FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.queenscourier.com october 3, 2013 • THE QUEENS COURIER 3 A MATTER OF AP Cardozo students protest cuts to classes BY MELISSA CHAN [email protected] Scholars at Benjamin Cardozo High School are up in arms over an apparent $400,000 slash to programs cutting into the school’s Advanced Placement courses. “I think it’s ridiculous,” said Student Organization President Tom Dinegar. “We should not have to settle for less.” Students and local leaders said internal bookkeeping errors by the city’s Department of Education (DOE) caused the deep cuts to gym periods and double-period AP science and math classes at the Bayside school. “DOE made an error, and now thousands of students are left in the lurch in the middle of the school year,” said Councilmember Mark Weprin. “By cutting funds to the school, DOE is unfairly punishing the students for its own mistakes.” Nearly 300 students packed the athletic field on October 2 to protest the changes. They chanted behind the fence and waved signs that read “Save Our School.” “These are the classes that make Cardozo what it is,” Dinegar said. “It’s definitely going to affect grades on AP exams, and we’re not a failing school.” The change in course offerings was due to “an unforeseen decrease in projected student enrollment” of 15 students, according to the DOE and a letter Principal Gerald Martori sent to parents this week. Martori said second period classes in double periods “will be conducted in a blended learning model” and will be “devoted to Cardozo students rallied at the high school over recent changes to AP classes. student research, problem solving and portfolio development.” Without a teacher behind the helm, students say that essentially means a free period to study independently. But the rigorous collegelevel courses, they say, require backto back 45 minute instructions from a qualified teacher. “We’ll have less time to learn review material and have a hard time passing the test,” said junior Hannah Oh. “It’s already hard with two period classes.” Some gym classes were also decreased to two to three days a week, according to the letter. The THE COURIER/Photo by Melissa Chan changes went into effect this week. DOE spokesperson Marcus Liem said Cardozo will be able to maintain its AP courses. He also said there were no budget cuts to the 2014 school year and no enrollment error. “School budgets fluctuate annually based on the number of registered students,” he said. “We are working closely with Principal Martori to make sure that the school’s programming is aligned with their budget and continues to focus on providing rigorous courses to prepare our students for college and careers.” GROWING PAINS QUEENS SCHOOLS throughout the entire city school system, but “Queens high schools have OVERCROWDED been hit the worst,” the UFT said. Class sizes around the city in BY LIAM LA GUERRE grades 1 through 3 have now reached a 14-year high. Although [email protected] they have not reached the classroom size limit of 32 seats, first Queens schools are failing in at and second grade has grown to an least one subject-- classroom sizes. average of 24 seats per class, with Hillcrest High School in 25 in third grade. Jamaica ranked highest in the “It is time to take this issue seriously,” number of oversized classrooms, said Michael Mulgrew, UFT 400, and Bayside’s Benjamin president. “All our students, especially Cardozo High School follows our youngest children, desperately with 385, according to a recent need smaller class sizes.” United Federation of Teachers Recently Mayor Michael (UFT) survey. More than 230,000 Bloomberg announced that under students citywide spent some of his administration New York City the first few weeks back to school schools had improved outstandingly in crowded classes, the study on the academic side. found. About 6,313 classes were During his time in office many overcrowded, up almost 200 from schools were shuttered, but more last year, but more than 1,000 than new 650 schools were created. of those classes were found in Bloomberg said 22 of the top Queens high schools alone. Overcrowding is a problem 25 schools in the state are from New York City, and none were on that list before his administration. “After 12 years reforming our once-broken school system, it’s clear that our hard work has paid huge dividends for our students,” Bloomberg said on his weekly radio show. In fact, three Queens elementary schools, P.S. 46 in Oakland Gardens, P.S. 66 in Richmond Hill and P.S. 221 in Little Neck, were named to the prestigious national Blue Ribbon award for excellence in education on September 24. Despite the academic improvements, the UFT said children shouldn’t have to try to learn in overcrowded classrooms. “Twelve years of Michael Bloomberg, and hundreds of thousands of students start the school year in oversize classes,” Mulgrew said. “There is no excuse for letting students stay in an oversize class.” Photo Courtesy Paul Vallone Whitestone residents held a rally against rumors of a school in a vacant lot along 150th Street and 5th Avenue. School rumors met with rally BY ANGY ALTAMIRANO [email protected] Whitestone residents are upset they weren’t involved in the decision process after hearing rumors of a school coming to an abandoned six-acre lot in the heart of their community. After residents had seen city employees and School Construction Authority (SCA) surveyors measuring a vacant lot located along 150th Street and 5th Avenue, they began to ask questions and then heard of a potential school being proposed for the site. Upset by the lack of information, City Council District 19 candidate Paul Vallone gathered with community leaders and residents on Wednesday, October 2 to speak out against the SCA’s “unilateral site selection powers,” present them with other sites for the school, and let the SCA know the community wants to be involved. “It’s the process we are upset with,” said Vallone. “No one is going to tell you we don’t need a school. We need a school. It’s just the location that’s a problem.” Vallone said the lot would not be fit for a school because there are no major streets and no public transportation nearby. The lot is in the middle of a foreclosure action by OneWest Bank, which was granted legal permission to clean and maintain the abandoned vacant property last year after it stood neglected by owner Whitestone Jewels. Senator Tony Avella said he has spoken to the Department of Education and there is no official proposal to bring a school to that location. He has also let the DOE know the community does not want a school at the site. “I stand with the community to not use this site for the school, but the rally seems premature,” said Avella. “There’s no proposal. It’s all just rumor.” Both Vallone and Avella believe the site would serve better as an open park space where children could participate in recreational sports. According to DOE spokesperson David Pena, there has been no official decision made to place a school at the Whitestone site. “As we do throughout the city, we always take preliminary surveys of areas where we have identified a need for new school construction,” said Pena. “This is just one area in the city we are surveying. We go through a public process before there is any approval on a particular site.” The SCA did not respond as of press time.
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