NEW YORK (AP) — A spokeswoman says New York City Schools Chancellor Cathie Black was making a joke when she suggested overcrowded schools could be solved with birth control.
Black made the controversial remark at a task force meeting on school overcrowding Thursday. Upon hearing estimates that Lower Manhattan would need an additional 1,000 elementary seats by 2015, Black said birth control "would really help us."
Her spokeswoman, Natalie Ravitz, says Black takes the problem of school overcrowding seriously. She says Black regrets that her "off-handed joke" left a different impression.
Black is a former executive at Hearst Magazines and USA Today. Mayor Michael Bloomberg angered some parents by selecting Black for the post because she had no public school or teaching experience.
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