Leonie Haimson, Letter to the members of the Panel on Educational Policy on how they should exercise more rigorous oversight on contracts, privacy and class size, https://leoniehaimson.substack.com/p/letter-to-the-members-of-the-panel

Leonie Haimson, This year’s drop in NYC state test scores: sound and fury, signifying nothing, https://leoniehaimson.substack.com/p/this-years-drop-in-nyc-state-test

NY Daily News, Mayor, Mamdani suing to block law giving NYC paraprofessionals $10,000 boost , https://www.nydailynews.com/2026/08/19/mayor-mamdani-lets-bill-giving-nyc-paraprofessionals-10000-boost-lapse-into-law/

NY Times, Teachers’ Union Boss Vows ‘All-Out-War’ if Mamdani Doesn’t Back Bonuses https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/24/nyregion/nyc-mamdani-teachers-union-bonuses.html

VPN mentor, Personal Data of Thousands of Special Needs Children Exposed Online, https://www.vpnmentor.com/news/report-encore-breach/

Diane Ravitch, An Education: How I Changed My Mind About Schools and Almost Everything Else, https://www.amazon.com/dp/0231220294?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback

Diane Ravitch, How the Billionaire Boys Club paved the way for Betsy Devos, https://dianeravitch.net/2016/12/14/how-the-billionaire-boys-club-paved-the-way-for-betsy-devos/

SI Advance: https://www.silive.com/education/2026/08/pension-reversal-threatens-to-upend-retirement-for-dozens-of-nyc-paraprofessionals.html

The City Reporter: https://www.thecityreporter.nyc/2026/08/06/uft-school-paraprofessionals-disability-pension-cuts-mamdani/

The Chief Leader: https://www.thechiefleader.com/stories/very-unusual-and-very-cruel-trs-cuts-paraprofessional-pensions-in-half-demands-backpay,57311

Chalkbeat, Mayor Zohran Mamdani names 13 school board members, cementing control of NYC schools, https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2026/07/28/mamdani-appoints-new-york-city-school-board-pep-members

Illinois Families for Public Schools, MEDIA RELEASE: Advocates Call on Chicago School Board Candidates to Pledge to Protect Human-Centered Education, https://www.ilfps.org/media_release_pledge_human_centered_ed_cps

Email to send to your Senators to oppose the College Transparency Act , https://actionnetwork.org/letters/please-send-a-message-to-your-senators-reps-urging-them-to-oppose-the-college-transparency-act-that-would-authorize-federal-surveillance-of-all-college-students-throughout-their-lives

Organizational sign-on letter, https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Q81ppj2rcprQybaQ9K3-aAL-PgKwpVla/edit](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Q81ppj2rcprQybaQ9K3-aAL-PgKwpVla/edit 

Guide to Chicago’s November school board elections, https://www.chicagoreporter.com/tcrs-guide-to-chicagos-november-school-board-elections/

Cassie Creswell: Illinois and Iowa private school voucher programs, https://qctimes.com/opinion/column/article\_597a1bb1-c249-4dce-8cde-805c392f3594.html

 The 2013 mass public school closure and firearm violence in Chicago: A quasi-experimental difference-in-differences analysis, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953626005046

Public school closings in Chicago linked to more gun violence in nearby neighborhoods, https://news.uchicago.edu/story/public-school-closings-chicago-linked-more-gun-violence-nearby-neighborhoods

Chalkbeat: Council approves $10k perk for public school paraprofessionals

Daily News: NYC Council approves $10K checks for teacher aides, Mamdani considers ‘next steps’

The Wire: The Respect Check Passes: A Temporary Victory Built By Pressure - And the Unfinished Fight.

The Wire: The Good, Bad and Ugly - The NYC Para Bill

Daily News: Council paraprofessionals bill breaks N.Y. law

The Wire: The Newly Revised UFT Para Bill: The Promise That Kept Shrinking

Union Matters: Real Respect for Paras

Chalkbeat, What’s Mamdani’s agenda for K-12 education in NYC? 6 months in, it’s hard to say, https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2026/07/07/mamdani-education-agenda-after-six-months-as-mayor/

NY TImes, Mamdani Reverses Call to End Mayoral Control of Public Schools, https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/31/nyregion/mamdani-nyc-public-schools-mayoral-control.html

Daily News, NYC public schools puts technology purchases on hold amid heated debate over AI policy, https://www.nydailynews.com/2026/07/08/nyc-public-schools-puts-technology-purchases-on-hold-amid-heated-debate-over-ai-policy/?share=cowc0wthmoidhobmelde

Daily News, NYC specialized high schools continue to offer few seats to Black and Hispanic students, https://www.nydailynews.com/2026/07/10/nyc-specialized-high-schools-few-black-hispanic-students/?share=0csowdynosdsiisneonc

