PS 150 Staff Supports Proposed Move

A Department of Education proposal to move Tribeca's PS 150 to a new facility in Chelsea has resulted in a groundswell of resistance from parents in the school [1]. The school's staff (all but one) feels differently about the plan and recently the staff sent a letter to parents expressing its reasons for supporting the move. Below is a copy of that letter, sent to the Trib as a letter to the editor.

To the Editor:

Several weeks ago we learned of the possible resiting of P.S. 150. Since then, we have reflected on this idea as educators, teaching professionals and community members.  We have thoughtfully considered what is best for our students and how we can fully support their academic and social emotional growth.  With the recent implementation of the Common Core standards, the new Special Education reforms and our students’ social emotional development in mind, we support resiting P.S. 150 to an environment that can provide the best possible resources and an opportunity to foster student and educator development.

As the landscape of public education continues to evolve, the demands of the Common Core standards require a greater emphasis on academic rigor. The resiting of PS 150 will provide an extraordinary opportunity for students and teachers. While we recognize that the “one class per grade” model has had its benefits and contributed to the tight-knit sense of community at school, we also recognize the tremendous potential of having multiple classes per grade. The opportunity to collaborate with other teachers on the same grade level allows each educator to deepen the understanding of his or her practice. We encourage and foster our students to learn from one another in their community. As educators, we hold ourselves to equally high standards of professionalism, and would like to grow and develop in a way that is just not possible given the current site of the school.

Special Education is a service, not a location. The Special Education reform mandates all schools have the curricular, instructional and scheduling flexibility needed to meet the diverse needs of students with disabilities with accountable outcomes. In our current model, this reform poses significant challenges. While many children currently receive services at risk and with IEPs, growing to three classes on a grade would allow us to provide the best possible support to all children. In the past, some children have been sent to other schools due to our inability to provide the full range of mandated services. With the new Special Education reform and in a larger facility, we will be better able to support our students’ diverse learning needs.

P.S 150 has been “one class per grade” for the past 10 years. In the last decade we have seen a decline in diversity of our population and a change in the zoning for our school. For the past 10 years we have worked hard as a staff to manage the limitations of the “one class per grade” model. We have had significant triumphs but we have noticed that there are social and emotional implications for the children being together for so many years. The children’s ability to socialize, compromise, empathize and become independent are clearly affected. Unfortunately despite our best efforts, we have seen children face social challenges.  This affects their ability to reach their potential academically, socially and emotionally. Regrouping children in classes each school year encourages children to make new friends and enables them to have a crucial fresh start. While there are children who flourish here and we have many success stories within this model, the possibility of expanding addresses the children who have struggled. We see this change as an opportunity for all children in our school to succeed and reach their highest potential.

Many of us have worked in the TriBeCa area for many years, and have strong emotional ties to its tight-knit neighborhood.  However, we also appreciate that the Department of Education recognizes our strengths and would like to cultivate those by providing us with the opportunity to grow, both in size and as educators.  

A school’s community is comprised of the shared educational experiences, values and goals of its children, families and staff.  We will take this essence with us wherever we go.  No matter the physical location that houses our community, we will continue to focus on the well-being, growth, and success of the children we know and love.

PS 150 Staff
(18 of a total staff of 19 agreed to sign.)