NORMAN SIEGEL
Candidate's website

1. COMMUNITY COLLEGE FUNDING:
State Education Law mandates that the City fund one-third of CUNY community college's overall budget, but that level of funding has not been met for nearly a decade.
(a) Do you plan to increase City funding for CUNY?
(b) By how much?
(c) Over what period of time?

a. I would advocate for an increase in City funding for CUNY.
b. I support the Professional Staff Congress' (PSC) proposal for a 12% increase over the 2001 budget and an increase in full-time staff lines, while improving benefits and working conditions for adjunct professors.
c. In the next budget.

3. CHILDCARE:
Over 60% of CUNY students are parents, and the majority of this number attend community colleges.
(a) What plans might you have to assist students who are parents?
(b) How would these ideas be reflected in both the City and State budgets?

a. First, this statistic should be publicized. Most people, (myself included until I read your survey) do not realize that so many CUNY students are parents. Informing people may change the debate about CUNY students and their needs. It is my understanding that there are thousands of children on waiting lists for campus-based childcare at CUNY. I would join CUNY and the PSC in calling for increased funds for childcare services.
b. The City and State budget should reflect sufficient funds to provide adequate childcare services to the children of CUNY parents.

4. WELFARE:
Last fall, the Work-Study/Internship Bill, which allows students on public assistance to count their campus work-study and internships, was written into State law.
(a) Would you continue to support that legislation?
(b) In addition, would you support legislation that would allow college education (i.e. class attendance) to count as work activity?
(c) Would you initiate such legislation?
(d) What else might you do to assist college students on public assistance?

a. Yes. Reportedly, there have been problems in the implementation of this law. Caseworkers may not always be aware that internships and work-study jobs now legally satisfy welfare work requirements. Students, too, are not always aware of their rights. As a result, there are reports that caseworkers have tried to revoke benefits of students and there are concerns that some students may have dropped out of school because of misinformation. I would work with both caseworkers and student groups to develop and implement a plan to ensure that students are aware of the opportunities available to them, and that caseworkers are knowledgeable and able to assist students to access benefits to which they are entitled while they pursue their studies.
b. Yes.
c. Yes.
d. I would do everything I could to encourage those on public assistance to seriously consider going to college.

5. FINANCIAL AID:
According to a National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education's report (Measuring Up 2000: The State-by-State Report Card for Higher Education), New Yorkers who send dependents to college spend more than 1/3 of their family income on higher education-even after financial aid is deducted. This seems to indicate that financial aid, specifically the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), must be expanded.
(a) Do you agree with this statement?
(b) Would you promote and/or support legislation that will enhance TAP and financial aid?
(c) What are some ways you might do so?

a. Yes.
b. Yes.
c. A public education campaign about the importance of CUNY could help to bring New Yorkers, and their legislators, to an understanding of how essential it is to provide affordable higher education. I would like to bring together distinguished alumni of CUNY to make the case publicly for why CUNY has been and must continue to be a gem of higher education for all New Yorkers.

  At CUNY's community colleges, full-time faculty represent 44% of the total faculty, while part-time faculty or adjuncts represent 56% of instruction. At the senior college level, CUNY is at a 51% to 49% full-time to part-time ratio. Overall, since 1974, CUNY has lost nearly one-half of their entire full-time faculty.
(a) Do you support the need for more full-time faculty lines?
(b) If so, what ratio between full-time and part-time do you deem as reasonable for a high-quality education, and over what period of time would you plan to implement this ratio?

a. Yes.
b. I support the University's Master Plan goal, joined by PSC, for a 70/30 ratio of full-time to part-time faculty, to be implemented over a five-year period.

  Merit scholarships, such as the New York City Council Merit Award, provide incentives for academically talented students to attend CUNY. This year, Mayor Guiliani proposed to cut this program in his budget.
(a) If elected, would you support the next Mayor to do the same?
(b) Would you consider establishing additional merit incentives for NYC students?
(c) If yes, please give some examples (e.g. areas of study, merit criteria, etc.).

a. No.
b. Yes.
c. I would consider merit scholarships based on excellence in certain subjects, perhaps targeted to fields we most need to encourage students to enter. I would be open to suggestions by CUNY students and faculty as to what kind of merit scholarships best serve CUNY's needs.

