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Chancellor Walcott Lashes Back At Mayoral Candidates Over Education Policies

NEW YORK (AP) -- The head of New York City's public schools is lashing back at mayoral candidates who say they would change Mayor Michael Bloomberg's education policies if elected this November.

Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott said Saturday that the policies championed by several candidates to succeed Bloomberg would ``hurt children.''

Five Democratic candidates plus independent Adolfo Carrion addressed a United Federation of Teachers forum on May 11.

Some of the candidates said that if elected they would not let new charter schools share space with traditional public schools as they do now. Such a change would make it difficult to open charter schools.

Walcott said opponents of Bloomberg's policies want to put ``the brakes on choice.''

He spoke to nearly 2,000 school administrators meeting in Brooklyn.

(Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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