BP Adams Demands Action On Behalf Of 77,000 Young Scholars Denied Access To Education, Including Those In Shelters And Temporary Housing

Press release from the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President:

October 18 2020

New York, NY – Today, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams joined New York City Council Education Committee Chair Mark Treyger, Council Member Ben Kallos, education advocates, parents, and students in front of Tweed Courthouse to demand sweeping changes on behalf of New York City Department of Education (DOE) students who have been left behind by the new blended and remote learning models.

At a City Council Education Committee hearing on Friday, representatives from the DOE revealed that 77,000 students still lacked learning devices such as tablets and computers, and thousands more are still struggling to fully participate in remote learning due to connectivity issues. Borough President Adams and other participants called for greater transparency from all relevant City agencies on the administration of virtual learning, and greater commitments from internet service providers (ISPs) to ensure every student can log on to their device, particularly those in shelters and temporary housing.

“The students we fail to educate today, we are more likely to incarcerate tomorrow. It is a disgrace that almost seven months into remote learning, there are still thousands of students waiting to get learning devices so they can participate in classes. This failure will only widen the achievement gap, which falls hardest on students of color and those with unstable living situations. We need transparency from the DOE, and we need greater buy-in from our internet service providers, which have been raking in record profits during this time and must give back to the community. Continued delay is unacceptable. It’s time for action,” said Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams.

“These are numbers that we know of. The number is likely higher since many immigrant families face barriers in obtaining devices and many kids are still using shared devices with their siblings. The only thing worse than 77,000 kids not having access to technology and the internet is knowingly starting the school year with this alarming data. This instructional loss is quickly shifting from temporary to generational. The City administration must immediately account for every child from every ZIP code having the technology, internet, and quality education they deserve and are constitutionally entitled to,” said Council Education Chair Mark Treyger.

“The pandemic has shined a light on racism at every level including at the deeply segregated Department of Education, where even the distribution of internet devices left Black and Brown children on the wrong side of the digital divide and this time unable to even learn,” said Council Member Ben Kallos. “Thank you to Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams for your leadership on this crucial issue. I support your bold plan and will not rest until every child has a device with internet access.”

As of October 9th, 52 percent of all DOE students were enrolled full-time in remote learning. Seventy percent of Asian, 50 percent of Black, 50 percent of Hispanic, and 39 percent of white students have opted for remote learning during this school year. More than 100,000 students enrolled in DOE schools live in shelters or unstable housing, many of them Black and Brown, and often lack access to Wi-Fi or other ways to connect for remote learning. DOE data unveiled at the City Council Education Committee hearing on Friday showed that 25 percent of City schools with majority Black and Brown student populations suffer a low attendance rate for remote learning, compared to three percent of non-majority Black and Brown schools. Borough President Adams sent a letter to the New York City Comptroller’s office last week urging them to conduct an audit into the DOE’s administration of remote learning.

At the press conference, Borough President Adams outlined the following steps to improve transparency and ensure students are getting the resources they need in a timely fashion:

• Demand clear daily communication from DOE to every student’s family with outstanding remote learning device requests, including up-to-date tracking on device delivery and coordination with the school to ensure each student is provided ample ability to catch up for missed classroom engagement.
• Require line-item transparency from all engaged City agencies, including DOE and the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), on COVID-19-era spending related to procurements of remote learning devices and capital investments to expand internet access to underserved residents.
• Call for major technology and internet providers to go further in community benefits, including free broadband and wireless service for all students in need, and declare intent to vote against any operating franchise renewal before the Franchise and Concession Review Committee (FCRC) without a firm timetable to close digital divide and commitment to greater assistance for families struggling to connect to remote learning, including those with students in temporary housing.
• Push the City to utilize its full purchasing power and renegotiate bulk remote learning device procurement for better taxpayer deal at below-retail price, as well as engage local MWBE-certified vendors in upcoming procurement effort.
• Immediately pass Intro 2058 and Intro 2014, bills in the City Council to expand reporting related to remote learning.

This press release was produced by the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President. The views expressed are the author's own.