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Angry New York parents have lashed out at Mayor Bill de Blasio, saying his so-called reopening of schools is a “farce” and a failure.
Many complain that serious staffing shortages have created bizarre scenarios where kids sit at desks to watch a teacher broadcast the lessons to their laptops from a nearby room.
Others say their kids are lucky if they attend school five days a month.
“It’s a farce,” said Kate Cassidy, a mother of two kids in Manhattan’s District 2.
“There is zero live in-person teaching at my school,” she said. “None. To call this a reopening is ridiculous.”
A mom at MS 167 in Manhattan said: “These schools are not reopened. And they know that.”
Others stressed that the limited time their kids have in school is continually threatened and disrupted by school closures, which occur if two students or staffers test positive for COVID-19. On any given day, hundreds of city schools are closed for up to two weeks because of the protocol.
De Blasio has repeatedly suggested that the rule might change given the vaccine and improved COVID-19 numbers — but parents say they’re tired of waiting.
The city first reopened elementary schools in late December, and middle schools reopened last month. High schools are slated to reopen Monday.
Social-distancing requirements have severely limited class sizes and forced principals to use staggered schedules. Kids are expected to wear masks throughout the day.
Roughly 70 percent of kids in the nation’s largest school system are still on a remote-only format.
De Blasio has heralded the NYC model as the “gold standard,” but Cassidy said his triumphant portrayal of “reopened” classrooms was false.
“It’s like he’s being intentionally obtuse about the whole thing,” Cassidy said, adding that her kids average about five days in school a month.
“It’s infuriating.”
Parents believe staff shortages could be helped by allowing vaccinated teachers back to schools, especially since they were given priority for the shot.
Teachers’ union boss Michael Mulgrew said on WNYC Thursday that he wasn’t ready to rework the COVID rules.
“We can’t just say — because they are an inconvenience — we don’t want them,” he said. “And then we make a mistake.”
Other parents urged caution in a fuller reopening.
Gians, a parent at PS 92 in Flatbush who wouldn’t give his last name, said: “I don’t think it’s safe right now. I’m not sure kids are gonna want to wear their mask at all hours of the day, that’s not very fun.”
The DOE said Thursday that it was reevaluating several key reopening policies.
“There are more New York City students in classrooms than any other city in America, and all of our in-person students are in classes with qualified educators and caring adults,” said spokesman Nathaniel Styer.
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