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De Blasio’s choice for schools chancellor

The former education boss of Baltimore is being pushed for schools chancellor if Bill de Blasio is elected mayor, The Post has learned.

Sources said Andres Alonso, who recently stepped down as Baltimore Schools CEO after six years, was among the names submitted to the Democratic mayoral candidate’s camp to head the ­nation’s largest school system.

And the nomination was well-received.

“They are interested in him,” said one source.

Before becoming Baltimore schools chief, Alonso was the deputy chancellor for teaching and learning in New York City’s Department of Education under then-Chancellor Joel Klein and Mayor Bloomberg.

Alonso, a Cuban immigrant with degrees from Columbia and Harvard Law School, left Baltimore in June to accolades.

The consensus was that student performance improved ­under his watch after he overhauled school budgeting, accountability, governance and special-education programs.

“Under Mr. Alonso, students made significant gains in showing up to school ready to learn, reading comprehension and graduation rates. The leap forward is undeniable,” Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said in a recent assessment.

“I believe much of Mr. Alonso’s success was directly related to his 11 years of classroom experience. As a former teacher, he personally understood the challenges teachers faced every day because he lived them himself.”

New York City school advocates who worked closely with Alonso here said he’s a no-nonsense reformer who has a deft touch with parents, kids, ­principals and teachers.

“I’m keen on him. He’s a solid guy and a strong leader,” said one Big Apple education advocate.

Alonso has generally been supportive of charter schools, calling them “engines of reform.” There are more than three dozen charters in Baltimore.

But Alonso has not been a pushover for charters, either. He caused a stir in 2011 when he rejected the applications for six new charters, saying the proposals were not up to snuff.

“I want to see strong charter applications, so I can approve more charters,” Alonso said at the time. “But my vision has been to see great schools and I want charters to support [that vision].”

De Blasio has proposed charging charter schools rent for space they now get for free in public-school buildings.

School-choice advocates, including Board of Regents Chancellor Merryl Tisch, argue that the extra costs would cripple the city’s burgeoning charter-school movement.

“Alonso would be a lot better on school choice than someone talking about shutting down charters,” an education insider said.

Alonso declined repeated ­requests for comment.

Source also told The Post that Bob Hughes, the longtime head of the nonprofit New Visions for Public Schools, is also on de Blasio’s radar.

Under Hughes’ leadership, New Visions has created 99 district schools and four charter schools in the Big Apple, including many small high schools. It currently provides support services to 73 schools.

“Bob would be terrific. He’s shown a willingness to work with everybody — charter schools, district schools, the union,” said an education official.

Advisers also are also pushing de Blasio to hire a person of color to head the mostly white Fire Department to demonstrate that he’s serious about boosting minority recruitment, sources said.

De blasio’s camp insisted no names are under consideration, “Bill de Blasio is focused on winning the election. There is no transition effort under way and no names under consideration for anything, and any rumors to the contrary are false.”