Ceretto joins Partnership for Smarter Schools to call for restoration of education funding

Will hold rally in Buffalo on March 7 in support of education funding restoration

Assemblyman John Ceretto, R-C-I-Lewiston, is calling for the restoration of the cuts to education funding from 2011 with the Partnership for Smarter Schools, a bipartisan alliance of parents, teachers and education professionals working to improve New York schools. In addition to restoring the education cuts, Ceretto and the Partnership for Smarter Schools are working to put a moratorium on the high-stakes testing that has been the subject of controversy for the past year.

To rally support for restoring the cuts, Ceretto, the Partnership for Smarter Schools and Republican State Sen. George Maziarz will hold a rally in support of restoring education funding on Friday, March 7, at 6:30 p.m. at Niagara Square in Buffalo.

"Our local school districts are struggling under the weight of both the education cuts and the Common Core mandates. As a father, I understand the need to give our students the resources necessary for success," Ceretto said. "Delivering a world-class education to our kids is one of my highest priorities, and I'll be fighting alongside parents and teachers to restore education funding and make sure our schools have the resources they need."

Beginning in the 2011-12 school year, the state had to reduce the amount of education aid given to school districts in order to fill a $10 billion budget deficit. In its first year, the cut amounted to $2.7 billion. Since then, local school districts have lost $6.5 billion in state aid. Now that the budget is balanced and the state has a projected $2 billion surplus, these cuts need to be restored.