Education in the city of Syracuse needs help. That’s the view of Bill Ryan, candidate for the Common Council.
“Our education system in the city of Syracuse is broken. We’ve got to find another way to do it.” [Bill Ryan]
Ryan is a Democrat running for re-election to one of the at-large seats on the Syracuse Common Council. He and fellow Democrat, Kathleen Joy, are the incumbents. Their opponents are Bill Harper of the Republican Party, Robert Teachout of the Conservative Party and Howie Hawkins of the Green Party.
Ryan says the Common Council and the school board have long been at odds with each other. And now, he says it’s time for the two sides to come together and solve the city’s educational woes.
“Collectively, united, we need to go to the State of New York, the federal government and look for more money for the city of Syracuse.” [Bill Ryan]
This past year, state test scores at the middle and high school levels were well-below the state average. Ryan warns that if the educational system is not fixed, more and more middle-class people will continue to leave the city.
“They feel unsafe. They don’t feel that their kids are getting a good education, vis-à-vis they don’t feel safe in schools as well. I need to find answers, to continue to find answers, to solve those problems so the middle class stays in the city of Syracuse.” [Bill Ryan]
Ryan says he doesn’t know exactly how to fix the educational problem in Syracuse. But he says one thing is for sure: the schools need more money.
The election is November 6th.
For Democracywise, I’m Ted Johnsen.
(Ted Johnsen is a broadcast journalism graduate student.)
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