Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Concerns surrounding the turmoil within the Buffalo School Board continue, with Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz being the latest to share his worries.
"It's a big problem. It's something I'm very concerned [about]," said Poloncarz in an interview with WBEN. "I had my team look into it, there's limited things that can be done. The New York State Legislature has the power to put in legislation to create a monitor from the New York State Department of Education. The New York State Department of Education can implement a monitor, and that might be the thing that needs to be done. The problem is it has to be done by the New York State Legislature, and they're now off for the remainder of the year. I am concerned."
Poloncarz notes the county invests hundreds of thousands of dollars into various services that help benefit Buffalo Public Schools, including through Say Yes Buffalo.
He feels the City of Buffalo needs to have a strong school district from top-to-bottom.
"They need to be focused on the children, not the infighting, and it's possible that a monitor needs to be put in place to make recommendations. But New York law is pretty strong. It's still the School Board that's in charge, even if a monitor is in place. So I am concerned, like many other," Poloncarz said.
"I live in the City of Buffalo, I want to see strong city schools. And when we have this turmoil, it it actually hurts everything in this region, because if you don't have strong city schools, you're not going to have a strong city."
Poloncarz believes the implementation of a monitor within Buffalo Public Schools would benefit the city like the monitor that Rochester City Schools currently has.
"The Rochester City School District was going through significant problems and has a monitor in place. The School Board is still there, but the monitor plays a role. I do support that," Poloncarz said. "It's out of our command, I can't do anything myself."
When it comes to the idea of the Buffalo School Board either being overhauled with a clean slate, or the district doing away with a School Board entirely, while Poloncarz questions the legality of such actions, he says all options have to be on the table.
"There's good people on the School Board. I don't want people to think they're not. There are good School Board members, but right now, it's in chaos and turmoil," Poloncarz stated. "They need to find a way to focus on the children and not whatever's happening behind the scenes. And then the allegations against one of the School Board members and the former superintendent are significant, and need to be investigated. It's a pretty sad sight.
"We have another month-and-a-half or so before school starts this year, and I think we all want to see them focusing on the children in September and not all this. If it requires a monitor, so be it. I just don't believe there's a power in New York to eliminate the School Board unless something happened from the state, because there's just no other way to do it."
With finding the next superintendent for Buffalo Public Schools, Poloncarz believes there is a benefit to having someone in that position who is from the region, and who understands what they're getting into, rather than bringing someone else in from the outside.
"Do you have an understanding of working in a union environment, working in an environment where there's multiple bargaining units? If you bring somebody from outside who does not have that experience, no matter who it is, they're often bound to fail, because they don't know how to react when they're dealing with unions. So it does make sense that whomever the next superintendent is, he or she should probably come from the region, and be a very well-respected educator in the region," Poloncarz said. "It doesn't have to come from the City of Buffalo, but someone who has an experience with negotiating with teachers' unions, negotiating with other unions, and dealing with the issues that you often deal with in an urban environment where you have bargaining units. Not someone coming from outside the area, who's never had to deal with that. That that would be a terrible mistake."
