Brooklyn Lawmakers on The Move March 13

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James, Lander Join in Citywide Public School Protest

Public Advocate Letitia James and Park Slope City Councilman Brad Lander yesterday were among the parents, students, teachers and administrators at a number of public schools across the borough staged protests as part of a citywide fight against Gov. Cuomo’s education reform proposals that includes giving more weight to standardized test scores in teacher ratings.

Cuomo’s education proposal included in his state FY 2016 budget calls for a $1.1 billion increase for public schools contingent on teacher evaluations weighted more on the test scores and less on principal evaluations. If state lawmakers don’t approve Cuomo’s education reforms, the governor said he will slash state funding for public schools by $1 billion.

“This is a passion of parents,” Lander, who joined families at P.S. 107 and P.S. 10, told DNAInfo. “Sometimes in the media it’s played as an issue with the [teachers’ union]. But from the side of public school parents, this is not a battle of interests. It’s about our kids and our schools.”

But the organization StudentsFirstNY, which is allies with the charter school movement, accused the teachers union of generating parent confusion to protect their own interests.

“Parents deserve unbiased, unfiltered information about policies affecting their children, so it’s unfortunate that the teachers’ union controls the messages that are sent through schools. Governor Cuomo’s Opportunity Agenda will benefit children tremendously, but the union would rather generate confusion as a shield to protect its own interests,” said Tenicka Boyd, StudentsFirstNY Director of Organizing. “The Governor’s policies would ensure we recruit and retain high performing teachers, that we don’t give lifetime jobs to teachers who are not effective, that we can remove low performers from classrooms, and that the interests of students are put first.”

Both the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) and advocates for charter schools are spending large amounts of money during the current state budget season to influence on how best to improve public schools. The Democratic-controlled assembly generally supports the UFT.  Cuomo and the Republican-controlled senate generally support positions that charter school advocates advance.

The state budget is due for approval by April 1.

Adams, Williams, Eugene Address Gang Beating

In the wake of the Monday gang beat down of a 15-year-old girl in a McDonalds outside of Erasmus High School two days ago, Borough President Eric Adams announced he will offer a $1,000 reward, which he will personally fund, for information leading to the arrest of those responsible for the brutal beating.

Video of the attack has gone viral and sparked worldwide outrage for the savage nature of the assault and the dozens of witnesses, including adults, who witnessed the incident but failed to intervene. Adams, along with East Flatbush City Council Member Mathieu Eugene, who chairs the Council’s Committee on Youth Services, denounced the violence, urged the community to provide information, and called for greater efforts to stem gang behavior, which is believed to be related to this event.

Meanwhile, Central Brooklyn City Council Member Jumaane Williams penned an op-ed for the Harlem-based New York Amsterdam News after a video surfaced that addressed the violent beat down.

“We cannot ignore the disturbing reality that the crowd filmed the scene without intervening, and must address this need to video violence then post it to social media. Our obsession with social media only encourages and increases the penchant for violence, and desensitizes us even more,” wrote Williams.

“Whether this type of youth violence has increased or technology has brought it more to the forefront is almost irrelevant to the need for immediate action. My prayers are with the young woman who became the victim of this brutal, barbaric assault.  The young women who participated in the assault must be held fully accountable for their actions. Still I pray for them as well, that they learn why this is unacceptable before their shameful, violent behavior leads to death; someone else’s or their own.”

Treyger Honors Brooklyn Hero Cop

Southern Brooklyn City Council Member Mark Treyger, yesterday, honored NYPD Officer Albert Mammon with a City Council proclamation for saving the life of a drowning teenager while off-duty and on vacation in Florida. Several other Council Members including Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and members of Officer Mammon’s family also took part in the ceremony.

Officer Mammon was on vacation in Bal Harbour last month when he heard screaming coming from the ocean. He ran towards the water and saw 17-year-old Christopher Tran struggling to stay afloat far from the shoreline. Officer Mammon jumped into the choppy water and swam towards the teenager, along with several other rescuers. They helped get Christopher onto a surfboard and then used the momentum of the waves to get everyone safely back to the beach.

“Officer Mammon did not hesitate to run into the water and help a complete stranger, despite the clear danger and risks he faced. His actions have once again shows that the men and women of the NYPD truly are never off-duty and are always ready to assist someone in need,” said Treyger.

Mammon is the child of immigrants who came to Brooklyn from Russia to escape religious persecution. He grew up in southern Brooklyn  and is a graduate of Sheepshead Bay High School and John Jay College of Criminal Justice. He started his career with the NYPD in 2001 as an officer with the 62^nd Precinct, and has since earned a number of honors and accolades, including the NYPD Exceptional Merit Police Award for returning fire on an armed robbery suspect and taking him into custody several years ago.

He currently is assigned to the 60^th Precinct in Coney Island.