We, the parent community of PS889, are writing to ask Governor Cuomo and the Mayor’s Office of NYC to keep our school open, while it continues to be closely monitored, as New York takes measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 in South Brooklyn. Our school, PS889, is located at 21 Hinckley Place, placed on the very edge of the “orange zone,” although we have not had any community spread, nor any cases of COVID in our school. Our neighborhood is below the 3% infection rate that was the threshold outlined at the beginning of the year that would trigger a closure. We are writing to ask both of your offices, why aren’t we following that plan now?
We are a small school, with a total of around 150 blended learners in grades PreK through 3rd. Our building is a new facility, with brand new HVAC systems, and ample space in our classrooms to accommodate social distancing. Every precaution is being taken according to the reopening guidelines. Our children, our principal and our teachers worked tirelessly and parents and children have been practicing safe behavior to ensure our school can remain open.
The Mayor’s testing of public schools in the red zone area (over 1100 tests) found only 2 positive cases. Public schools are not contributing to the current spread of COVID. We would like our school to be re-evaluated for opening, based on hard data, not arbitrary drastic decisions that do not take the science into account. The closure of 889 is not going to protect children from COVID and is only harmful to our school community.
These are formative developmental years for our children and the constant change is impacting their development and hurting them emotionally. Not to mention, remote schooling for such young children requires full attention from a parent and gets in the way of us performing our jobs and providing an income to support our family.
When schools reopened, NYC developed a plan for classrooms or schools to shut down based on testing and data. That plan is not being followed and children and families are being punished. We urge you to reconsider the blanket closure of schools in these areas and move forward based on testing and science as was initially agreed.
Signed,
The Parents of PS889
Updates
October 7, 2020
The massive surge of support proves that people are finally waking up to the Mayor and the Governor’s complete disregard for the hard data. We are building enough pressure to force them to explain why they are ignoring our school while the science says we are safe.
17 Comments
In addition to the notes in the petition our school zone and student is almost entirely in the yellow zone even though the physics location of the school is in the orange zone
My daughter attends PS 889 for third grade and we have elected for blended learning because we feel that the school has taken all essential precautions to ensure her safety. We are saddened by the news of this closure and feel that it is an unnecessary burden on our students, staff, and families. Please reconsider this decision.
(Andrew Bauer) One more comment: I neglected to mention the detrimental impact on the teachers and administrators at PS889. We are a founding family with a son in 3rd Grade. His team of teachers is just incredible, and the work they've done to keep the kids grounded is a world of difference from last spring when we were all trying to figure out remote learning. PS889 is a wonderful school, and Ms Anderson and the staff deserve much more from the city and the state. They *did* the hard work this summer: what was the city doing?
Parents and children are being asked to completely alter schedules on a moment's notice without any adherence to the protocols we discussed this summer. It's infuriating that a summer of planning has yielded a slap dash approach that parents and children will ultimately pay for. And how can we hope to decrease cases if suddenly kids break the pods they just established? Do we really think we're going to keep kids at home because the city and state can't get on the same page?
In addition, there are 50 students in our school who do not yet have devices because of DOE incompetence. These students are going to have a great deal of difficulty learning remotely.
Some Governors are so intent on keeping their states locked down tight, and it has nothing to do with keeping their citizens safe from the coronavirus pandemic, it’s for political reasons. It's because they're terrified that a rebounding economy will Increase President Trump’s chances for a reelection success on November 3 and so they choose to punish their citizens by not opening their states. Think before you vote: President Trump’s continued economic recovery as evidence of his administration's success or Joe Biden a Career politician, ALL Talk No Action, Who has Nothing to Show for 47 years in Washington, D.C., it’s a “no brainer”.
P.S 889 earned our respect and I really appreciate the think tank staff who came up with wonderful ideas with high safety for the to reopen the school. We all love our kids and their safety and are confident that P.S 889 staff is taking all the precautions for the kids and staff.
Sign Petition
We never post to your account. Social sign-in is used only to verify your signature.
Add a comment?
Your signature will be added via . Tell others why you're signing — it's optional.
By signing, you accept our Terms and Privacy Policy and agree to occasional emails about petitions. Unsubscribe anytime.
Share this petition
Share this petition to help it reach more people.
Your share link
We, the parent community of PS889, are writing to ask Governor Cuomo and the Mayor’s Office of NYC to keep our school open, while it continues to be closely monitored, as New York takes measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 in South Brooklyn. Our school, PS889, is located at 21 Hinckley Place, placed on the very edge of the “orange zone,” although we have not had any community spread, nor any cases of COVID in our school. Our neighborhood is below the 3% infection rate that was the threshold outlined at the beginning of the year that would trigger a closure. We are writing to ask both of your offices, why aren’t we following that plan now?
