NYS Day of Action for Educators

 

We are stronger together.

The state budget passed on April 1, 2020 with 0% increase in funding for schools, meaning there will be about a 5% cut. There are two more opportunities to alter the state budget; the first is June 30 and then December. Governor Cuomo is threatening to cut 20% in state funding to our schools. Even before the pandemic, our schools were owed $3.9 billion in “Foundation Aid” to our public schools by a State court order.

Help us send a strong, unified message urging to #FundNYSchools on Monday, June 8th, from 10am to 4pm.  Our students are depending on it.

For a full toolkit on ways you can participate, RSVP at this link. 

How Should We Choose the Next RCSD Superintendent?

[RORE has developed a process to choose the next Superintendent of the Rochester City School District.  We invite your feedback either in the comments here, on our social media, or in an email to us at rore49united (at) gmail (dot) com.]

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The procedure for choosing a Superintendent of the Rochester City School District (RCSD) has not resulted in long-term success for quite a long time.  The Board of Education (BOE) is to hire the Superintendent, but there has not been substantial community involvement in this process.  Therefore, a committee made up of stakeholders should be formed to reduce the number of applicants to 10 from which the BOE may choose.   After this, all interviews conducted by the BOE should be done in a public manner via the internet so that the community can observe.  Once a suitable number of candidates remain (2 or 3), community forums with each should occur before the BOE makes its final decision. 

This screening committee should be composed of:

*2 citizens from each City Council district; one from each district must be a parent of of a RCSD student. (8 total)

*2 high school students from the Rochester City School District (full participants)

*2 rank & file members from Rochester Teachers Association (RTA) who live in the city.

*2 rank & file members from Board of Education Non-Teaching Employees (BENTE) who live in the city.

*2 rank & file members from Rochester Association of Paraprofessionals (RAP) who live in the city.

*2 rank & file members from Association of Supervisors and Administrators of Rochester (ASAR) who live in the city.

18 people total with a BOE Liaison. 

Note: Due to time constraints, this procedure is for 2020.  If willing, the committee put together could be tasked with creating a more permanent procedure for future Superintendent hirings after their initial screening responsibility is finished.