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DEMS SPRING COP QUIZ

Senate Democrats are demanding a sweeping probe of the NYPD’s role in city public schools as a condition for extending Mayor Bloomberg’s control of education, according to proposed amendments unveiled yesterday.

One of the revisions calls for the creation of a state commission on public safety in city schools — triggered by complaints from state senators and students that some high schools are so heavily guarded, they resemble prisons.

At many high schools, students must pass through metal detectors to be checked for weapons.

Other amendments, if approved, would create a $3.2 million citywide parent- and student-training center — or individual borough training centers — and give all moms and dads the opportunity to vote in parent-council elections.

Another proposal would create a panel to monitor arts and music programs.

The Senate’s school-safety probe proposal — introduced by Senate President Malcolm Smith (D-Queens) and Sen. Bill Perkins (D-Manhattan), and backed by Democratic Conference leader John Sampson (D-Brooklyn) — was a surprising shot at City Hall.

After taking office, Bloomberg — with support from the teachers union — flooded troubled schools with additional police and school safety officers to restore order. Violent crime in schools has plummeted since 2001.

But critics say the police presence has been taken too far.

The commission, among other things, would investigate “the impact of law-enforcement presence and activities on student rights and emotional welfare.”

It would consist of 12 members — with appointees named by the chancellor, the police commissioner, the public advocate, unions representing teachers, principals and police, the City Council speaker, and the five borough presidents.

The commission would issue its findings in January 2011.

The New York Civil Liberties Union applauded the proposal.

The city receives 1,200 complaints a year against NYPD school safety officers, yet “does no independent assessment of the impact of police practices on our children,” said NYCLU Director Donna Lieberman.

She complained that there are more NYPD staffers than guidance counselors in the school system.

The debate over mayoral school control will be the first test for the faction-driven Senate since Democrats regained control following a failed GOP coup last month. Democrats hold a razor-thin, 32-30 edge.

The Assembly passed a bill last month — endorsed by Bloomberg — that preserves mayoral control with minor changes. And there are enough votes in the Senate to approve that measure.

But Sampson and other Democrats want to put their imprint, as well, on school-governance legislation. Senate sources said the amendments were discussed with City Hall officials yesterday.

carl.campanile@nypost.com