8 THE QUEENS COURIER • NOVEMBER 21, 2019 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Photo courtesy of Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Offi ce
Mayor Bill de Blasio participates in a town hall meeting with residents of Jamaica, Rochdale Village, Richmond Hill and South Ozone Park at August Martin High School.
Reps aren’t sold on new home for
Success Academy in South Jamaica
BY ANGELICA ACEVEDO
Mayor Bill de Blasio was met with several
questions from middle school-aged
kids about a permanent location for a
Success Academy middle school in southeast
Queens during Wednesday’s town
hall meeting at August Martin High
School.
“You promised the Success Academy a
middle school, why haven’t you given us
the space?” Grace Lee said.
De Blasio quickly answered Lee’s question
by saying that the Department of
Education has found a space for the
school. He turned to Karin Goldmark,
the DOE’s deputy chancellor, who said
that they have identifi ed a space that used
to be a school and can accommodate 500
students. Th e space is located at 125-18
Rockaway Blvd. in South Jamaica.
But some people in the crowd shouted
that the space “isn’t permanent” and that
it would only be available “for two years.”
Goldmark then said that the space is
“long-term.”
“So it is permanent,” de Blasio added.
A spokesperson for Success Academy
questioned whether the space is adequate
and said they will examine the school
next week.
“While there are many public school
buildings with space available which
would be far closer to our families, we
intend to examine this option in good
faith to see whether it can meet the needs
of our families,” Ann Powell, executive
vice president of Public Aff airs and
Communications at Success Academy,
told QNS.
Th e mayor’s offi ce, in turn, told QNS
that Success Academy is projected to
enroll approximately 200 students for the
fall, and they’re confi dent the space will
“meet the need for at least two years” as
they monitor enrollment.
Th ey added that the site has been vetted
by the DOE’s Division of School Planning
and Development.
Additionally, the mayor’s offi ce said that
state law requires that the city help pay rent
for charter schools when they lease private
space and are encouraging Success Academy
to move forward with the space “in order to
take advantage of rental assistance.”
But Success Academy’s families and
educators have been waiting for more
than two years for a permanent school.
In October, hundreds of fourth-grade
students, their parents and teachers held
a rally on the steps of City Hall in protest
of de Blasio’s delayed response in identifying
a permanent middle school location
in Southeast Queens.
And back in September, more than
4,000 parents, students and educators
rallied for a permanent school at Roy
Wilkins Park in St. Albans.
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