40 THE QUEENS COURIER • KIDS & EDUCATION • JUNE 29, 2017 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
kids & education
Photo courtesy of Councilman Daniel Dromm’s offi ce
The former Jackson Heights White Castle
headquarters will become an elementary school
BY ANGELA MATUA
amatua@qns.com / @AngelaMatua
A new school will soon rise on the former
Bayside school gets funds for new playground & other upgrades
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
A Bayside public school will see a
newly renovated playground and
much-needed electrical upgrades in the
near future, a local lawmaker told Th e
Courier.
According to Councilman Paul
Vallone, a total of $1.1 million in funding
has been allotted to P.S. 41, located
at 214-43 35th Ave., to completely
revamp their playground. Th e funds
were allocated by the Councilman,
Queens Borough President Melinda
Katz, the Department of Environmental
Protection (DEP) and the Trust for
Public Land.
Th e school administration will soon
work with the School Construction
Authority (SCA) to determine a design
and a timeline for the upcoming project.
Th e elementary school, which recently
celebrated its 100th anniversary, also
won funding for a full electrical upgrade
to meet safety standards and support
modern technology in this year’s round
of participatory budget voting by the
community. A total of $950,000 was
allocated by Vallone, plus an additional
$1.05 million by the SCA, fully funding
the project.
With a combined allocation of $3 million,
this is the most a single school in
the district has ever received in one year,
according to Vallone’s offi ce.
School principal Joseph Ferrara said
both projects will “dramatically infl uence”
the lives of present and future students.
“On behalf of the entire P.S. 41 community,
I want to thank Councilman
Vallone for his support of P.S. 41,”
Ferrara said. “Quite frankly, the words
‘Th ank you’ hardly seem grand enough
to express just how thankful we are. I
know Council member Vallone worked
very hard to bring various entities
together to make this happen.”
“For 100 years, P.S. 41 has been a
beacon of educational excellence in
the Bayside community,” Vallone said.
“Th is blue ribbon school has thrived due
to its incredible teachers and administrators,
its motivated and intelligent students
and heavily involved parents. Th is
funding allocation is a huge win for all of
Bayside and will ensure that the school is
ready for another 100 years and we’re all
looking forward to it.”
Photos courtesy of Councilman Paul Vallone’s offi ce
Vallone (right) stands alongside P.S. 41 principal Joseph Ferrara at the school’s 100th anniversary
celebration.
regional offi ces of White Castle in
Jackson Heights.
A groundbreaking was held on June 23
for Q398, a 476-seat school in Jackson
Heights that will cater to pre-K through
fi ft h grade students. It will be constructed
at the corner of 34th Avenue and 69th
Street. Th e fi ve-story, 65,000-square-foot
building will include a rooft op garden,
art and music classrooms, a library and
more.
It will also include four pre-K classrooms,
three kindergarten classrooms, 15
classrooms for fi rst- through fi ft h-graders
and two special education classrooms. It
is scheduled to open in September 2019.
“Th is new school is great news for our
community,” said Councilman Daniel
Dromm. “District 30 is one of the most
overcrowded school districts in the city.
Overcrowding in neighborhood schools
will be alleviated once Q398 is constructed.
Th at means higher quality arts and
physical education for our students. I am
proud of this accomplishment and will
continue to fi ght school overcrowding
tooth and nail.”
School District 30, which encompasses
Astoria, East Elmhurst, Jackson
Heights, Long Island City, Sunnyside and
Woodside, has struggled to add more
seats to a district that is consistently
expanding. Th e DOE plans to add 2,700
seats to School District 30 in the next fi ve
years.
Q398 will also include an early childhood
playground and a playground
for older students. Purcell Architects
designed the building and “drew inspiration
from Jackson Heights‘ renowned
architecture.”
Th is school will provide an enriching
learning environment for our students,”
said Dr. Philip A. Composto, the superintendent
of District 30. “Like all of our
other District 30 schools, having this new
building will support the creativity of
teachers and staff as they design innovative
and personalized learning experiences
for each student. I am very excited
about this endeavor and I thank you all
again for making this possible.”
A 476-seat school will open in Jackson Heights in September 2019.