By Bob Harris
The American Jewish Congress convened a panel at Queens Borough Hall last month to discuss the teacher shortage problem, but the panel didn’t offer many reasons, or solutions, why teachers don’t stay in New York City. The problem is that in the next five years about 55,000 licensed teachers will retire.
A few civic leaders attended the meeting as well as several educators, community board members and people who are candidates for public office.
Dr. Arnold Raisner, former superintendent of School District 28, was the moderator. He is on the board of directors of the West Cunningham Park Civic Association, naturally on the Education Committee.
Dr. Angelo Gimondo, current superintendent of School District 30, who retired as a social studies teacher 10 years ago, said straight off that in order to keep good teachers, you must pay higher salaries, build more classrooms to provide smaller classes, give the teachers recognition, and provide parking.
Gimondo described the parking lots found at suburban schools and how his staff can’t find places to park in Astoria and Long Island City. He bemoaned the fact that city officials will not designate the areas around schools for teacher parking during the school day.
None of the panelists decried classes in closets or in the auditorium, or the terrible overcrowding in the halls when the classes change, or the dingy look in some schools, or the fact that teachers often eat in classrooms and they can’t socialize with colleagues during lunch because lunchrooms are now classrooms, or that their workrooms are often plain dreary. No one described the peeling paint, cracked walls, broken or leaky windows in some classrooms. There was no mention that in some neighborhoods, there are drug users or pushers near schools or criminal activities or dilapidated housing or garbage on the street or crack vials or smells. How can you keep teachers or supervisors with these conditions?
Dr. Philip M. Anderson, dean of the School of Education at Queens College, a panelist, said that the college produces 1,000 teachers a year — that’s great, but how many will stay for even three years with these conditions? And I did not even talk about the emotional and social baggage some children bring with them to school.
William Thompson Jr., president of the Board of Education, was to join the panel, but had to attend a meeting dealing with Gov. Pataki’s opposition to the court decision mandating that the city receive its fair share of state education money.
Former Superintendent of the Brooklyn high schools, Joyce Coppen, now with the Chancellor’s Center of Recruitment and Professional Development, told the audience that the second floor of the Board of Education was set up to plan the recruitment of teachers.
Coppen proudly described the new Fellows program, offering people a chance to make a mid-career change and use their skills to go into teaching. Last year there were 325 Fellows and this year, so far, there are 81. Officials hope to recruit 2, 000 more by June. Of course, this is nowhere near the 55,000 we will need in the next five years but it is something — they are trying, but unless they fix all the problems cited above, these teachers, too, will burn out in a few years and leave, if they stay even that long. The board is even recruiting in Europe, the Caribbean, all over the world, but the same thing will inevitably happen.
I must stress that in spite of all the problems I described, the schools in most neighborhoods basically do succeed and most students do learn, do achieve, do graduate and go on to a fulfilling life. I will repeat what I wrote in previous columns: At graduation time hundreds of students, in the big high schools, receive innumerable certificates, plaques, medals and scholarships for their accomplishments.
This has to be kept in mind when constructively criticizing the school system.
