SUPREMECOURT
OF
THE
STATE
OF
NEW
YORK
.COLINTY
OF
NEW
YORK--------
x
In
the
Matterof
the
Application
ofTHE
BOARD
OF
EDUCATION
OFTHE
CITY
SCHOOL
DISTRICT
OF
THE
CITY
OF
NEV/
YORK("DOE"),
and
DENNIS
M.WALCOTT,
as
Chancellorof
theDOE,Petitioners,
For
a
Judgmentand
Order
Pursuant
to
Article
75
of
the
Civil
Practice
Law
and
Rules,
-
against
-
MICHAEL
MULGREW,as
President
of
the
I-INITED
FEDERATION
OF
TEACHERS,
Local
2,
American
Federation
of
Teachers,
AFL-CIO;
and
ERNEST
LOGAN,
as
President
ofthe
COI-INCIL
OF
SCHOOL
SUPERVISORS
AND
ADMINISTRATORS,
Local
1,
American
Federation
of
School
Administrators,
AFL-CIO,
Respondents.
AFFIDAVIT
OF
MARC
STERNBERG
IN
SUPPORTOF
THE
VERIFIEDPETITION
ANDPETITIONER'S
MOTION
FOR
A TEMPORARYRESTRAININ
ORDE,R
Index
No
112
STATE
OF
NEW
YORK
)
SS
coLrNTY
OF
NEV/
YORK
)
MARC
STERNBERG,
being
duly
sworn,
states
as
follows:
1.
I
am
the Deputy
Chancellor
for
Portfolio
Planning
for
the
New
York
City
Department
of
Education
("DOE").
I
make
this
affidavit
in
support
of
thepetition
and
petitioners'
motion
for
a
temporaryrestraining
order
and
preiiminaryinjunction
to
enjoin
enforcement
of
an
arbitrator's
decision
which
found
that
grievances
filed
by
the
UnitedFederation
of
Teachers
("UFT")
and
the
Council
of
School
Supervisors
and
Administrators
("CSA"),
(collectively,
the
"LJnions")
were
arbitrable.
The
arbitrator'saward
finding
the
grievances
arbitrable
andsustaining
the
grievancesimpermissiblyinterferes
with
the
powers
of
thehighest
educational
authority
in
the
State
of
New York,
the
Commissioner
of
Education
("Commissioner"),
andnegates
his determinationapproving
the
DOE's
plans
to
close
24
failing
schoolsandopen
new
ones
in
their
places.
The
arbitrator's
award
not
only
violatespublicpolicy, but
was
alsomade
in
excess
of
the
arbitrator's
authority
under
the collective
bargaining
agreements
("CBAs")
between
petitioners
and
the
Unions,
and
New
York
law
governing
arbitration
awards.Moreseriousl¡
enforcement
of
the
award
would
consign
over
30,000
students
at24
struggling
public
schools
to
anotheryear
oflost opportunity.
2.
AsDeputy Chancellor
forPortfolio
Planning,
I
oversee
the
office
responsible
for
managingthe
portfolio
of
schools
in
the
City
School
District
and ensuring
that
all
students
have
access
to
highquality
educational
options.
I
have
held
my
present
position
since
May
2010,
and
havebeenemployed
previously
by
the
DOE
as
a teacher
between1995 and 1998
and
as
a
princþal
between2004and20Og.
Thisaffidavit
is
based
on
my
personal
knowledge
of
the
DOE's
determination
to
close and
replace
the
24
schoolsand
the
factors
that
led up
to
that
determination,
myreview
of
documents
referred
to below,
andconversations
with my
staff
and
other
DOE
employees.
Background
onthe
DOE's
ProposedReplacement of
Strueslinq
Schools
3.
Pursuant
to
8
N.Y.C.R.R.
$
100.2, the Commissioner
designates
schools that
are
thefarthestfrommeeting
certainacademicbenchmarks he
has
estabiished
and
most
in
need
of
improvement
as
SchoolsUnderRegistration
Review
("S[IRR").
Many
SURR
schools
are
alsodesignated
as
persistently lowestachieving
("PLA")
schools,
based
on,
amongother things,
their
low
graduation
ratesand/or
failure
to
make
adequate
yearly
student
progress.
See
8
N.Y.C.R.R.
1
00.2(pxe).
1
4.
On
April
26,2072,
thePanel
for
Educational
Policy("PEP")
authorizedthe
DoE
to
close
24SURR/PLAschools.
The
PEP
alsoauthorired
ttr"
DoE
toimmediately
replace
theclosing
schools
with
new
schools
that
will
continue
to
serve
the
students
who
wereenrolled
in
the
schools
to
be
closed.
Thisinitiative
will
provide the
students
at
theseschools
with
a
renewed
opporfunity
for
success.Furthermore,
the
initiative
may
qualify
the
subjectschools
forfederal
SchoolImprovement
Grant
("SIG")
fundingunderan
educationalintervention
model
called"Turnaround."
5.
In
the
case
of
SURR
schools,
in
addition
to
the
PEP
approval
process
describedabove,
the
DoE
must
alsosubmit
a
closureapplication
to
the
Commissioner
for
approval.By
letterdated
June
22,
2012,
a
copy
of
whichis
annexed
to
the
petition
as
Exhibit
,,2,,,theCommissioner
approvedthe
DOE's
plans
to
closethe
24
fa'i'íng
SURR/PLA
schools
as
authorized
bY
the
PEP.
6.
When
the
Chancellor
determines
to
open
a
school,
he
must
submit
an
application
for
registration
of
the
new
school
to
the
commissioner,
who
makes
a
recommendationregardingapproval
to
the
New
York
State
Board
of
Regents
(the
"Board
of
Regents").
See8
N.Y.C.R.R.
100.2G)).
By
approvingthe
DOE's
closureapplications'which
expresslycontemplated
the
opening
of
24
new,
strengthened
replacementschools,
the
commissioner
alsorecommendedapproval
of
the
DoE's
applications
to
register
replacement
schools
that
wiil
welcome
in
the
students
whohad
attended
the
closed
schools
when
classes
begin
again
in
September.
See
Petition,
Ex'
2'
7.
The
purpose
of
the
DOE'sinitiative
with
respect
to
the 24
schools
at
issue'
which
has
now
been
authonzedby
the
PEP
and
theCommissioner,
is
to
expeditiouslyimprove
the
educationalopportunities
for
the
students
enrolled
in
these
24 schools'
Towards
this
end,
-3-
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