Panepinto: “Our students deserve to be looked at by this legislative body as more than just an afterthought.”
(Long Island, NY) With no discussion on the Governor’s $100 million proposal for upstate struggling schools – and following a proposed end-of-session agreement that sets aside 250 million for non-public schools – Senator Panepinto released the following statement.
“It is imperative that we put our students first. Last week, Governor Cuomo called on the Senate and Assembly to approve $100 million in financial aid to 87 failing schools across New York State. In Buffalo alone, 27 Buffalo Public Schools and over 16,000 students stand to benefit from this much needed infusion of state aid. In these final hours of session, however, there has been little discussion surrounding this necessary initiative. The current end-of-session agreement already includes $250 million in funding for private schools. Students in struggling upstate schools deserve to be looked at by this legislative body as more than just an afterthought. As this session comes to a close, I am calling on Governor Cuomo, and my colleagues in the Senate and Assembly to not let this critical funding opportunity slip by our upstate schools. Our students and parents deserve better, and this increase will accomplish just that.
**As of today, there has been no update from either the Senate or Assembly on the status of this issue.
Funding Breakdown:
- Funding Amount: $100 million
- Number of struggling Upstate schools impacted: 87 schools/60,000 students
- Number of Buffalo Public Schools impacted: 27 schools/16,000 students
Senator Panepinto represents the 60th Senate District, which includes parts of the City of Buffalo as well as communities in both the Northtowns and the Southtowns of Western New York.
