Bilingual Ed Fix in Peril, Levy Says
Massive reforms to bilingual education could be put on hold because the Board of Education hasn't gotten $75 million needed for the overhaul, Schools Chancellor Harold Levy warned yesterday. "The Board of Education unanimously voted for a new bilingual policy conditioned on receiving $75 million to implement it, but so far we have received none of it," Levy said. He told board members in a memo yesterday that the program is "at risk" because the city has not ponied up nearly $20 million requested by school officials. An additional $50 million sought from the state is also in doubt because of the drawn-out budget negotiations in Albany. Another $5 million, from other sources, hasn't materialized, Levy said. More than half the city's bilingual education students don't learn enough English in three years to move into mainstream classes. Mayor Giuliani originally called for the program to be scrapped, but Levy and City Hall hammered out a compromise to allow parents to choose more English-intensive programs for their children. While Levy was seeking funds, Deputy Mayor Anthony Coles said the city never promised any money for the reforms. He said funding for the overhaul would have to come out of the existing $169 million bilingual education budget. "For the last generation, whenever the board decided not to do something, it raised the same old excuse of not having enough money," Coles said. "As far as the mayor is concerned, there is no reason not to proceed with bilingual reform, because the system in place now is failing city students." |