MAYOR GIULIANI KICKS OFF 1997-1998 SCHOOL YEAR
APPLAUDS "PARTNERS FOR READING" AFTER-SCHOOL LITERACY PROGRAM
Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani welcomed New York City Schools Chancellor Rudy Crew, students from the Partners for Reading after school literacy program and parents to an early morning breakfast today at Gracie Mansion to celebrate the start of the 1997-1998 school year.
Also joining the Mayor at the annual kick-off were Deputy Mayor for Education and Human Services Ninfa Segarra, Board of Education President William C. Thompson, Board of Education members Irene Impellizzeri and Jerry Cammarata, Chairman of New York City Housing Authority Ruben Franco, and local civic and community leaders.
"This is a very exciting time for the New York City public school system. It is a time of great challenges and opportunities," Mayor Giuliani said. "Under the leadership of Chancellor Rudy Crew, we have come a long way: we have raised standards, improved reading and math scores, made the schools more accountable, more efficient, and more responsive to the needs of our children."
"Working together with the Chancellor's top team of professionals, we have restored an overriding sense of hope to New York City's schools. We have accomplished much that was once thought impossible. School governance reform, a battle fought and won in Albany, has enhanced the Chancellor's powers to govern the 32 local districts, by giving him the right to select superintendents and the ability to remove principals in poorly performing schools.
"School based budgeting is now in place and has resulted in greater accountability for every school dollar. Project Smart Schools, a public-private partnership, is bringing computer technology to every New York City public school student. My administration has provided additional targeted funding to ensure that than one million school children have current, up-to-date textbooks. And increased capital dollars are allowing us to create additional classroom space through the construction of new schools and other expansion."
The Mayor also commended the Partners for Reading Program, an after- school literacy program for children who live in public housing. The program is sponsored by the Mayor's Office, Board of Education and the New York City Housing Authority.
Mayor Giuliani added, "The Partners for Reading Program is a perfect example of how energy, creativity, intelligence, and good intentions can link different organizations in furtherance of a common goal. The New York City Housing Authority, the Board of Education, and our administration realized together that there was another way we could help students learn to read."
The Mayor concluded, "When we inspire our students, they reach great heights, like those reached by Dr. Jonas Salk, James Baldwin, and General Colin Powell -- all products of our public schools. This year, we will continue to build on our recent successes and make our schools even stronger. Not only are the public schools critical to the success of individual students, but they are at the heart of the future of this great City."
Scholastic Books, Temco Service industry Inc., the Gap, BMG Entertainment, and the New York Knicks sponsored this morning's breakfast.
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