/EINPresswire.com/ New York, NY (Submitpressrelease123.com – press release) NYC Mayoral Candidate Ceceilia Berkowitz Believes In “We The People”
Ceceilia Berkowitz, a 34-year old single professional, loves the five boroughs of New York and vows to visit every neighborhood within them in her mayoral campaign to find out what’s on the minds of ordinary New Yorkers.
A resident of Manhattan who teaches marketing at C.W. Post College on Long Island and economics, finance and mathematics at St. Peter’s University in New Jersey, Ceceilia wants to improve opportunities for young working professionals as well as those who are looking for work with wages that make it affordable to live in New York City.
“The greatest problem in New York City is unemployment. It’s over 7 percent, and that’s unacceptable,” Ceceilia said. “We’re losing the best college graduates because of lack of employment and low wages.”
As mayor, Ceceilia would like to offer better services to job seekers, such as help with writing resumes and job counseling. On the business side, she would like to offer tax incentives to businesses that aggressively hire local high school and college graduates and to help small, start-up businesses in the New York metropolitan area.
To nurture a top-notch workforce, Ceceilia would make it a priority to improve New York City’s schools. “We need smaller classes, and teachers who are committed to their profession,” she said. “Training in successful teaching methods is important, as well as accountability. A point system could be put in place. In this way, teachers would be rewarded for their achievements and progress demonstrated by their participation in professional development workshops and conferences, good performance results on a knowledge-based test, and positive evaluations from their administrators, students’ parents and students, and their students’ success in the classroom.”
As a former adjunct professor at the City University of New York’s (CUNY) Baruch College and Medgar Evers College, Ceceilia knows the strengths and weaknesses of the CUNY system firsthand. “I’ve found the students at CUNY schools to be highly motivated, and tuition remains affordable compared to other colleges. On the minus side, instructors are sometimes overworked and some students find it hard to get help when they are struggling academically. Hiring teacher assistants might be a solution to these problems.”
Ceceilia believes that a strong public school system is needed to keep New York as a great city, filled with opportunities for young people. She believes the Mayor should have direct control over schools, with oversight over the Board of Education.
The local and national political voice and agenda has been fraught with partisan gridlock, lacking in critical timely results, often silencing and negating the real issues affecting “We the People”. Ceceilia Berkowitz, a 34-year old single professional, is a refreshing NYC mayoral candidate that believes in listening and acting on everyday concerns that individual New Yorkers in the trenches deal with daily. She’s real, a resident of Manhattan, and wants to get the job done – for the people!
The wavering economy is often at the focal forefront of individuals and businesses alike, with financial stability and consistency a coveted goal. Berkowitz has a bachelor’s degree in finance and business/management from the Ivy League Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and an MBA in accounting from Rutgers University in Newark, New Jersey, for which she was awarded a highly competitive academic and leadership scholarship. Berkowitz is well qualified to bring future economic strategies and fresh financial concepts into mayoral play, benefitting the economic potential for young and seasoned professionals, small businesses, and startups.
Berkowitz presently teaches marketing at C.W. Post College on Long Island and economics, finance and mathematics at St. Peter’s University in New Jersey, and Hunter College in New York City. She wants to be mayor because she has a great love of New York, and only desires the best for the diverse people and communities that makes New York the extraordinary place that it is globally!
Berkowitz provided the following inside candid look on how she envisions New York City if elected the next mayor.
What is your inspiration and motivation to run for mayor of NYC?
I was inspired and intrigued by the position for NYC Mayor 2013 by Mayor Bloomberg himself. As I told him and his daughter Georgina at the After Party for the Inner Circle Show (unofficially the New York City equivalent of the White House Correspondent’s dinner, performed by radio and TV journalists and the Mayor’s office for charity). I became good friends with Mayor Bloomberg, while teaching classes as a university professor, and attended quite a few fundraising events at his residence while networking with senators, mayors, and other elected officials. I’m fully motivated for this position since it will allow me to use existing skills and knowledge from prior education, professional, and networking experiences to form a large inclusive team which can work to continue the best policies of the Bloomberg Administration, while adding some original and unique ideas of my own! I’m committed to reaching out and seeking feedback from citizens, residents, and interested parties to improve and move New York City forward and upward.