Leonie Haimson, The Mayor’s cuts to class size funding; do they make sense? https://classsizematters.org/the-mayors-cuts-to-class-size-funding-do-they-make-sense/

Zohran Mamdani's responses to the NYC Kids PAC survey, https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bjazxfsUKHrtuNnQpkxW3OGFNJdRwPVD/view

David Bloomfield, Daily New oped: Troubles for Kamar Samuels & NYC schools, https://www.nydailynews.com/2026/07/12/troubles-for-kamar-samuels-nyc-schools/?share=mosoltmc0k0ouwds0mml

914 Inc News, How a Monroe University Assignment Became an Award-Winning Documentary; https://914inc.com/monroe-university-tyrone-documentary/

INDIE SHORT FEST winner, Tyrone; https://indieshortfest.com/2026/02/26/tyrone/

Tyrone film here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2XWJBz-lbc

Class Size Matters, Testimony on DOE’s shoddy privacy & AI policies; also lowlights & highlights from the hearing, https://classsizematters.org/testimony-on-does-shoddy-privacy-ai-policies-lowlights-highlights-from-the-hearing/

Randi Weingarten, Why Fascists Fear Teachers, Public Education, and the Future of Democracy, https://bookshop.org/p/books/why-fascists-fear-teachers-public-education-and-the-future-of-democracy-randi-weingarten/86407292f508ba9

19th News, Education Department changes are leaving millions of vulnerable students at risk , https://19thnews.org/2026/06/education-changes-trump-special-ed/

LDF Condemns the U.S. Department of Education’s Latest Efforts to Dismantle Agency and Abandon Students’ Civil Rights, https://www.naacpldf.org/press-release/ldf-condemns-the-u-s-department-of-educations-latest-efforts-to-dismantle-agency-and-abandon-students-civil-rights/

Randi Weingarten, Devices down, eyes up, hands-on:10 points to boost student learning and success in the AI era, https://www.aft.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/2026/weingarten_npc_speech-may-27-2026.pdf

NBC News, Teachers union president calls for limits on AI and screen time in schools, https://www.nbcnews.com/news/education/randi-weingarten-teachers-union-limits-ai-screen-time-school-rcna346871

Class Size Matters/Parent Coalition for Student Privacy, Critique of the NYC AI Guidance; https://classsizematters.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Detailed-critique-of-AI-guidance-final-4.25.26.pdf

NBC News, Los Angeles becomes the first major school district to require screen time limits; https://www.nbcnews.com/news/education/los-angeles-school-district-require-screen-time-limits-rcna332173 

K12 Dive; LAUSD imposes screen time limits starting in 2026-27; https://www.k12dive.com/news/lausd-imposes-screen-time-limits-starting-in-2026-27/818224/

Schools Beyond Screens website, https://www.schoolsbeyondscreens.com/

Student Tech Bill of Rights,  https://www.schoolsbeyondscreens.com/student-tech-bill-of-rights

In this episode, we take a hard look at the financial strategies shaping New York City’s future—and what they could mean for workers and retirees. From pension re-amortization proposals and potential borrowing through pension obligation bonds, to the broader implications of pattern bargaining and the uncertain status of Intro 1096, this conversation cuts through the noise.

----------------------------

NYC Organization of Public Service Retirees - http://nycretirees.org

Arthur Goldstein's Union Matters Substack - http://arthurgoldstein.substack.com

New York Times - Mamdani Considers Delaying Pension-Fund Payments to Ease Budget Gap

The Wire - Balancing the Budget on Borrowed Time: NYC’s Pension Shell Game

Politico: Mamdani allies urge him to issue moratorium on AI in schools, https://classsizematters.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Politico.-Mamdani-allies-urge-him-to-issue-moratorium-on-AI-in-schools-4.17.26.pdf

NY Daily News, NYC parents tell Mayor Mamdani: ‘Slow your horses’ on AI in the classroom, https://www.nydailynews.com/2026/04/16/nyc-parents-mayor-mamdani-ai-classroom/?share=w1oyinhns1tmmyaicamh

Fortune, Exclusive: Doctors and education experts who studied AI’s impact on the young call for a 5-year moratorium in schools
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/exclusive-doctors-education-experts-studied-070100644.html

Say Yes to Recess resolution, https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OUzKvVhnicMVlqk1n5Nuh7NxTfi8cAHwuqlaFUJaeV0/edit?usp=drivesdk

The Atlantic, How Finland Keeps Kids Focused Through Free Play, https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/06/how-finland-keeps-kids-focused/373544/

Say Yes to Recess Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/groups/821093494186924/

Contact Say Yes to Recess: [email protected]