One closely held secret that the DOE and UFT don't like to share with the general public or even the employees is the number of ATRs in the ATR pool. However, thanks to a FOIL by Francesco Portelos and the ATR Alliance (ATRA), as of September 10th, 2014 the number is 1,890, excluding ATRs who were provisionally hired by that date and that is 90 more ATRs than the same date last year. That number is much higher than the UFT leadership claim of 1,600 in their September Executive Board meeting.
The ATR numbers include all teachers, guidance counselors, school physiologists, and secretaries. But does not include CSA members or ATRs who were provisionally hired. That means that under the so-called "progressive" Bill de Blasio administration, there\has been no real reduction in the ATR pool, despite the ATR buyout and pension incentive that should have seen a significant reduction of ATRs. Instead it actually increased! What a total failure by the DOE and UFT in their aim to drain the ATR pool!
The only way to reduce the ATR pool is to eliminate the "fair student funding", and to bring back preferred hiring that brings in "mutual consent" and requires principals to hire ATRs for their vacancies, no other method is acceptable.