Long-awaited report on future control of NYC schools released — and it just calls for more studying

There’s more homework to do.

The state Education Department finally released a long-awaited report that had the power to sway control of New York City schools – but all it did was call for more studying.

State lawmakers had said they were waiting for the results of the hyped-up report to decide whether to extend mayoral control of Big Apple schools, but the nearly 300-page study released Tuesday made no official recommendations.

Instead, it called for a commission to consider any changes even as it skewered the existing structure of the city school system under a mayor-appointed chancellor and staff, which is often turned over whenever there is a leadership change in City Hall.

It isn’t clear how the report’s kicking the can down the road will affect Mayor Eric Adams in his  increasingly desperate bid to hold onto management of the schools as the power is set to expire this summer.

The report did note that speakers at public hearings had raised concerns that keeping authority “in the hands of a single elected official contributes to a lack of continuity in policies and programs.

“Programs that were started during the previous administration are not guaranteed to be continued, even if they are successful,” the report reads. “Lots of money, expertise and resources [are] lost during this process.”

It also says many “do not feel heard or included in the New York City public school system’s decision making processes” and that “decisions made at the mayoral level may not align with the day-to-day realities that we face in the classroom.”

Despite outlining the many issues raised by the parents and teachers, the $250,000 report didn’t address the elephant in the room: whether the Adams administration should continue its oversight of the system.

The report seeks “to convene a commission” to look at options.

A city Department of Education spokesperson said, “It is clear this report falls far short of the clear and decisive roadmap it was expected to be.”

“Extending mayoral accountability is about putting our children’s progress – not politics — front-and-center, and reverting from this system would be a significant step backwards for our city’s children,” DOE spokesperson Nathaniel Styler.

Adams attacked the report earlier in the day before it was even made public — claiming the people who spoke out in the numerous town halls were “professional parents” put in place to push an agenda against his administration.

The scathing report gives Albany lawmakers added leverage as the Adams administration must continue to beg to keep their power ahead of its June 30 expiration.

“It will be invaluable in legislative deliberations and decision-making as the June expiration of mayoral control approaches,” the state Senate’s leaders on education, state Sen. John Liu (D-Queens) and Sen. Shelley Mayer (D-Westchester) said in a joint statement.

Gov. Kathy Hochul tried, unsuccessfully, to score the Big Apple mayor a four-year extension on his control as part of the budget, but that was quickly shot down by state lawmakers.

Assembly Education Committee Chairman Michael Benedetto (D-Bronx), an ally of Adams, told The Post the findings came as no surprise.

“It doesn’t change my mind,” Benedetto said.

“We should keep what we have and hold someone accountable and that would be the mayor,” he said, citing the corruption with the old community school boards.

The United Federation of Teachers, a powerful union repping most Big Apple teachers, has been urging Albany to rein in the mayor’s powers. It provided a tepid response to the report Tuesday.

“Once the budget is done, we look forward to an in-depth discussion about adding more checks and balances to New York City’s system of mayoral control,” said Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers.

Additional reporting by Aneeta Bhole