Mayor Bloomberg yesterday took his fight for control of city schools to the airwaves.
Bloomberg — seeking re-election to a third term this fall — released two new campaign ads touting progress in improving student performance since he took charge of the school system in 2002.
The 30-second campaign spots appeared on broadcast and cable TV just two days after the gridlocked, do-nothing state Senate allowed the mayoral-school-control law to lapse.
Bloomberg campaign aides said it was “timely” to discuss the mayor’s educational accomplishments — including a boost in the high-school graduation rate and math and reading test scores — as the Albany debate over mayoral control continues.
“Mike Bloomberg has transformed our public-schools system into a model for cities across the country,” said Bloomberg campaign manager Bradley Tusk.
“These new ads are part of a conversation we’re having with voters on the positive effects of the mayor’s strong, independent leadership.”
In one 30-second spot called “Shake Things Up,” Bloomberg looks directly into the camera and talks about taking over the schools from the old, discredited Board of Education.
“When I became mayor, a dysfunctional and inept school system was failing our kids. It would have been easy to do nothing about it,” he said.
“But that’s not who I am. I was determined to shake things up and make the system work for our kids.”
A narrator then talks about more accountability for principals, improved student performance and safer schools.
But Democratic city Comptroller and likely mayoral challenger Bill Thompson said the results are suspect because kids have not done as well on respected national exams.
The second Bloomberg ad, titled “Getting Better,” includes testimonials from people speaking about how the schools have improved.
Meanwhile, the Senate — split 31-31 between Democrats and Republicans — held another unproductive session heading into the July Fourth weekend.
Gov. Paterson has ordered the Senate into special session at 3 p.m. every day until Monday to try to prod both sides to reach a power-sharing agreement.
The mayor wants the Senate to ratify legislation approved by the Assembly that preserves mayoral control, with more oversight and parental input.
But new Senate Democratic Leader John Sampson of Brooklyn wants to make changes.
Legislative insiders said a deal is being worked out whereby the Senate agrees to pass the Assembly bill, plus an amendment giving parents a greater role in school governance.
But a Sampson spokeswoman insisted there’s no agreement, and said she believed talks are ongoing with Bloomberg.
Aside from mayoral control, the Senate has also failed to OK Bloomberg’s plan to raise the city sales tax by a half percentage point to help balance the city budget.