We are a small school, with a total of around 150 blended learners in grades PreK through 3rd. Our building is a new facility, with brand new HVAC systems, and ample space in our classrooms to accommodate social distancing. Every precaution is being taken according to the reopening guidelines. Our children, our principal and our teachers worked tirelessly and parents and children have been practicing safe behavior to ensure our school can remain open.
The Mayor’s testing of public schools in the red zone area (over 1100 tests) found only 2 positive cases. Public schools are not contributing to the current spread of COVID. We would like our school to be re-evaluated for opening, based on hard data, not arbitrary drastic decisions that do not take the science into account. The closure of 889 is not going to protect children from COVID and is only harmful to our school community.
These are formative developmental years for our children and the constant change is impacting their development and hurting them emotionally. Not to mention, remote schooling for such young children requires full attention from a parent and gets in the way of us performing our jobs and providing an income to support our family.
When schools reopened, NYC developed a plan for classrooms or schools to shut down based on testing and data. That plan is not being followed and children and families are being punished. We urge you to reconsider the blanket closure of schools in these areas and move forward based on testing and science as was initially agreed.
Signed,
The Parents of PS889
Updates
October 7, 2020
The massive surge of support proves that people are finally waking up to the Mayor and the Governor’s complete disregard for the hard data. We are building enough pressure to force them to explain why they are ignoring our school while the science says we are safe.
17 Comments
Please reopen our school. We are 100% confident that Ms. Anderson and her staff are taking all possible measures to keep students and staff alike safe. While we would, of course, want the school to close in the event of an outbreak, the current closure is nonsensical. You are creating unnecessary stress for parents and children at an already overwhelming time. I am also a teacher (at another school) and I can say with confidence that Zoom sessions just can't compare to the connections and learning that happen when teachers in the same room as their students. Please reconsider your decision.
In addition to the notes in the petition our school zone and student is almost entirely in the yellow zone even though the physics location of the school is in the orange zone
My daughter attends PS 889 for third grade and we have elected for blended learning because we feel that the school has taken all essential precautions to ensure her safety. We are saddened by the news of this closure and feel that it is an unnecessary burden on our students, staff, and families. Please reconsider this decision.
(Andrew Bauer) One more comment: I neglected to mention the detrimental impact on the teachers and administrators at PS889. We are a founding family with a son in 3rd Grade. His team of teachers is just incredible, and the work they've done to keep the kids grounded is a world of difference from last spring when we were all trying to figure out remote learning. PS889 is a wonderful school, and Ms Anderson and the staff deserve much more from the city and the state. They *did* the hard work this summer: what was the city doing?
Parents and children are being asked to completely alter schedules on a moment's notice without any adherence to the protocols we discussed this summer. It's infuriating that a summer of planning has yielded a slap dash approach that parents and children will ultimately pay for. And how can we hope to decrease cases if suddenly kids break the pods they just established? Do we really think we're going to keep kids at home because the city and state can't get on the same page?
In addition, there are 50 students in our school who do not yet have devices because of DOE incompetence. These students are going to have a great deal of difficulty learning remotely.
Some Governors are so intent on keeping their states locked down tight, and it has nothing to do with keeping their citizens safe from the coronavirus pandemic, it’s for political reasons. It's because they're terrified that a rebounding economy will Increase President Trump’s chances for a reelection success on November 3 and so they choose to punish their citizens by not opening their states. Think before you vote: President Trump’s continued economic recovery as evidence of his administration's success or Joe Biden a Career politician, ALL Talk No Action, Who has Nothing to Show for 47 years in Washington, D.C., it’s a “no brainer”.
P.S 889 earned our respect and I really appreciate the think tank staff who came up with wonderful ideas with high safety for the to reopen the school. We all love our kids and their safety and are confident that P.S 889 staff is taking all the precautions for the kids and staff.
Help this petition grow
Share it with friends to help reach 100 signatures.
Sign Petition
We never post to your account. Social sign-in is used only to verify your signature.
Add a comment?
Your signature will be added via .
Tell others why you're signing — it's optional.
Signing with Google or Facebook verifies your signature instantly — no email needed.
By signing, you accept our Terms and Privacy Policy and agree to occasional emails about petitions. Unsubscribe anytime.
Share this petition
Share this petition to help it reach more people.
Your share link
Petitions like this
Other petitions you might want to support
Scan to share
Anyone who scans this can sign the petition.
Please reopen our school. We are 100% confident that Ms. Anderson and her staff are taking all possible measures to keep students and staff alike safe. While we would, of course, want the school to close in the event of an outbreak, the current closure is nonsensical. You are creating unnecessary stress for parents and children at an already overwhelming time. I am also a teacher (at another school) and I can say with confidence that Zoom sessions just can't compare to the connections and learning that happen when teachers in the same room as their students. Please reconsider your decision.