Share your stance on the real issues that will shape your mayoral campaign.
I want to include many New Yorkers and businesses, work with them to achieve success in the city, create good jobs to help the city prosper, keep illegal guns of the streets, reduce crime, and improve transportation. As a finance professor, I will use my knowledge and expertise to better balance the city budget and improve personal income for each New Yorker, so they will bring home more money alleviating the financial stress and pressure many New Yorkers often feel. I’m committed to inclusion and therefore will have much diversity, which insures we have an interconnected strategy that includes all New Yorkers. It’s simple, if the city brings in business and prospers – people and communities do!
I wholeheartedly believe in good citizen service (customer service), by improving 311 phone call hotline responses and what the city offers residents and visitors will only add to citizens having an active voice and contribution. I want to further publicize the 311 App, and attempt to better respond to email message via the nyc.gov website, and also respond with remarks and questions via social media. Not only will my team respond but also take needed action when possible to improve the lives of New Yorkers.
How would you bring new jobs and businesses to the NYC area?
My team will bring jobs and businesses to the New York area, and keeping businesses and employees from fleeing the city. One way would be to consider tax breaks to businesses to encourage them to succeed and stay in New York City, the way Governor Cuomo recently proposed in all of New York State. I would also be committed to offering job training and personalized job searching assistance, which would attempt to work with individuals to better search and apply for more job opportunities within the community. I think it could also be important to survey many businesses and employees to find out what they need in particular to help them succeed more in New York City, and I would work to provide incentive for businesses to create good, new and expansive jobs in New York. By keeping crime off the streets, improving public schools, and improving New York City in general, the residence will also choose to stay, live and work in the city and all boroughs which should help businesses and the economy prosper. I’m committed to supporting an increased minimum wage and paid sick days for employees, which allows workers to feel treated fairly and contributes to a positive workplace environment while helping businesses thriving in New York.
Education has been a main focal point for the Bloomberg administration, how would you build on or change the educational system in NYC?
I support mayoral control over NYC Public Schools. I think mayoral control is necessary. If there are problems with the school system, a separate Board of Election may ignore this, but mayoral control would allow parents, students, and others to bring up any issues that need to be addressed with the public schools that can get policies fixed so students can succeed, and parents can spend their time focusing on living better and other daily family and professional needs. I know that students and parents have the right to a top public school education in a large city, and I am committed to working with teachers, parents, and the administration to improve education quality, practicality, and outcomes. I think these factors should be used to evaluation teaching performance, in a forgiving and encouraging carrot vs. stick based point system. Other ways can include attendance in teaching training workshops and a content knowledge test of teachers given annually. I think Principals can do unannounced observations of teachers, but the preferred method should be to announce this. I have experience being part of the PSC, AFT, and other unions in NJ and NYC and working with existing contracts.
What is your ultimate vision for NYC?
My ultimate vision for NYC is to have a city with low crime, healthy and growing employment opportunities, back-up job opportunities for professionals, thriving businesses and firms, good and affordable housing as well as luxury housing so that the American dream can be realized in the city.
I want to put programs in place to help the poor and inner city children improve their education and lives, budget cuts shouldn’t burden those who already live with less and are struggling. Being an educator, I’m dedicated to improving the lives of children and the next generations of New Yorkers.
I want to enhance the efforts concerning Hurricane Sandy relief and the environment, finding a way to protect the shore lines and communities from future damaging storms. As a highly populated demographic, we must find practical and sustainable alternatives to future hurricane threats – now it has become a matter of livelihood.
I also envision a city with highly functioning transportation system and several practical options to travel to work, school, or appointments. I’m also interested in improving the coordination between New York City and all the suburbs in the Greater New York City area. NYC should support its suburbs, and contribute to improving the greater NYC area as a cohesive thriving metropolis.
Cecelia Berkowitz brings a new, untainted, and ambitious vision to the New York City mayoral race that focuses primarily on “We the People”, and isn’t that exactly what’s needed on a local and national level these days!
For more information on Ceceilia Berkowitz and how to contact her directly, join her campaign, or volunteer, please visit the campaign team website at: http://www.ceceiliaberkowitz.com.