8. COLLEGE NOW:
College NOW is a CUNY initiative that helps New York City high school students prepare for college through extra academic assistance and training courses at their school and on various community college campuses.
(a) Do you support the College NOW program?
(b) Would you increase funding to enable expanding College NOW?
(c) If yes, by how much and over what period of time?

a. Yes.
b. It is my understanding that a study by CUNY indicated that College Now Alumni were more likely to enter baccalaureate programs and to graduate on time, less likely to drop out, and they took fewer remedial courses. Based on that information, I would support an increase in funding to expand the program to as many students as possible. I would then want to engage in a follow-up study of the effects of the program and how many students participate and benefit (see 8c below). It is essential that our public high schools do a better job in preparing students for college. If College Now proves to be a good model to accomplish that goal, then I will support it vigorously. If not, then I would work to find alternative or supplementary models to prepare New York students for college.
c. It is my understanding that a plan was announced last year to expand College Now to all grades in all public high schools over a three-year period through 2004. I would support the plan to expand the program but I would want to do further study on which students the program is serving. As proposed, I understand the program would serve 45,000 high school students, only about 15% of the City's high school population. Ultimately, we need to assure that adequate college preparation is available to all the City's students. As I understand it the original plan was estimated to cost $20 million dollars by the end of the three-year period, and that CUNY has recently asked for additional funding for the program. I would need to do further study on the actual cost of the program as it develops before proposing a final budget figure.

9. REMEDIATION:
Last year, the CUNY Master Plan removed remediation from its four-year colleges. Now, extra academic assistance and tutoring are only available to students studying at CUNY's community colleges.
(a) Do you agree with this action?
(b) Why or why not?
(c) Would you restore remediation to the four-year campuses?

a. No.
b. Not all remedial students have the same needs. Some students may be excellent in one subject, but need assistance in another. Other students, like new immigrants, may simply need to become more familiar with English. Still others may need assistance in all areas to make up for the deficiencies that still, inexcusably, exist at some of New York's elementary and high schools. These students should not be forced to abandon four-year colleges if remedial services can help them to get their degrees.
c. I would support restoring remediation to four-year campuses.

10. CAPITAL PROJECTS:
With the institution of the CUNY Master Plan and the shift of remediation to the community colleges, some would claim that the community colleges need more basic infrastructure resources such as buildings and technology.
(a) Do you agree with this argument?
(b) If so, are you prepared to propose and to fight for money for capital projects so that the community colleges can successfully absorb CUNY's Master Plan?
(c) What are some ways you might do this?

a. Yes
b. Yes.
c. I would try to raise public awareness of the needs of these colleges. The Public Advocate's office could issue a report for each school documenting its capital needs and existing problems with buildings, technology, libraries and other essential resources. We could hold public hearings for the students to speak out about their needs. CUNY has a unique resource - its students. I would like to involve them in government by helping them to organize and work effectively to call attention to CUNY's needs and work with government to find solutions.

Reduction of Tuition. As a graduate and beneficiary of a free CUNY education, I believe strongly in CUNY's role of providing affordable higher education to all New Yorkers. Education is a key ingredient of the American Dream of starting with little or nothing and, with hard work and perseverance, becoming a success. Historically, New York City, the home of so many immigrants who come here seeking to improve their lives, has been a place that has nurtured public education. It has and it should se t the standard for a commitment to the principle of free public education. We must remove any financial barriers to would-be students realizing the dream of a college education.

Increase full-time professors and benefits for adjunct professors. Sufficient numbers of dedicated and excellent teachers are essential to providing a high-quality education. While adjuncts may be excellent instructors, a university must have a critical core of full-time professors who are readily available to the students and are full participants in the intellectual life of the university. In addition, adjunct professors should have offices and compensated office hours so that students can meet with them outside of class hours, and they should have an increased role in student advising and input into university committees. CUNY must offer full time positions, and fair and adequate benefits and pay to adjuncts, in order to attract excellent teachers in both categories and provide CUNY students with the teaching resources to which they are entitled.

Increased diversity in the faculty. One of New York City's greatest strengths is the diversity of its population. Both the student body and the faculty at CUNY should reflect that diversity. A university should be a place of vigorous debate among many different voices, and a diverse faculty should provide leadership for that debate. I support the request of CUNY and the PSC to establish a diversity fund to recruit outstanding faculty and professional staff from underrepresented groups.

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