Against the background of the Trump Administration beginning its planned move to shut down the U.S. Department of Education, which has played an important role in providing funding to public school systems around the country, Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano traveled to Albany on Feb. 4 to seek additional school funding from the state.
On what is known as “Tin Cup Day,” municipal leaders are invited to visit with state legislators and lobby for their “tin cups” to be filled with more state money. Spano met with state representatives in a push for up to an additional $64 million over the next five years to help with the higher costs Yonkers faces compared with some other communities in the state.
Spano wants to see the state switch from the way it currently calculates some of what to send to Yonkers using the Regional Cost Index (RCI) to the Comparable Wage Index for Teachers (CWIFT). CWIFT reflects current county economic conditions and the variations in competitive teacher wages, in which Westchester County has the highest costs.
According to Spano, in 2024 the Rockefeller Institute issued a report on New York state education funding suggesting CWIFT is a more equitable solution to funding districts by calculating the expected local share of education contribution by comparing district wealth with the cost of hiring local teacher talent by county. Currently, New York state utilizes RCI as a key component of Foundation Aid. According to the Rockefeller Institute’s report, “the current nine-region construct of the RCI does not adequately reflect the cost differences faced by individual school districts.” The report suggests 71% of all districts would benefit from a new CWIFT.
Yonkers points out that under RCI it has been grouped with smaller local economies in Upstate and Western New York, such as Sullivan and Ulster Counties, putting the Yonkers School District at a disadvantage for Foundation Aid.
“I encourage New York to recognize the disparity and alter the calculations for education aid by adopting CWIFT,” Spano said. “Heed the Rockefeller Institute’s recommendations and fund Yonkers Public Schools based on the economic costs of running a school in our county, and not those 100 miles north of us.”
Spano also will ask the Legislature to make the State’s Shared Services Grant available to Yonkers, citing the city’s successful merger of five city and school nonacademic departments that alleviates $10 million annually from the School District’s budget.
Spano cites the increased educational services for Yonkers students with learning differences as a reason for additional funding.
“Our special education enrollment has increased 14% in just three years, due to the lasting effects of the pandemic and our proximity to New York City families who are seeking an alternate educational option,” Spano said. “What’s even more concerning is the intensity of the services required to address any learning differences has increased by 21%, which puts more of a strain on our specialty staffing needs, meaning more therapists and aides.”
Spano characterized the Yonkers School District as a model urban district, achieving the highest graduation rate of the state’s five biggest districts for the last nine years.
“We are edging towards severe cuts without guaranteed funding.,” Spano said. “We’ve come to the limit of what the city and our residents can afford. I ask New York state to reassess how districts are funded so they can guarantee reoccurring aid to our students.”
