QUEENS — An overcrowded Cambria Heights elementary school is getting a much-needed expansion, officials announced on Monday.
Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott was joined by city and school officials for a groundbreaking on Monday on an approximately 370-seat expansion to P.S. 176, a school that the Department of Education said is known for "its strong parent engagement, academic programming and support for English language learners and students with disabilities."
“This project is the latest investment we are making to our school facilities so that we can accommodate our students and help them succeed,” New York City Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott said in a statement.
P.S. 176 was at one point at 123 percent of its capacity, according to an enrollment report by the city's School Construction Authority.
The project, which is slated to be finished by 2016, is the latest part of the DOE's $11.3 billion capital plan, Walcott's office said.
On hand with Walcott at the groundbreaking were a number of local politicians, including local Assemblywoman Barbara M. Clark, who Walcott said was an advocate for the expansion.
“Today’s announcement to build an extension for P.S. 176 has been a battle I’ve waged for several years,” Clark said in a statement. “The real benefactors are the teachers and students."
