Decentralization is Not Community Control (text)
UNITED BRONX PARENTS
791 Prospect Avenue
Bronx, New York 10455
842–1484
COMMUNITY CONTROL IS NOT DECENTRALIZATION
“The Board of Education will call it decentralization. We like to carry it further. We call it community control.” David Spencer, Chairman I.S. 201 Governing Board
DECENTRALIZATION: Will mean that locally appointed or elected boards will have limited powers over the selection of personnel, allocation of budget, adaptation of curriculum, and deployment of staff. BUT IT WILL ALSO MEAN THAT THE CENTRAL HEADQUARTERS will continue to have SUBSTANTIAL POWERS. They will be able to remove any governing board, even if it is chosen by the community. They will still decide on teacher and supervisory “qualifications” and examinations. They will negotiate the contracts with the UFT, with the Supervisory union, and with the custodians. They will have final powers over budget, deciding how much each district should get. They will still control school construction.
LOCAL CONTROL:
- Districts will define their own boundaries.
- Districts will elect their own representatives.
- The Board of Education will then transfer ALL of its powers to the local district. The local district will then be responsible DIRECTLY to the State Education Department, and only the rules and regulations of the state will be binding on the local district. (This is what happens in the suburban communities.)
- Money will be given to each district EQUALLY on a per capita basis. The same amount of dollars will be budgeted for each child. (For a city budget of a billion dollars and a million school children, this will mean $1000 per child) EACH DISTRICT WILL THEN DETERMINE HOW IT WILL SPEND THAT MONEY.
- Each district will be able to hire and fire its own staff. Each board will set up its own needs, consulting with its parents and teachers. Then it will negotiate its own union contract with all the various unions. If the district wants to pay more for bilingual teachers or for master teachers, it will arrange to do so. If the district wants to pay more to para-professionals and release them with pay to go to college, it will be able to do so.
- Each district will be permitted to purchase supplies and textbooks directly.
- Each district will be responsible for following STATE EDUCATIONAL STANDARDS for curriculum & for setting qualifications and evaluations of all personnel. State minimum standards will be obeyed.