NY Teachers Unions Criticize Charter Schools Over Rally

WAMC Northeast Public Radio | By Dave Lucas

Published March 2, 2015 at 7:55 PM EST

The New York State United Teachers union is criticizing charter schools for taking children out of the classroom to rally at the New York state Capitol later this week.

NYSUT wrote to Gov. Andrew Cuomo and state education officials expressing concern about Success Academy Charter Schools' plans to bring some 8,000 students, parents and teachers to Albany for Wednesday's pro-charter rally. Cuomo has called for an increase in the number of authorized charter schools.

Union President Karen Magee says Monday she's not sure what educational value students will get out of what she says is a political event.

A spokesman for the rally's organizer declined to comment. A message left with Success Academy was not immediately returned Monday.

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Dave Lucas

Dave Lucas is WAMC’s Capital Region Bureau Chief. Born and raised in Albany, he’s been involved in nearly every aspect of local radio since 1981. Before joining WAMC, Dave was a reporter and anchor at WGY in Schenectady. Prior to that he hosted talk shows on WYJB and WROW, including the 1999 series of overnight radio broadcasts tracking the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with a cast of callers and characters from all over the world via the internet. In 2012, Dave received a Communicator Award of Distinction for his WAMC news story "Fail: The NYS Flood Panel," which explores whether the damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee could have been prevented or at least curbed. Dave began his radio career as a “morning personality” at WABY in Albany.

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