What Might New York City’s Education System Look Like Under Zohran Mamdani? – The Progressive

Report on the Governance and Educational Equity of the New York City School System

Introduction: Aligning Urban Education with Sustainable Development Goals

The New York City (NYC) school system, the largest in the United States, serves approximately one million students across a diverse demographic landscape. The governance and funding of this system are central to a debate that directly impacts the city’s progress toward several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions). This report analyzes the current challenges facing the NYC school system, focusing on the debate over mayoral control and its implications for achieving equitable and inclusive education for all students.

Governance Structures and Institutional Accountability: A Focus on SDG 16

The debate over the centralized mayoral control model, in place since 2002, is fundamentally a question of institutional effectiveness, accountability, and inclusivity, which are core tenets of SDG 16. The current structure, which grants the mayor significant power over budget and policy, is being challenged by calls for a more community-oriented governance model.

The Mayoral Control Model

• Establishment: Mayoral control was established in 2002 to replace a system of 32 locally elected school boards that faced significant issues with corruption and a lack of accountability.
• Current Structure: The mayor sets the K-12 budget (approximately $41.2 billion) and appoints the schools’ chancellor and a majority of the members of the Panel for Education Policy (PEP).
• Criticism: Critics, including leading mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, argue that the system marginalizes the voices of parents, educators, and students, hindering the development of responsive and accountable institutions.

Challenges to Institutional Integrity (SDG 16)

1. Corruption and Mismanagement: Despite its initial purpose, the mayoral control system has not eliminated corruption. A 2024 report noted a record of nearly 12,000 complaints alleging misconduct, waste, and fraud filed against the Department of Education.
2. Lack of Checks and Balances: The current mayor’s decision to cut $547 million in education funding in 2023, which led to a lawsuit from the United Federation of Teachers, highlights concerns about unilateral decision-making.
3. Proposed Reforms: A New York State education department report recommended reforms to create stronger institutions, including instituting checks and balances, reducing the number of mayoral appointments to the PEP, and establishing a new reform commission.

Advancing Quality Education (SDG 4) and Reducing Inequalities (SDG 10)

The NYC school system’s performance is critical to achieving SDG 4 and SDG 10, given its student demographics. Key policy areas such as class size, funding equity, and curriculum development are central to this mission.

Student Demographics and Equity Challenges (SDG 10)

• Economic Disadvantage: 73.5% of students are classified as economically disadvantaged.
• Students with Disabilities: 21.6% of the student population is disabled.
• Racial and Ethnic Diversity: The student body is 42% Hispanic, 19.5% Black, 18.7% Asian, and 16% white.

Key Issues in Achieving Quality Education (SDG 4)

1. Class Size Reduction: A 2022 state law mandates smaller class sizes (20-25 students) by 2028 to improve the quality of instruction. However, implementation has been slow, with parents and advocates citing mayoral control as a barrier. As of 2024, only 46% of classes were compliant. Challenges include insufficient classroom space in 500 schools and a shortage of staff.
2. Funding Allocation: The distribution of the city’s $41.2 billion education budget is a point of contention. Nearly $6 billion is allocated to charter and non-public schools, raising concerns about equitable funding for traditional public schools that serve the most vulnerable populations, a direct challenge to SDG 10.
3. Educational Outcomes: While the high school graduation rate has improved, rising to 83% in 2023 from 55% in 1993, significant disparities and challenges remain in ensuring a quality education for every child.

Conclusion: The Path Forward for an Equitable and Sustainable Education System

The future of the NYC school system’s governance model is at a critical juncture. The outcome of the mayoral election and the subsequent decision by the state legislature on renewing mayoral control in 2026 will have profound implications. A transition toward a more decentralized, community-involved governance structure could enhance accountability and responsiveness, aligning with the principles of SDG 16. Successfully addressing the challenges of class size, equitable funding, and institutional integrity is essential for NYC to fulfill its commitment to providing quality education (SDG 4) and reducing inequalities (SDG 10) for its diverse student population.

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 4: Quality Education

  This is the central theme of the article. The entire text revolves around the challenges and debates concerning the New York City public school system. It discusses issues of funding, class sizes, curriculum, governance, and equity for a diverse student population, all of which are core components of providing quality education. The article mentions specific initiatives like “free, universal pre-kindergarten” and a new “phonics-based reading curriculum,” which are direct efforts to improve educational quality.

• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

  The article highlights significant disparities within the student population, stating that “73.5 percent of students are economically disadvantaged and 21.6 percent are disabled.” The debate over public funding for private and charter schools, the push for smaller class sizes, and reforms to reduce suspensions all touch upon the goal of ensuring equal opportunity and reducing inequalities of outcome for vulnerable student groups.

• SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

  A major focus of the article is the governance structure of the school system, specifically the debate over “mayoral control.” The discussion addresses the effectiveness, accountability, and transparency of the educational institutions. The article mentions historical corruption in locally elected school boards and recent issues under mayoral control, such as “nearly 12,000 complaints alleging misconduct, waste, fraud, financial mismanagement, and criminal activity.” The call to give communities more power and ensure “responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making” directly aligns with the goal of building strong and accountable institutions.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

1. Target 4.1: By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes.

   The article’s focus on the NYC public school system, which serves about one million students, is directly related to this target. The discussion of improving the high school graduation rate from 55% in 1993 to 83% in 2023 is a measure of progress towards effective learning outcomes. The debate over funding, class sizes, and curriculum is centered on improving the quality and equity of this education.

2. Target 4.2: By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education.

   This target is explicitly addressed when the article mentions that former Mayor de Blasio “implemented free, universal pre-kindergarten,” a policy aimed at providing access to pre-primary education for all children in the city.

3. Target 4.5: By 2030, eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples and children in vulnerable situations.

   The article highlights the vulnerability of the student population, noting that “73.5 percent of students are economically disadvantaged and 21.6 percent are disabled.” The entire debate around equitable funding and resource allocation, such as the fight for smaller class sizes, is an effort to ensure these vulnerable students have equal access to quality education.

4. Target 4.a: Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and provide safe, non-violent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all.

   This target is relevant to the discussion on class sizes. The article notes that a mayoral candidate acknowledged that “500 of the city’s schools did not have enough space to hold smaller classes” and would need an “infrastructure plan to create the space.” This points to the need to upgrade education facilities to create more effective learning environments.

5. Target 4.c: By 2030, substantially increase the supply of qualified teachers, including through international cooperation for teacher training in developing countries, especially least developed countries and small island developing States.

   The article touches on the supply of qualified teachers by mentioning policies that “decreased how many teachers received tenure,” created a “teacher evaluation system,” and the need to “revise trainings and professional development to hire and retain teachers” to meet the class size mandate.

6. Target 10.2: By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status.

   The critique of mayoral control for having “been used to take away the voice of parents, of educators, of students” and the call to develop a “more community-oriented means of decision-making” are directly about promoting the political inclusion of stakeholders in the education system.

7. Target 16.6: Develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels.

   The core debate between mayoral control and community control is a debate about how to create the most effective and accountable institution to govern schools. The article cites historical “corruption” and “lack of accountability” in the old system and points to a new record of “nearly 12,000 complaints” of misconduct and fraud under the current system, highlighting the ongoing challenge of achieving this target.

8. Target 16.7: Ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels.

   This target is at the heart of the argument against mayoral control. The article quotes a candidate who is opposed to how the system “allows the mayor to make unilateral decisions without input from the people who would be directly impacted.” The desire to place “the control of our schools back into the hands of our communities” is a direct call for more participatory and representative decision-making.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

1. High School Graduation Rate:

   The article explicitly states this indicator, noting it was “55 percent in 1993” and rose to “83 percent” in 2023. This is a direct measure of learning outcomes relevant to Target 4.1.

2. Class Size:

   This is a key indicator of educational quality mentioned throughout the article. Specific numbers are provided, such as the state mandate to “cap class sizes at twenty to twenty-five students” and the fact that the main character’s son is in a class with “more than thirty students.” The article also notes that “just under half of classes (46 percent) are compliant with the law.”

3. Proportion of Students from Vulnerable Groups:

   The article provides specific data points that serve as indicators of inequality and the need for inclusive policies (Targets 4.5 and 10.2). It states that “73.5 percent of students are economically disadvantaged and 21.6 percent are disabled.”

4. Education Expenditure:

   The article mentions the city’s “$40 billion annual K-12 budget” and a specific cut of “$547 million in education funding in 2023.” This serves as an indicator of the financial resources allocated to education.

5. Enrollment in Pre-Primary Education:

   While not providing a specific number, the mention of the implementation of “free, universal pre-kindergarten” implies that enrollment rates would be the key indicator for measuring the success of this policy and progress towards Target 4.2.

6. Number of Misconduct/Corruption Complaints:

   As an indicator for institutional accountability (Target 16.6), the article explicitly states that “a new record of nearly 12,000 complaints alleging misconduct, waste, fraud, financial mismanagement, and criminal activity were filed” in 2024.

4. Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: progressive.org