Local students may soon be raising their hands to ask teachers, “What school do I go to?” Two schools in Harlem—P.S. 241 and P.S. 194—and another in Brooklyn, P.S. 150, have become embroiled in tense debate over the fates of their crowded hallways as traditional public schools, charters, or both.
On Thursday, the city’s Department of Education reversed its initial plan to close the schools after parents and other community members filed a lawsuit against the department for not involving the school boards of the affected communities in the decision-making process. At first, the DOE sought to replace the failing schools with charter schools, giving families in the neighborhood priority in admission to the charters and to other nearby public schools. But now, questions remain as to what’s next for these students, and what should determine their programs of education.
“The DOE violated state law in closing those schools without consulting the Community Education Council,” said Sarah Morgridge, executive assistant to City Councilman Robert Jackson—who represents Morningside Heights and chairs the education committee. “The councilmember is appalled by the lack of collaboration, by the lack of consultation, and the disregard for the structure that’s in place.”
On March 24, families of students at the three schools, as well as Randi Weingarten—president of the 200,000-member educator union United Federation of Teachers—filed their lawsuit against the DOE at the State Supreme Court of Manhattan for “violating state education law by making zoning changes that affect neighborhood schools without approval from Community Education Councils, effectively denying parents and children access to neighborhood schools without a voice in the process,” according to the New York Civil Liberties Union’s Web site. The NYCLU provided co-counsel on the case.
New York State Assemblyman Keith Wright, who represents Harlem, recently introduced a bill which would “require a one year notification prior to any closure, consolidation or phase-out of existing public schools,” he said in a press release.
Wright’s communications director, Ben Rosen, explained, “This legislation is a way to facilitate parents, community members, and elected officials getting their say on this and having a public debate and public discourse.” Rosen continued, “These are public school buildings, and they should be administered by the DOE.”
In contrast, Rosen said that the DOE has less oversight over charter schools, which are “also important, but maintaining and improving the quality of public schools is very important.”
The DOE still plans to phase out the three traditional public schools as they share space with charters that will eventually fill an increasing number of classrooms. But the traditional public schools will continue to accept new students next fall, though P.S. 241 and P.S. 150 will not take new classes of sixth graders.
Morgridge described the traditional public schools in controversy as “under-enrolled and failing,” leading parents to ask for the schools to be improved, but not closed.
“Why is the DOE’s job to house charter schools with small classes?” Morgridge asked of the proposal to shut down regular public schools entirely to replace them with charters. “Charters are using public resources that belong to the DOE and not to the state that’s chartering the schools. Don’t kids in public schools have first priority over kids who have chosen to go to charter schools?”
Yet a group associated with the Harlem Success Academy—a network of local charter schools—has now raised its voice against the DOE’s decision to keep the public schools open. These parents attest that the DOE for should have closed down the schools earlier, and they emphasize the importance of school choice that charters provide.
“I don’t think my son has choices,” wrote Melissa Anderson, a Harlem Success Academy parent whose son’s school zone is 241. She added in her testimony directed toward Mayor Michael Bloomberg, “At Harlem Success, at least I know my son will come home and mention colleges.”
Melissa Haley, who attended P.S. 194, wrote, “I live across the street from 194 and although it’s a zoned school and very convenient for me and my child I wouldn’t even try to put my child in there because the children are well behind.” In the past four years, P.S. 194 has had three different principals, according to Rosen.
“I think that all children deserve a good education and a right to go to school,” wrote Martinique Owen, a mother of a student zoned for P.S. 241.
Still, Rosen said, “How can you expect quality progress to come when there’s so much confusion, so much lack of direction?”
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