Hi John,

Last week, Governor Cuomo announced that New York State will collaborate with the Gates Foundation to “reimagine education” after the pandemic— a collaboration that could be a threat to public schools as we know them.

Both the Gates Foundation and Andrew Cuomo have a history of pushing privatization and agendas that have the potential to destroy public schools. This collaboration raises a red flag and real questions about what shape our “reimagined” public schools will take post-pandemic, and whether they will be recognizable as public schools at all. Email Governor Cuomo now to tell him that we need to protect children, and not let billionaires decide on the education policy for our state.

The pandemic has proven just how vital our teachers and public schools are to communities, as hubs that provide everything from meals to child care to essential workers. At present, where available, technology is serving an essential purpose in providing some educational access for children to safely learn during this crisis, but we cannot allow online education to supplant efforts to get them back into schools with teachers once the crisis passes.

We need to reimagine schools with smaller class sizes, where children will be able to thrive in a classroom environment that is safe and nurturing. We should imagine schools where there are school psychologists and school counselors — services that will be even more essential as children process trauma and disruption resulting from the pandemic. Research study after research study has shown that funding and teachers are predictors of student success. Research also shows that children spending excessive amounts of time on screens is harmful to their development. Up-to-date technology is an essential classroom tool, but it will never replace the face-to-face interactions and relationships with caring teachers that form the bedrock of a child’s education. Tell Governor Cuomo now that the future of public education must protect our children's education.

New York is enduring a crisis of future-altering proportions, and we must decide whether we will move forward into a better future, or one that deepens the inequity and injustices of our past. We must be on guard to ensure that measures to keep children safe during the pandemic do not reduce the quality of education our children are entitled to. Email Governor Cuomo now.

Alliance for Quality Education

Sent via ActionNetwork.org. To update your email address, change your name or address, or to stop receiving emails from Alliance for Quality Education, please click here.