A mandate to shrink classes in the nation’s largest public school system will be delayed for two years as part of a compromise with New York state lawmakers and the United Federation of Teachers. The delay contradicts the city’s mayor’s campaign promises.
Legislation unveiled Monday gives NYC Public Schools and Mayor Zohran Mamdani two additional years to comply with a 2022 state law requiring the city to decrease public school class sizes to 25 students or fewer by 2028.
Mamdani, 34, has been criticized for his actions on two key campaign promises before, including public school class sizes and housing initiatives amid the city’s historic $12 billion budget deficit.
What’s To Expect For Next Year’s Class Sizes
The extension gives the city’s Department of Education until the 2029-30 school year to meet the cap of 20 students for kindergarten through third grade and 23 students for grades 4-8. High school classes will have a maximum of 25 pupils under the new proposal.
As part of the deal involving Mamdani, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, state legislators and UFT officials, the city must be within 70 percent compliance by the upcoming school year and 90 percent by 2028-29.
‘We Did Not Want an Extension — We Want Compliance’: Why the Extension Was Granted
“We did not want an extension — we want compliance,” UFT President Michael Mulgrew said in a statement Monday. “But the reality is that New York City, up until now, had not done all that was needed to make this law a reality in every classroom. If giving this new administration two more years gets us a partner committed to building the necessary seats, then it is the fastest way to turn the law into reality.”
Mamdani’s Class Size Challenge
During his campaign, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani vowed to shrink public school class sizes, aligning with a state mandate that requires all classes to be capped between 20 and 25 students by 2028.
He initially promised to hire 1,000 teachers annually as part of a $12 million-per-year initiative to meet the mandate. However, the scope of the challenge is monumental: the city faces up to $1.7 billion in teacher salary costs and $18 billion for new school construction to fulfill the requirement, as reported by Politico. Former Mayor Eric Adams’ lack of early action on recruitment and space exacerbated the pressure on Mamdani’s administration.
Mulgrew acknowledged it may be impossible to hire all staff necessary to comply with the law. As a result, educators will be eligible for a pay increase of up to $9,500 by the 2027-28 school year if their classes exceed established caps.
“Our goal is compliance,” Mulgrew’s statement continued. “We hope a differential will be an incentive to do the recruitment, hiring, and construction needed to fulfill the law. Smaller classes are the future of our school system. No one thought it was possible, but now more than 60 percent of classes are smaller as a result of this law. We have to keep pushing to bring this change to all children and all schools.”
Mulgrew informed thousands of teachers of the agreement in an internal email obtained by the New York Post.
“For the first time, teachers whose classes remain above the new class size limits because of approved hard-to-staff and space exemptions will be eligible for a differential of up to $8,500 in 2026-27 school year and $9,500 in the 2027-28 school year,” Mulgrew wrote. “These exemptions will be decided upon in November of each year.”
The additional pay serves as an incentive to pressure the city to comply with the class-reduction law, which Mamdani supported while serving as a state legislator. Once approved by lawmakers and Governor Hochul, the new measure is set to take effect on July 1 and reduce the city’s budget by an estimated $500 million.
What Mamdani Has Said About The Effort
“No student should have to compete for their teacher’s attention, and no educator should be asked to do the impossible in an overcrowded classroom,” Mamdani said in a statement Wednesday provided to Newsweek. “Smaller class sizes are essential to providing the high-quality public education every child deserves, and we committed to delivering them.”
Mamdani said he was “proud” to back the effort to shrink class sizes while in the state legislature and intends to implement the move in “good faith,” as promised during his mayoral campaign.
“Extending this timeline gives our schools the opportunity to reduce class sizes in a way that is sustainable and responsible,” Mamdani said while thanking NYC Public Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels and partners in state government.
State Senator John Liu, who represents Queens and sponsored the original class-size mandate, said the extra two years to comply with the law are absolutely necessary.
“It has been difficult for the city to recruit teachers in the last couple of years and this year as well,” Liu told Spectrum News during an interview Tuesday.
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