New York City Life

Too rich for his own good

By Bob Yampolsky

In the 1960s, the New York City public school system was decentralized. Where there used to be a powerful central Board of Education that set policy, the city was now divided into 32 districts, each with its own superintendent and locally elected board. These districts had great autonomy. This was an attempt to give neighborhoods more control over their schools, but the results were mixed, to put it nicely.

The whole system has been bureaucratic and inefficient, and large segments of the student population are unable to score the minimally acceptable marks on standardized tests. For decades mayors have talked about reforming the school system and improving education. Mayor Giuliani, in fact, in pre-9/11 days, talked of dynamiting the headquarters of the Board of Education, saying that it would be the best way to improve the public school system. But Giuliani, as well as the mayors before him, never made any major headway in reform.

The new mayor, Michael Bloomberg, has been no different from his predecessors in stressing the importance of improving public education. In fact, he has said that the success of his mayoralty should be judged on whether or not he succeeds in turning around the school system. Unlike his predecessors, however, Mayor Bloomberg has taken great strides reforming the school system, and this in just one year on the job.

Starting in the next school year, the 32 districts will be abolished and streamlined into 10 regions. The idea is to eliminate a layer of bureaucracy and make the school principals more accountable for the quality of education at their school. Principals at the worst schools can now get fired. It also makes the mayor directly accountable for the school system, since now it is fully under his command.

In another radical move, there will be a standard citywide math and reading curriculum, emphasizing a return to basics. Up until now, the city has set minimal reading and writing standards for each grade. It has been the district's job to decide on the curriculum used to reach those standards and so what was being taught in the classroom differed from district to district and often from school to school. People have been calling for standardization for years, but nobody has been able to implement it.

When Mayor Bloomberg was candidate Bloomberg, who spent more than 70 million dollar (¥8.33 billion) of his own money on his campaign, he would say that because he was wealthy enough, he would not have to accept campaign contributions. And since he did not have to accept campaign contributions, he would not owe anyone any political favors. And so, as mayor, he would be able to make decisions solely on their merits, without having to please special interest groups that had supported him.

At the time, it sounded like an attempt to justify the enormous sums of money he was spending to "buy the mayoralty." But it turns out that Bloomberg, the mayor, is not beholden to any political boss or special interest group, and that is why he is able to make decisions based solely on what is good policy.

Despite his success and his evident integrity, the mayor is hardly popular. A recent poll showed that only 33 percent of New Yorkers approved of the job he is doing. There is a budget deficit of 2 billion dollars (¥238 billion) this year, and a projected deficit of 5 billion dollars (¥595 billion) next year. By law, the mayor is required to balance the budget. This means higher taxes and fewer services, which Bloomberg has duly announced. The deficits are not Bloomberg's fault, but because he is taking the painful and unpopular steps to address them, he is getting the blame.

Let's face it. Part of the problem is the fact that he is so rich. His personal fortune is large enough that he personally could cover the 7 billion dollars (¥833 billion) in deficits, and still have a billion or two left over. It bothers people to have someone so rich tell them of all the sacrifices they will have to make.

When there was the threat of a transit strike in December, Bloomberg made a show of buying a bicycle to encourage New Yorkers to get to work even if the subways and buses shut down. It was a very nice mountain bicycle that cost over 500 dollars (¥59,500), which for many New Yorkers, particularly those who rely on public transportation, is an unimaginable amount of money to spend on a bicycle.

Even though Bloomberg, after the strike was averted, gave the bicycle as a surprise Christmas present to a needy boy in Brooklyn, the incident was seen as proof that Bloomberg is out of touch with the average New Yorker. Yet what everyone seemed to forget is that Bloomberg actually takes the subway to work every morning. Undoubtedly he is the only billionaire in New York to do so.

Shukan ST: Feb. 7, 2003

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