Despite a move to cancel 17,000 spots in middle-school summer programs for an effort to dedicate more money to under-performing schools, complaints from New York's City Council members, parents, and students alike have led to the return of the money and slots for this year. 

Though the $28 million saved from the cutbacks was intended to respond to pressure to turn around under-performing schools, council members disagreed with the move on account that many families had already enrolled their children in the programs.

"[O]n Thursday, when the chancellor, Carmen Fariña, appeared at a hearing on the Education Department’s budget, council members said that was not a good enough reason to deprive other children of opportunities, and by the end of the day, the administration said it had decided to restore the summer program money," according to The New York Times.

During Farina's meeting in the Council chambers, parents, children, and other supporters of the summer programs protested outside with signs prompting the administration to "Keep Their Promise."

"A few hours later, administration officials announced that 'after hearing from parents and kids,' the summer slots would be paid for after all, though they did not promise to do so next year and they did not say where the money would come from," the article said.

The cuts would have affected as many as 40,000 children, according to CapitalNewYork.com and have left many parents in a tight situation because the last minute decision to cut programs was made after many of the affected programs began enrollment.

Read the full article here and comment below.

Article by Nicole Gorman, Education World Contributor

06/01/2015