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A sign reads "IDAs DRAIN $1.8 BILLION A YEAR FROM NEW YORK SCHOOLS."
Unions Join the Fight to Slash Economic Development Tax Breaks

When local authorities hand out subsidies, school budgets lose revenue. The state teachers union is now pushing back.

Arabella Saunders   ·   February 2, 2024
A classroom full of students with the teacher's silhouette filled in with pennies.
When Schools Assign Substitutes the Wrong Status, the Error Suppresses Their Pay

Long-term subs stay with the same classes and can serve like full-time teachers. New York City schools misclassify them — so their pay doesn’t reflect that.

Teddy Ostrow   ·   January 31, 2024
In school classroom full of children, a teacher silhouette of a teacher is filled in with microscopic coronaviruses.
In New York City Schools, Substitute Teachers Are Systematically Denied Covid Sick Pay

The state established Covid leave to compensate employees who fell ill during the pandemic. One group of essential workers has been unable to claim it.

Teddy Ostrow   ·   January 29, 2024
Whatever Happened to New York’s School Facial Recognition Ban?

In 2020, New York became the first state to ban biometric technology from schools. But administrators are still seeking “face analytics” tools and other gray-area tech — with scant guidance from the state.

Rebecca Heilweil   ·   March 28, 2023
For Scandal-Plagued For-Profit Colleges, No State Is More Welcoming Than New York

As ASA College prepares to shut its doors after years of controversy, New York continues to shell out tuition subsidies to for-profit colleges — at rates higher than any other state.

Lilah Burke   ·   February 23, 2023
Hochul at Divide with Lawmakers on Child Care, Once A Top Priority

Child care used to be Hochul’s marquee issue. Now, she’s proposing a modest expansion—but only if Congress doesn’t act.

Sam Mellins   ·   January 12, 2022
Columbia Student Worker Strike Could Become Testing Ground for Biden-Era NLRB

An NLRB ruling on a grievance made by striking Columbia student workers could suggest the board’s approach to a major question about the legal status of student workers.

Maxwell Parrott   ·   December 20, 2021
What Made It Into The Budget - And What Was Left Out

The major provisions of New York’s 2021 budget.

Akash Mehta, Sam Mellins and Lee Harris   ·   April 7, 2021
“What am I to do?” An oral history of mothering children in online school

“I’m the security guard, a mother, a father, a teacher, I’m everything.” Parents and children reflect on a year of remote learning and its impact on their finances, mental health, and family.

Morley Musick   ·   January 20, 2021