Author Archives: Peter Goodman

It was the early nineties, and my school was held up as an example of school turnaround, more kids graduating; more Advanced Placement classes, all the metrics were increasing. The principal praised the staff, talked about curriculum changes, and somehow failed to mention he had hired a bi-lingual Russian guidance counselor and the resulting influxContinue reading “Searching for the Golden Ring: The Merry-Go-Round of Education Policy Initiatives”

(Snarling) “It’s all politics!” If you ask the average person to define “politics” you’ll probably hear, “underhanded,” “deceptive,” “dishonest” as synonyms. How many would respond “the democratic process by which you achieve policies?” Libraries are devoted to political science, from Plato to Aristotle to Machiavelli to Locke and Hobbes to our founding fathers.   Machiavellian isContinue reading “The Race for Governor and Mayoral Control: The Intersection of Policy and Politics”

On Wednesday Chancellor David Banks stepped up to the podium for his first substantive speech, the technology failed, Banks muttered, “This is what we get in a $38 billion budget.” … not the best symbolism The chancellor has been dropping hints, a thinner bureaucracy; his predecessor added a layer, executive superintendents, pushing the chancellor furtherContinue reading “Cleaning Out the Augean Stables and Restocking the Shelves: Chancellor Brooks Lays Out His Agenda ,,,, (Sort Of)”

My name is Peter Goodman, I author a weekly blog, Ed in the Apple, the Intersection of Education and Politics, and I am the President of the Education Affiliate of the CCNY Alumni Association, although my current musings are my own. In a former life I was a teacher at James Madison High School andContinue reading “Testimony before Joint Assembly and Senate Education Committees: Recommended Changes to the Current Mayoral Control Law”

In December, 1998, a month after the general election Governor Pataki called the legislature back into session. The New York State legislature meets from January until mid June. Sessions after an election are called “lame duck” sessions; the legislators who lost their election or chose not to run are in office until the end ofContinue reading “Will the Governor/Legislature Remove SUNY from Any Role in the Creation/Supervision of Charter Schools?”

The Manhattan Institute is a conservative think tank and the publisher of City Journal, The Institute serves as a leading voice of free-market ideas, shaping political culture …. Ideas that have changed the United States and its urban areas for the better—welfare reform, tort reform, proactive policing, and supply-side tax policies, among others—are the heartContinue reading “Why is the Manhattan Institute Supporting Lowering High Graduation Measures in NYS?”

  Why are we killing each other? At the height of the crack epidemic (1990) there were 2262 homicides in New York City; in 2019 there were 295 homicides.  From Dinkins to Giuliani to Bloomberg to de Blasio, from “broken windows” to “stop and frisk” to a “tale of two cities” the homicide rates continuedContinue reading “Why are homicide rates skyrocketing? Can Mayor Adams stem surging violent crime?”

The Board of Regents and the State Education Department have undertaken a thoughtful and inclusive review of the State high school graduation measures. Our ultimate goal is to explore what it means to obtain a diploma in New York State and what that diploma should signify to ensure educational excellence and equity for all studentsContinue reading “Should New York State Change Graduations Measures?  (Meaning: the courses and student assessments)”

A disastrous week one!! Mayor Adams was determined; schools were going to open on Monday, January 3rd. Appeals to delay the opening for a few days cast aside – testing and tracing were in place, the pre-holiday bumps in the previous de Blasio administration resolved. Nope Student attendance was well below normal and staff attendanceContinue reading “How are Chancellor Banks and his team planning to change the Department of Education?”

Gideon John Tucker was an American lawyer, newspaper editor and politician. In 1866, as Surrogate of New York County, he wrote in a decision of a will case: “No man’s life, liberty or property are safe while the Legislature is in session.” The recently elected 150 members of the NYS Assembly and 63 members of the NYS Senate are conveningContinue reading ““No man’s life, liberty or property are safe while the Legislature is in session.” (1866):  The 2022 NYS Legislature Convenes”