Without the necessary resources, we place in jeopardy our children’s chances for achieving success in today’s economy. There’s no secret formula to being successful in education. If we reduce class sizes, have quality pre-K programs and spend money where it works, our children will be the beneficiaries.

We must continue our efforts to ensure that all students have access to a quality education. The governor must recognize the critical need to support additional resources and services needed to create successful schools, and ultimately, successful students.

To provide every child with a chance at a sound, basic education, schools must have funding that is stable, predictable, and based on student needs. We have only four months before the Court of Appeals’ deadline of July 30, 2004 for the state to create a funding formula that gives our city its fair share of state education funding. If we do not have a comprehensive plan, then the courts will create one.

The governor already spent $11 million of taxpayer money trying to prove in court that an eighth-grade education is adequate for our children. Fortunately for our children, he lost. The state’s highest court demanded a sound, basic education. So does Assemblyman Cusick.

Assemblyman Michael Cusick: fighting for our children’s future

Last year, the governor tried to cut school aid by $1.4 billion before the Legislature stopped him, passing a bipartisan budget over his vetoes to restore $1.1 billion of his cuts. This year, the governor’s budget contains at least $369 million in cuts to school funding, and fails to meet commitments to reimburse local districts. New York City schools stand to lose $33.1 million in funding for disabled children; $41.3 million in transportation aid; $41.8 million in Teacher Support Aid; and nearly $8 million from Teacher Centers, which help keep our teachers well-trained and up-to-date. His budget also places a moratorium on new school construction and proposes rationing building aid once his moratorium expires.

Assemblyman Cusick will continue to fight the governor’s cuts to education to provide schools with the resources they need to meet the high academic standards that will attract the jobs of tomorrow’s economy.