Op-Ed Letters to the Editor
NY students need greater
access to social workers
City Council Speaker Corey Johnson and a constituent.
BY COREY JOHNSON
Poverty. Housing instability. Food insecurity.
Bullying. Gang violence. Complicated
family dynamics. Imagine battling
with these stressors while trying to focus on
your algebra or chemistry assignments. All of
these issues can have a traumatic effect on students,
and we must recognize and address that
trauma if we expect them to focus in school.
Part of making that a reality is ensuring that
every NYC student has access to school staff
who can provide the necessary social and emotional
support they need.
Students are bombarded with confl icting
ideas on social media on a daily basis, and
they are also grappling with ever increasing
everyday societal pressures. All of this can and
does spill over into a student’s school life, with
adverse consequences that can include absenteeism,
failing grades and student-to-student
confl ict, among others.
Teachers do an amazing job juggling all
these different concerns, but doing so often
takes away time from instruction. Teachers
need support from other professionals who are
experts in addressing these challenges.
Students need access to social workers. Social
workers are pivotal to creating a healthy
learning environment. Research shows that social
workers, guidance counselors and school
psychologists are benefi cial to students’ social
and emotional health, as well as their academic
outcomes. The comprehensive services that social
workers provide can address many barriers
to student learning. And, currently, too many
schools don’t have a social worker or too few
social workers.
Social workers provide critically important
services directly to students and sometimes
PHOTO COURTESY OF JOHNSON’S OFFICE
to teachers and staff. They help address many
of the out-of-school needs that can hinder a
student’s learning. They help bridge the gap
between school, home and community for students.
They work to prevent school violence,
improve school climate, provide early intervention
for students and assist teachers with better
classroom management.
But these professionals do more than create
healthier and happier students. In some cases,
they make the difference between life and
death.
This is what happened to me.
As a teen dealing with depression and feeling
scared about coming out, a guidance counselor
helped me sort through my feelings and gave
me the confi dence to talk to my football team.
I’m not sure what would have happened if
that guidance counselor had said, ‘I don’t have
time to talk to you.’
I was lucky, but so many are not. Suicide
rates are too high, and students are suffering.
They need support.
This year, the Council heard teachers, staff
and students loud and clear: our schools need
more social workers.
So we fought for and secured $29.7 million
to support 269 full-time social workers in
schools, up from 200 last year. This includes
100 Bridging the Gap social workers in schools
with the highest numbers of students experiencing
homelessness. But our school system
serves 1.1 million students, and they all would
benefi t from having social workers.
An investment in our children’s futures is
an investment in the future of our city. We are
heading in the right direction, but we absolutely
must do more.
Corey Johnson is the Speaker of the New
York City Council.
COMMERCIAL
RENT BILL
STINKS
City Council Speaker Corey
Johnson said many times our
small businesses face a crisis.
Why then does he stall for over
one year to make changes in
the Small Business Jobs Act
and bring it to a vote and end
the crisis? Why does he fast
track many bills touted to help
small businesses when none
will save a single business?
Is this new bill on commercial
rent stabilization a better
solution to stop the closings
and save small businesses than
the Jobs Act? No!
In fact, it gives no rights to
small business owners and is
an insult to every desperate
owner who faces being forced
to close when their leases expire.
The business owners and
the public are entitled to the
truth on the future of their
small businesses and jobs.
The truth is, the new bill
was written by the real estate
lobby to keep the status quo
for landlords. The truth is,
Johnson will never bring the
Jobs Act up for a vote.
TheVillager.com member Save
Our Jobs
REMEMBERING
EVELIO
Evelio Alvarez was a dear
friend for 50 years. We shared
the same fl oor at 168 West 4th
St. H
is mother Angelina took
loving care of our baby with
the help of her sister, Aida, and
we saw the love and sensitivity
with which Evelio took care of
his mother and aunt.
We had to leave Greenwich
Village and its wonderful community,
but our friendship
with Evelio never left us. We
communicated every couple of
months, and he always sent us
around Christmas time, a basket
of delicious pears, in memory
as he said “of his mother
who loved us so much.”
We will miss you Evelio! We
will visit you in the spring and
enjoy the blossoming cherry
trees and beautiful tulips that
you planted at the cemetery
around the plot that you will
now share with your mother.
Arlette and Larry Loomis
LIVE AND LET
LIVE
Regarding the couple caught
having an x-rated rush hour at
the Bowling Green station:
Are these the people we really
want the cops pursuing
as criminals? This is crazy.
There are more important true
crimes that they should be
devoting their resources on.
Can’t believe how this society
has become so prudish.
Charles Macedo
EXTRA!
EXTRA!
Local News, read all about it!
www.TheVillager.com
Schneps Media December 5, 2019 13
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