East Harlem —
(Page 4 of 4)

District leadership teams are scheduled to meet in communities where schools will close. The public can observe these meetings, but there will be no opportunity for direct input or individual parent participation. According to DOE spokeswoman Melody Meyer, the meetings will be working sessions to explore the kinds of schools the community needs, and to solicit proposals and ideas. But developing a new school takes time, says David Bloomfield, a member of the Citywide Council on High Schools and education professor at Brooklyn College. He fears the DOE will move forward with schools it has “on the shelf” that they can slot into communities as space opens.

News Topics
The Economy
Justice
Education
Housing and Development
Government
Author
Helen Zelon
Helen Zelon
About | RSS
Once again, parents and local leaders wonder if their voice counts in shaping the city’s schools. “The DOE is reactive,” says Bronx Councilwoman Foster. “They engage the parents after, when things don’t work. The thoughts and responses of parents and students not only are not respected, but they are not acknowledged, not listened to.”

Jane Hirschmann, director of Time Out from Testing, sounds similarly bleak. “Children are data, and teachers are data-entry technicians,” Hirschmann testified, about the education department's attitude. The DOE's actions in the hearing room and beyond “tell you what the DOE thinks of parents and accountability.”

- Helen Zelon