Continued Requests for information about suspended high school students 355 Park Place ignored by DOE

At the Press Conference with Tish James last Thursday, August 2^nd, 23 neighbors gathered to further vent the frustration and indignation we feel that the Mayor’s agents at the Department of Education refuse to tell us concrete details of what is going on at 355 Park Place. Particularly galling with all the pressure on school workers for ‘accountability’ is our experience that education policy decisions are made in secret.

Through formal channels from the community – The Park Place Underhill Avenue Block Association (meeting continually for over 50 years), the Community Education Council of District 13 and the Education Committee of Community Board 8, we have expressed concerns about the capacity of the former Mount Prospect Laboratory to house a instructional programs for suspended high school students.

We want to know the ‘footprint’ of the building with dimensions of each room. We want to know how many young people will be assigned The focus of the press conference in front of 355 Park Place was that on-going campaign to provide us with information. Our city council member faithfully fulfills her role as our representative. Accountability runs in various directions. Who makes policy must be held responsible for the consequences. They are accountable to us.

After an hour on the street, a group of us spent another hour and a half in the basement of a neighboring church.

Three other themes emerged. We want to know about how instructional services will be offered to a rotating population of troubled teen-agers assigned to the two distinct Alternative Learning Centers. They do not begin and end together but each arrives after a superintendent’s hearing to spend the number of days of their exclusion from their regularly assigned high school. We want to know about how healing programs such as conflict resolution, restorative justice and mediation will be implemented so that they can return to their assigned schools better equipped to avoid the problems which got them into trouble. 

Many questions arose that are addressed in the NYC Civil Liberties reports (particularly the most recent, Education Interrupted (2011).

Still many questions need to be explored in order to put our struggle into the context of what has been going on in other schools in District 13 and Prospect Heights, particularly the co-housing in PS 9 of a charter middle school when all of the organizations in the neighborhood asked that the successful public elementary school expand to meet the needs of local families.  Another question is the consequences of what might be increased police presence and high tech security in the facility. We want to know how other communities are dealing with these intrusions and whether/how we can join with the campaign called Dignity in Schools. A public forum in October was suggested. 

We discussed the reality that the DOE has moved materials in and construction is going on. As they are not paying attention to our opposition, how can we meet these young people on Park Place and Underhill Avenue come September.

How will we relate to them? Fears for the little children in the playground behind the building, the elementary school kids and also local teen-agers are particularly acute as there is no recreational space inside nor outside for the ACL students nor is there a kitchen and cafeteria where they can relax and have a hot meal. If they are enclosed for 6 hours, how will they behave on being released?

I characterize this situation as a set-up for the young people and for the neighbors. “Predictable consequences are a good measure of intent.”  Chomsky.  That’s why I am spending time thinking about how to avoid friction that can lead to conflict that can cause pain to the young people and to us even though we don’t want this siting in this facility and have said so again and again.   

Our next meeting is scheduled for the evening of Thursday, August 16^th.  For information email ppuaba@gmail.com with 355 Park Place on the subject line and someone will get back to you.

Previous posts on this blog tell the story of this struggle from the beginning.  Find the NYCLU reports on-line in preparation for participating in the discussions.