Lower East Side parents are up-in-arms about the proposed expansion of the Girls Preparatory Charter School. The school is requesting more space to house a growing middle school population -- 50 5th-graders were turned away last year due to lack of space. Neighborhood parents worry that an expansion will exacerbate overcrowding issues in District 1, where many schools currently share buildings.

Last Wednesday, parents, students, and educators packed into PS 20 to discuss the Department of Education's plans for expanding Girls Prep, as reported by the new Manhattan local news site, dnainfo.com"You see how crowded and hot it is in here?" Marilyn Roberts, a PS 20 parent asked at the meeting of the district's Community Education Council. "That’s how our children are going to feel. [Expansion] is a short term solution and a long term disaster."

Girls Prep shares space with PS 188 and PS 94, a special education school for autistic kids. Expanding the school would affect other schools in the district as well, parents say.<!--more-->

The DOE proposed out three options:

  1. Move PS 94 out of the district, freeing up space
  2. Open the Girls Prep middle school in the building that currently houses Marta Valle Secondary School, the new and still-growing School for Global Leaders, and the Lower East Side Preparatory High School
  3. House Girls Prep middle school in the PS 20 building

Outgoing Lower East Side City Councilman Alan Gerson was in attendance. "This is no way to run a school system," he said. "We are not going to pit school against school, child against child."

The DOE is accepting community feedback on the proposals until Dec. 10. You can e-mail your comments to portfolio@schools.nyc.gov, fax to 212-374-5581, or send a letter to:

Debra Kurshan, Department of Education

52 Chambers Street

New York, NY, 10007

The tensions surrounding school utilization and charter school expansion exist in most of New York City's 32 school districts. To learn more about charter school expansion and space utilization in your district, visit the DOE's Charter Notifications site and attend your local Community Education Council meetings. All hearings are open to the public.

Ed Litvak of the Lower East Side's community news site, The Lo-Down, was on hand to capture the views of neighborhood parents.