Cabinet members are taking Governor Andrew Cuomo's 2015 agenda to residents across New York. And education reform is one of Cuomo's top priorities. To improve classroom instruction Cuomo's plan includes paying full tuition for top graduates of SUNY schools who commit to teaching in New York state for 5 years. Empire State Development, regional president, Sam Hoyt told about a hundred people at the West Seneca Senior Center Wednesday, that Cuomo also wants to strengthen teacher evaluations.
"The goal is to make sure that the teachers that are in our classroom, teaching our kids, have the skill set to give them the highest quality education. And that means that if somebody doesn't have that skill set they shouldn't be teaching the children," Hoyt said.
If the legislature approves Cuomo's education reform plan the governor will propose a $1.1 billion increase in state aid. As for the struggling Buffalo City Schools, Hoyt says at this point, "there's no real discussion" about Albany taking over the district.