32 THE QUEENS COURIER • KIDS & EDUCATION • JULY 26, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
kids & education
Borough president welcomes team of summer interns
Th is summer, 27 college and high
school students are gaining valuable
experience in public service as interns in
the offi ce of Borough President Melinda
Katz.
Th e borough president personally welcomed
this summer’s intern class during
their July 9 orientation. Th e unpaid
interns will work on projects and issues
involving education, economic development,
land use, constituent services,
veterans’ aff airs and other areas. Th ey
will also help organize and staff events,
including the “Katz Concert Series” slate
of free summer concerts.
Th ose who wish to apply for future
internship opportunities should contact
Joseph Nocerino, Borough President
Katz’s Internship Coordinator, at 718-
286-2668 or at jnocerino@queensbp.org.
Street safety changes coming to roads around Flushing school
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
Local leaders are celebrating the arrival
of safety measures around a Flushing
school.
Th e city’s Department of Transportation
(DOT) converted 159th Street and 160th
Street, near P.S. 163, into one-way venues
on July 17. Th e change follows years of
advocacy from school and civic leaders,
according to local elected offi cials.
Th e school is located in the Queensboro Hill
section of the neighborhood on 59th Avenue;
more than 600 students in pre-K through fi ft h
grade attend the school each year.
Community members and school leaders
with concerns about traffi c conditions
in the area contacted Assemblywoman
Nily Rozic, state Senator Toby Ann
Stavisky and Councilman Peter Koo, who
asked DOT to do a study. Th e city agency
then determined that the school was eligible
for street conversions.
Nicole Garcia, DOT Queens Borough
Commissioner, said the changes will
“simplify vehicular movements around
the school and make pedestrian crossings
safer and more predictable.”
School principal Francine Marsaggi
welcomed the changes, which she said
will allow for safer pick-up and drop-off
times at the school.
“I am thrilled that the street changes
surrounding my building are taking eff ect
and will be in place before the start of the
school year,” school principal Francine
Marsaggi said. “Th is is a long time coming
and will help ease the dangerous traffi
c conditions that our community contends
with on a daily basis.”
“Th e P.S. 163 Flushing Heights community
has gone for far too long without
additional measures to make streets safer
for local families and children,” Rozic
said. “I am glad that the City Department
of Transportation has implemented these
changes and am confi dent that they
will signifi cantly ease congestion in the
Queensboro Hill area.”
Photo courtesy of Queens Borough President’s offi ce
Photo via Google Maps
PS 163 in Flushing
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