New York, October 23, 2020 — PLACE NYC is the fastest growing parent advocacy group in New York City. In a short period of time, we have built a five-borough base of engaged, passionate parents who are deeply invested in the education of their children and every child in our city.
PLACE NYC advocates for a high quality, challenging education for every student in all NYC DOE Public Schools by increasing the academic rigor of all school curricula. The parent leaders of PLACE NYC envision integrated classrooms of life-long learners wherein all students from across the entire spectrum of learning abilities are fully supported. We believe that accelerated curricula at all grade levels improve individual student outcomes, advance integration efforts and strengthen school quality.
We are excited to announce candidates we support for the general election in November. Early voting starts October 24. Vote by November 3.
Ron Kim, Candidate for New York State Assembly, 40th District (Queens: Flushing)
As the first Asian American to sit on the Education and Health Committees in the State Assembly, Ron Kim has fought to give immigrant parents and families direct access in shaping our policies. Instead of centralized bureaucrats determining what is best for our children, seniors, or the most vulnerable in our communities, we should be fighting every day to center our decisions on the needs of those who are directly impacted. Ron has fought tirelessly to increase our education budgets to make sure every child has access to a sound basic education and has voted against recent proposals to cut healthcare services. We have many challenges ahead but Assembly member Ron Kim is ready to take them on and deliver for all of our communities.
Nicole Malliotakis, Candidate for U.S. Congress, 11th District (Brooklyn/Staten Island, Kings County, Richmond County)
“I have been a vocal advocate in support of Gifted and Talented programs in New York City Public Schools and the continuation of the current high standards of the city’s Specialized High Schools Admissions’ Test. The misguided efforts by Mayor de Blasio and Chancellor Carranza, who seem bent on destroying the reputations of our Specialized High Schools and the successes of the Gifted and Talented programs, must be stopped; we owe that to our children, their parents, the educators and the taxpayers of our city. In the New York State Assembly and as a candidate for mayor I fought against Bill de Blasio plans, forcing him to back down on some. I am proud to stand with you as we continue our efforts to preserve two of the great programs in our public schools.”
As an Assembly member, I have always stood strong advocating for a high quality education for every student in NYC DOE Public Schools. My parents were immigrants, from Greece and Cuba. They instilled in me the importance of education and quality schooling as I grew up in New York. It is part of our American Dream. Since joining the Assembly in 2011, where I served on the Education Committee, I have been a vocal advocate for preserving our Specialized High Schools and Gifted and Talented programs and worked with advocate groups to successfully push back on Mayor de Blasio’s attempt to dismantle them. We need more resources to support and increase these programs, rather than eliminate them. We have more kids who qualify for G&T programs, but there aren’t enough seats. We need to provide more seats, in every part of the city. For the kids who are failing, we need to fix that. It’s a disgrace that 50% of the kids in NYC schools are woefully unprepared in education. We need to prepare all our kids to learn at higher levels. I am running for Congress and will continue to fight for high quality education. I have and will continue to stand with PLACE NYC to ensure that all students have the opportunity to excel in the classroom with strengthened school quality.
Mike Tannousis, Candidate for New York State Assembly, 64th District (Brooklyn/Staten Island)
“Mayor de Blasio and Chancellor Carranza had 6 months to prepare an adequate plan for our children for this school year. They failed miserably. As a result of their failures, I have helped organize a lawsuit against the City of New York. Now, there’s also the possibility that they may eliminate gifted and talented seats and not administer the SHSAT. This is disgraceful and another sign of a school system that is not adequately providing for our children.”
Michael Tannousis is a lifelong Staten Islander, and the son of Greek immigrants that came to America to seek a better life after being displaced by armed conflict in Cyprus. He attended Monsignor Farrell High School. He earned an undergraduate degree from SUNY Binghamton and his Juris Doctor from Pace Law School.
Mike began his career in public service in 2006 when he was hired as an aide to then-Minority Leader James Oddo. While there, he learned the gold standard in constituent services and helped many residents that came seeking assistance whether it was filling a pothole, getting storm drains cleaned, or fixing an issue with a property tax bill. Mike saw firsthand what government could and should look like when it works for the people it is supposed to serve. During much of this time, Mike was going to law school in addition to working and after becoming a lawyer fulfilled a long-held dream of becoming a prosecutor.
Mark Szuszkiewicz, Candidate for New York State Assembly, 46th District (Brooklyn: Coney Island, Brighton Beach, Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights)
Mark Szuszkiewicz has volunteered for numerous children’s charities over the years and the children’s education is one of his top priorities. He is outraged at some of the changes that are being implemented. Mark passed the series 7 when he became a stockbroker at age 19. If he had failed, there is no option to explain that he doesn’t test well. Lawyers need to pass the bar exam and many other professions require exams to be passed. The SHSAT does not discriminate. Some politicians think otherwise. Mark believes that there should be more STEM schools, charter schools, and other improvements to our education system. Mark also believes in school choice. He has some unique ideas such as life skills classes being taught for 1 semester in high school where students can learn various things like how credit works, basics of investing, how to build a website, how to change a flat tire, how to put their desk together, and many other simple tasks that will help build confidence and prepare them for life in the future. He also has ideas for an after school video game program that will provide tutoring prior to kids playing and require the students to maintain a certain GPA in order to participate. This will keep kids motivated to keep their grades higher. Overall Mark Szuszkiewicz will fight to make sure that our students get a better education to prepare them for the future. For more information about Mark’s ideas for our education system and other ideas, visit Mark4NY.com
