Dear Parents and Guardians: I am writing to discuss some of the practical aspects of the reorganization of the public school system that support our city-wide Children First reform measures. I know that, while there is widespread agreement that change is
At the heart of our education reforms is the guiding vision that we must focus on each individual school in order to raise student achievement across the city. We are well aware that parents do not send their children to a school district or a school system — they send their children to a school.
The reorganization we are putting in place is designed to improve the education that your child receives at the school he or she is attending today. I know that some parents have been concerned that the reorganization will affect which school their child attends. This is not the case. The reorganization does not have any effect on the current zoning for schools and does not require any child to change schools.
Some of you have also raised questions about your access to information and parent services, including registration of your children, under the new system. You, as parents and guardians, are a critical part of the success of our schools and we are working to further engage you in the education of your children. A core element of our reforms is a system-wide effort to improve your access to the school system so that your concerns and inquiries are effectively addressed and you feel welcomed in your children’s schools. We are working to create parent-friendly schools that respect and welcome your vital participation in educating your child.
Beginning in September, each school in the city will have a parent coordinator who will be available on a full-time basis to address your concerns and inquiries and to assist you in becoming more involved in your children’s schools. Parent coordinators will be selected by principals with input from Parent Associations and parent members of School Leadership Teams. Our goal is to resolve as many parent issues as possible at the school level where staff are best aware of the needs of individual children and the school community. We will also continue to provide registration services at every school.
In addition, we are establishing regional Learning Support Centers, located in each of the 10 Instructional Learning Divisions throughout the city, which will each have a Parent Support Office providing parent services. Each Parent Support Office will be staffed by a team of full-time Parent Support Officers that will support and supplement the work of the school-based Parent Coordinators to involve all parents and guardians in their children’s schools and to address concerns. You will be able to go to any of the Parent Support Offices in the city to address concerns or obtain information about school instruction, transportation, registration, safety, security, facilities and other school matters.
The new Parent Support Offices will be open and prepared to address your needs by this summer. In addition to workday hours, the offices will be open in the evenings twice a week and on one weekend day so that you can obtain services at times convenient to you. The Learning Support Centers that will house the Parent Support Offices will be located in 10 main offices and three satellite offices at the following addresses:
Instructional Leadership Division 1
1 Fordham Plaza, the Bronx
Instructional Leadership Division 2
1230 Zerega Avenue, the Bronx
Instructional Leadership Division 3
30-48 Linden Place, Queens
90-27 Sutphin Boulevard, Queens
Instructional Leadership Division 4
28-11 Queens Plaza North, Queens
Instructional Leadership Division 5
82-01 Rockaway Boulevard, Queens
1655 St. Mark’s Avenue, Brooklyn
Instructional Leadership Division 6
5619 Flatlands Avenue, Brooklyn
Instructional Leadership Division 7
415 89th Street, Brooklyn
715 Ocean Terrace, Staten Island
Instructional Leadership Division 8
131 Livingston Street, Brooklyn
Instructional Leadership Division 9
333 Seventh Avenue, Manhattan
Instructional Leadership Division 10
4360 Broadway, Manhattan
To ensure that our Parent Coordinators and Parent Support Officers have the skills and experience needed to effectively assist and involve parents and guardians, the Department of Education has launched a Parent Academy to provide training, programs and outreach support. The Academy also offers programs to parents and parent organizations to increase opportunities for parents to be involved in our schools.
In September, the new city-wide approach to teaching reading, writing and math will be in place. Math and reading coaches will be assigned to each school to assist in introducing the new curriculum. By September, we will also have completed our overall
reorganization so that our school system will focus squarely on improving teaching and learning in the classrooms and on raising the level of student achievement in all the city’s schools.
Under the new structure, each school in the city will be clustered with a group of 10 to 12 schools that will be supported and guided by an experienced Local Instructional Supervisor, chosen from among the best educators in the city. Every group of schools will belong to one of the 10 Instructional Leadership Divisions across the city. Our Instructional Divisions will be led by 10 Regional Superintendents who, together, will function as the senior instructional management team for the school system and report directly to Deputy Chancellor for Teaching and Learning Diana Lam.
To support this new instructional structure, we are streamlining the current district and administrative offices into the 10 new Learning Support Centers I have already described. Through this consolidation, we will eliminate unnecessary bureaucracy, provide more efficient delivery of services to our schools and students, and maximize the resources available for our schools and classrooms. I am also pleased that by using our administrative office space more efficiently, we are able to convert many district and administrative offices into much needed new classrooms.
I look forward to continuing to have your input on the important reform measures we are putting in place. Since last October, members of my senior staff and I have conducted a series of open parent meetings in communities throughout the city — and we are continuing to conduct parent meetings as we go forward. Many thousands of you have already participated in these meetings and I encourage you to keep participating and to stay involved. You may also find it useful to visit the Department of Education’s Children First Web site at www.nycenet.edu where we are continually posting new information to help you stay informed.
I will continue to write to you about the progress of our reform efforts. With our new leadership team, the hard work of our dedicated principals and teachers, and your participation as a full partner in our efforts, we will raise the level of achievement in all our schools and provide our children with the excellent education they need and deserve.
Sincerely,
— Chancellor Joel I. Klein
