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Parents at CEC District 28 say class-size funding did not produce promised classes; council to follow up
Summary
Parents at CEC District 28 said class-size funding did not produce new classes at some schools, leaving kindergarten and early grades overcrowded and prompting calls for an immediate district review.
Parents at the Community Education Council District 28 meeting on Oct. 9 told council members they are seeing a gap between class-size funding commitments and what families are experiencing in classrooms.
"We was told that the class we had applied for the class size law. We got the class size law, and we had 6 positions…then kindergarten wound up being packed through capacity," Toshiba Williams, a parent and SLT member, said during public comment, describing classrooms with more than 20 students and a lack of additional sections the school had expected.
Another commenter, former council member Simone Thornbat, asked whether reports that art and music programs were cut at two local schools were accurate and urged the council to investigate. "That was not the plan of the class size committee," she said, asking for the council and district to check whether programs had been reduced to free up staffing or funding for class-size compliance.
Council members instructed parents to provide school names and details to the council email so staff and leadership could investigate. Recording secretary Chantal Chambers and Superintendent Dr. Blake were both referenced as district contacts; Blake said earlier in the meeting that the district would share follow-up data and work with schools to target supports.
The council moved the public-comment section earlier in the agenda by motion and heard several in-person comments. Afterward the UFT representative said the union had begun discussions with the DOE about the class-size funding application process and emphasized that implementation details were still being negotiated.
Council members said they would follow up with principals and DOE staff to determine whether newly allocated positions were used as intended, whether some additions were replacements for departing teachers, and whether program changes had been implemented as a means of complying with class-size rules. Parents were asked to submit the specific schools and details by email so the council could escalate the matter to district staff where appropriate.
"Please send that to our email, and we could address that as soon as tomorrow," President Quentin Mezzetin said, after a parent described shifts between grade placements and perceived loss of classes.
