NEW YORK—Mayor Michael Bloomberg rejoiced on Tuesday after the state Senate passed legislation that would do away with basing teacher employment decisions solely on seniority, or the “first in, last out” (FILO) rule. Bloomberg encouraged the governor to include the legislation in his budget proposal on Thursday, in hopes that the Assembly will support it and the city will be able to move ahead with merit-based teacher layoffs this spring.
The mayor’s rejoicing came too soon, however. Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Tuesday night that he will introduce his own legislation—a compromise between the teachers’ union-backed FILO policy and the mayor’s wish to forgo seniority altogether and base employment decisions solely on merit.
“While seniority should be part of the equation, it cannot be the only factor when making important employment decisions in our schools,” Cuomo said in a statement. His legislation would accelerate the state’s efforts in the Race to the Top for the 2011–2012 school year.
The Race to the Top program was established by the Obama administration in 2010. The program awards federal education grants to states based on performance, not just need. New York state responded by establishing a task force to overhaul the teacher and student evaluation process.
The new evaluation methods—which will include ratings of “highly effective,” “effective,” “developing,” or “ineffective”—were to be implemented for the next school year in only a few subjects and grades, with the rest following in 2012–2013. The governor would like to see them in place across the board for the 2011–2012 school year.
A City Hall spokesperson says Cuomo’s move is simply meant to placate the United Federation of Teachers (UFT), so that they will support his budget. The Bloomberg administration maintains that merit-based evaluations are the only way to go, and that the decision needs to be made soon so that planned layoffs could proceed in the spring.
The governor’s office did not respond to inquiries about the exact timeline of Cuomo’s new legislation as of press deadline. Whether the governor will bring his legislation to the Assembly along with his budget on Thursday, and whether his legislation will pass through the Senate and the Assembly by the spring remains to be seen.
If the legislation is late passing into law, the UFT will have its way and FILO will remain in place for the layoffs this spring. The victory would be bittersweet, however, as it would only address how the 4,666 layoffs the mayor has planned would be decided.
The mayor’s rejoicing came too soon, however. Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Tuesday night that he will introduce his own legislation—a compromise between the teachers’ union-backed FILO policy and the mayor’s wish to forgo seniority altogether and base employment decisions solely on merit.
“While seniority should be part of the equation, it cannot be the only factor when making important employment decisions in our schools,” Cuomo said in a statement. His legislation would accelerate the state’s efforts in the Race to the Top for the 2011–2012 school year.
The Race to the Top program was established by the Obama administration in 2010. The program awards federal education grants to states based on performance, not just need. New York state responded by establishing a task force to overhaul the teacher and student evaluation process.
The new evaluation methods—which will include ratings of “highly effective,” “effective,” “developing,” or “ineffective”—were to be implemented for the next school year in only a few subjects and grades, with the rest following in 2012–2013. The governor would like to see them in place across the board for the 2011–2012 school year.
A City Hall spokesperson says Cuomo’s move is simply meant to placate the United Federation of Teachers (UFT), so that they will support his budget. The Bloomberg administration maintains that merit-based evaluations are the only way to go, and that the decision needs to be made soon so that planned layoffs could proceed in the spring.
The governor’s office did not respond to inquiries about the exact timeline of Cuomo’s new legislation as of press deadline. Whether the governor will bring his legislation to the Assembly along with his budget on Thursday, and whether his legislation will pass through the Senate and the Assembly by the spring remains to be seen.
If the legislation is late passing into law, the UFT will have its way and FILO will remain in place for the layoffs this spring. The victory would be bittersweet, however, as it would only address how the 4,666 layoffs the mayor has planned would be decided.
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