NEW YORK, NY March 04, 2008 —REPORTER: Mayor Bloomberg has had control of the school system for 5 years and Albany will soon consider whether his successor should keep that power.

Several councilmembers criticized the mayor for not reaching out to the community enough. That was one point that Chancellor Joel Klein was willing to give opponents, but he said the system is working very well on the whole.

Retired teacher Norman Scott called for change at yesterday's hearing. He said the practice of removing educators and replacing them with lawyers and business people is outrageous.

SCOTT: What would you think if Bloomberg suddenly called me up and said, "Hey Norm, I know you never dealt with money, but I'd like you to manage my hedge fund." This is basically what people are doing by turning the systems over to people who have never worked in the system.

REPORTER: Yesterday's hearing is just one of many discussions about mayoral control that are getting underway before the its set to expire or be renewed by Albany in 2009.