Up until now, the 39th City Council race has been very civilized. But now things are getting nasty. And why not? Politics is a rough game especially in a tight race that is just four weeks away.
It seems that Brad Lander has made an issue out of the fact that Josh Skaller's son attends a local private school and not a public school like his kids. They are the only two Democratic candidates in the 39th with children. (The Green candidate David Pechefsky has two kids, one is in daycare, the other attends a public middle school). John Heyer's wife is pregnant and he's said that they will send their child to a public school.
I think most people agree that the choice of where to send your children to school is a very personal matter that involves many factors. That said, private school is not an option for most New Yorkers and it certainly is a vote of confidence to know that a politician has enough faith in the public school system to send his or her own children there.
Still, I don't think it has to be a make or break factor for a politician. Obama doesn't send his children to public school. Nor did Bill Clinton.
The so-called attack was timed to coincide with a mailer that Lander sent out about his support for public school, which included photographs of local PTA members who have endorsed Lander.
Over the weekend, I saw this letter from Kelly Skaller, wife of Josh Skaller which was sent out to their supporters. By now she has probably given birth to their second child. I hear she wrote this letter from the hospital.
husband, Josh Skaller, is running for City Council. We have an eight-
year-old son, Wolf. By the time you read this, I may have given
birth to our daughter, who is due any day now.
As
you may know, Josh and I struggled to find the school that was most
appropriate for our son and his special needs.
Unfortunately,
one of my husband's opponents, Brad Lander, has decided to make our
schooling choice an issue in this campaign. These attacks leave me
no choice but to respond.
As
an educator who has taught in public schools all over our borough, I
have a personal investment in Brooklyn's public schools. As a
mother, I have had enough of the lies and misinformation spread by
one of Josh's political opponents, who is playing the same old
politics as usual.
We
won't make our opponents' children an issue in this campaign,
because children should not be political pawns. I commend the other
candidates for focusing on the issues and not the candidates'
families.
Wolf's
education is a private matter to us; it has everything to do with who
Wolf is, and nothing to do with how we feel about public schools.
Brad Lander's attacks, however, have made this letter to you
unavoidable.
Josh
and I could move to the suburbs to find a public school that fits our
son's needs. Many families do that. But Josh and I love Brooklyn
and we want to raise our children right here. We chose to stay in
our community and provide for our son's special needs. We chose to
send Wolf to a neighborhood private school.
Josh
and I live in a one-and-a-half bedroom rented apartment. We do not
have a car. We do not take vacations. We are not wealthy. We do
spend money on our child's education. Like you, we make sacrifices
to help our child attend a school that suits his needs.
All
schools should support the different learning styles and address the
challenges their students face. Wolf's school allows him to be
entering third grade – in public school he would be entering the
fourth grade. Wolf's school works well with him to overcome his
struggles with reading. It allows him to feel positive about his
abilities and his role as a learner.
Josh
and I are invested in the public schools. Both of Josh's parents
went to public schools in New York City. My father attended public
schools here as well. My grandmother was a public school teacher in
New York City for over 20 years. I attended public schools from
kindergarten through high school. I have a Master's degree in
Early Childhood Education. I have worked with children from PS 154,
PS 249, PS 321, PS 89, PS 375, PS 231, PS 54, PS 243, PS 200, PS 399,
PS 186, PS 158, PS 95, PS 152, and PS 157 – just to name a few.
My
husband and I share a core value: Every child deserves a
high-quality education. As a City Councilmember and the father of a
child with special needs, Josh will fight to make sure that schools
remain true to the developmental needs of their students and provide
support to teachers and administrators so that they can teach in ways
that connect to every student.
Josh
is running a campaign on the issues – and he has the plan to give
parents a real say in their children's schools, to reduce class
sizes and end the gauntlet of standardized tests.
I hope you will vote for Josh not because of the private
and difficult choices he has made as a father regarding his son's
education. I hope you will vote for him because he is the candidate
most committed to improving our public schools, and the candidate who
will best represent our community in City Hall.
Kelly
Berman Skaller
To Kelly Skaller: Did you really say you could move to the suburbs and find a public school to fit your sons needs? This statement coming from a public school teacher(?) who has worked for “16+” schools to name a few and has a degree in SPECIAL EDUCATION. Who are you trying to kid? Someone in your position surely sees the hundreds of thousands of autisic spectrum students & your choices were either move to the burbs or send them to an ultra expensive private school? By living in the burbs you wouldn’t be able to collect your swollen board of education salary. I have always worked for people/organizations I believed in & practiced what I preached, sadly you have not….