A large majority (more than 70%) of NYC public school students live in poverty. As a school system, adequate resources in schools in NYC are extremely important and often require advocacy by families, students, educators and advocates. It was the decade-long advocacy that finally got New York City public schools the money owed under the Campaign for Fiscal Equity (CFE) settlement. This State funding will bring more than a billion additional dollars to our schools. However it is important to monitor how the state funding will be spent to ensure the maximum dollars reach our students.
Largely because of the increase in State funding, all schools are now receiving 100% of Fair Student Funding, which makes up a large portion of each school’s budget. However, the Fair Student Funding formula is not without its flaws, and therefore is currently under review by a new task force formed in 2022. This is after the Fair Student Funding Task Force of 2019 recommended that an independent commission be established to take on this task, but no action was taken at the time.
In this section, you can learn how to advocate for funding for the public school system as well as for your schools. This section also provides information on advocacy groups that work for quality education for all children.
