Saturday, June 14, 2025
State Sen. Siela Bynoe promised an additional $24 million for Hempstead Public Schools in the proposed Senate One-House Budget — and she delivered, helping to prevent program cuts and school closures.
On May 9, it was unveiled that the enacted state budget would include this relief funding for Hempstead schools. The funding is intended to offset the financial strain caused by the district’s rapidly growing charter school enrollment.
Evergreen Charter School, Academy Charter School, and the newly approved Diamond Charter School all operate within the boundaries of the school district. Enrollment and the district’s tuition obligations are expected to increase in the 2026–2027 school year with the opening of a fifth charter school, officials noted in a news release.
“$107 million will go to charter schools next year from the Hempstead school budget, Bynoe said, in the release. “In an effort to make sure we’re not allowing a disparate impact, this $24 million will infuse their budget and hopefully reduce any risk of adverse effects.”
This is in addition to the $247 million already allocated to Hempstead in foundation and school aid funding.
Bynoe, along with William Johnson — the state-appointed fiscal monitor for Hempstead — developed and refined the funding formula to help offset the burden of high charter school enrollment.
She confirmed that this will be a permanent source of funding, meaning the same formula will be applied in future years. Any district exceeding 20 percent charter school saturation will qualify.
Currently, Uniondale is at 13 percent, and Roosevelt is at 18 percent. Bynoe predicts Roosevelt may reach the 20 percent threshold within the next year or two. Hempstead leads the way with a saturation rate of 36 percent — meaning more than a third of students in the district attend a charter school.
After extensive discussions with multiple levels of Senate leadership, including Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Bynoe succeeded in getting the formula included in the Senate’s One-House Budget.
The formula provides additional aid to school districts outside of New York City with charter school enrollment rates of 20 percent or higher. As a result, Hempstead — along with Albany and Lackawanna — will receive targeted financial support in the current budget cycle.
In February, the Hempstead Board of Education projected a potential $33 million deficit for the upcoming school year. Board President Victor Pratt linked the shortfall to increasing payments to charter schools.
Earlier this year, Bynoe was appointed to the Senate’s Standing Committee on Education. She brought to the committee her awareness of the delicate balance between supporting charter schools and protecting the public-school districts that fund them.
She also wrote a bill that would prohibit the establishment of new charter schools in heavily impacted areas such as Uniondale, Hempstead, and Roosevelt. The bill is currently in the Senate Education Committee, awaiting movement to the floor.
