test prep, and smaller classes. In District 28, Tami Ruiz, a former journalist, plans to use her contacts and knowledge to further the cause of the CEC. “I know who the people are to tip; I’m the one they used to tip off! Am I gonna open up my Roladex? Sure,” she said. Ruiz also said she would like to examine the “under-utilized” position of parent coordinator to see how the PC can better help parents.

In other districts, some candidates were unsure of their role on a CEC. “I'm really gonna be honest. I do not know much about the CEC. As a CEC representative, I really don't know,” said Suzanna Figeroa, a District 12 candidate. In several districts charter schools were a topic on which candidates were not well- informed. District 12 candidate Winifred Coulton said she would like to “get rid of charter schools,” because they only accept students with 3 and 4 on state exams. District 5 candidate James Hunt said “I’m not a fan. [Charter schools] are more lenient. There is not a lot of structural education being taught at them.” In fact, charter schools cannot admit students based on test scores and many tend to be more structured and traditional than neighborhood schools.

More training for CEC members

Recognizing the diminished parent voice, and the watered-down training for CEC members, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer recently proposed legislation to give more power to the CECs. “Community Education Councils must be reformed and empowered to be the voice that public school parents and school communities need and deserve,” said Stringer in a press release. Currently, CEC members receive training from the DOE. Stringer believes training should come from the Borough Presidents’ offices. Additionally, he proposed that specific guidelines be created on how the DOE gathers input from CECs.

To be a real parent voice, some CEC candidates said they need more training. "It's not that we’re not willing to learn. We need people who are willing to teach us, and when it's convenient for us, not for them,” said Aida Colon, a District 12 candidate. “We have the power, but we don’t know how to use it yet.”

Parents have until April 22 to participate in the online straw vote. The results of the straw poll will be made public before PTA officers vote between May 12-14. (Reporting contributed by Insideschools staff)