As state politicians debate the extension of mayoral control over New York City public schools, Schools Chancellor David Banks has made no secret of his feelings about the school boards that pre-date mayoral control.

“I saw, I was a part of systems that were just rife with corruption,” he said Thursday.

But now, he is also sharply criticizing proposals to reform mayoral control, dismissing them as politics. The proposals would change the Panel for Educational Policy so City Hall would no longer appoint the majority of its members.

“You’re trying to do the right thing for kids, but every single vote now has to be negotiated. That’s politics. I do not think that would be good for the school system, I certainly did not sign up for that,” Banks said. “I have no interest in serving as chancellor in a system where you don’t have the authority to make real decisions. I have no interest in that whatsoever. I want to be very, very clear about that.”

Banks took questions from reporters for more than an hour — something he said he plans to do more often to address hot-button issues, like reports of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia in schools.

The city launched new trainings this week to help superintendents and principals address those issues. But Banks said that while there are real challenges, some media coverage has been irresponsible.

“We have to be very careful when we are dubbing schools as wildly anti-Semitic or wildly Islamophobic, like these schools are out of control. The kids feel everything that is said about their schools in ways that you probably don’t even appreciate,” Banks said.

The school system is also facing the expiration of about $1 billion in federal stimulus funding that’s been used to pay for things like hundreds of social workers and more special education pre-K seats.

“I’m not prepared here to tell you even today just yet what final decisions will be, because we are still engaged in a fight. The City Council is allies with us in fighting and calling for the state to put more funding in,” Banks said.

Officials also addressed a funding shortfall that will end drama classes earlier than planned at the Professional Performing Arts School in Manhattan.

The classes are taught during the school day by an outside partner, which told parents the school hit them with a 20% budget cut. But the education department said there is no cut — and that the partner program asked mid-year for more money that wasn’t available. They said students will still get drama instruction.

“We have great teachers there at the schools who can deliver that service, who have been working with the partner over a number of years so there is a great plan in place,” Gary Beidleman, the superintendent for Manhattan high schools, said.