CUNY faculty and staff say repair problems at their schools aren’t isolated — they’re happening across the City University of New York system.
“We’ve kind of taken all the steps that we can think of taking to try and address this collaboratively with the college, and it has not yielded results,” Megan Behrent, a CUNY staff member at City Tech, said.
What You Need To Know
In March, CUNY officials testified to the City Council that about one-third of campus buildings are in good repair
CUNY is requesting about $600 million a year in capital funding to bring more buildings into a state of good repair by 2028
The school year ending on a Monday will create a one-day final week for students
CUNY told NY1 it has invested $850 million over the past two years and plans to invest another $400 million this year, saying health and safety is a top priority
Several dozen staff members rallied outside Brooklyn Borough Hall on Wednesday, joined by elected leaders, to call out what they described as unsafe conditions following years of underfunding and delayed repairs.
In March, CUNY officials testified to the City Council that about one-third of campus buildings are in good repair. With roughly 300 buildings, most of which are more than 50 years old, that leaves a large share in need of upgrades.
“There’s never been a time when our facilities have been up to snuff,” CUNY Faculty Union President James Davis said.
Across campuses at City Tech, faculty point to mold and water damage. At Kingsborough, elevators are frequently out of service. At Medgar Evers, there are ongoing flooding and air quality concerns. And at Brooklyn College, leaks and HVAC issues disrupt classes and labs.
“We’re just at a point where we’ve realized we can’t sustain this anymore,” CUNY staff member at Brooklyn College Julie Hegner said.
There’s an agreement on one point: funding. CUNY is requesting about $600 million a year in capital funding to bring more buildings into a state of good repair by 2028.
“It was shocking to see how bad or in disrepair some of these buildings are,” Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso said.
Reynoso says he plans to press CUNY leadership on why repairs are taking so long and figure out how to close the gap.
“The responsibility to get this done lies with CUNY,” Reynoso said.
CUNY told NY1 it has invested $850 million over the past two years and plans to invest another $400 million this year, saying health and safety is a top priority.