04/12/2013 (press release: ceceilia0502) // New York, NY, USA // Ceceilia Berkowitz
Ceceilia Berkowitz, a 35 year old single professional, announces candidacy for NYC Mayor 2013.
A resident of Manhattan and MBA Professor, 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. She has an MBA and is a member of the Wharton Alumni Club of New York.
“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.”
Ceceilia provided the following inside 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 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 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.
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 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 is exceptionally and uniquely qualified, and brings a new vision to the NYC Mayoral Election.
