Parents to Rally Against Plan for Charter School to Join P.S. 9, M.S. 571

Parents are planning to rally tonight against a Department of Education , the home of P.S. 9 and M.S. 571.

The proposal is part of a , which the Department of Education says is underperforming. For several years the three schools would share the space, with M.S. 571 closing entirely by the fall of 2013.

A hearing on the proposed closure of M.S. 571 and the proposal to bring in Brooklyn East Collegiate will take place at 6 p.m. tonight at 80 Underhill Ave. Parents against the plan are planning to rally inside the school's auditorium (due to the cold) at 5 p.m.

Parents planning the rally say bringing a charter school to the building will limit enrollment at P.S. 9, while more and more parents are interested in sending their children there.

They also say putting a third school in the building will restrict P.S. 9 students' access to shared facilities including the library, gym, auditorium, cafeteria and playground.

Finally, organizers argue that Brooklyn East Collegiate won't be a good fit for either P.S. 9's gifted and talented or its special needs students when they graduate.

 The parents suggest that instead of bringing in a charter school for grades 6 through 8, P.S. 9 should be allowed to expand through 8th grade.

Officials from Brooklyn East Collegiate Charter School and the Department of Education have not yet returned phone calls seeking comment, but earlier this month Laura Lee McGovern, chief operating officer of the collegiate network, said Prospect Heights could use another middle school such as Brooklyn East, which caters to "underserved students who need high quality college prep classes.”