EAST HARLEM — A progressive elementary school that’s been asking the DOE for a middle school expansion for years may finally get its wish.
The Department of Education is proposing to add Central Park East II's middle school expansion to P.S. 108 at 1615 Madison Ave.
Parents and administrators from both schools met with the DOE to talk about the proposal, which would give CPE II a middle school for the 2015-16 school year.
This is the second round of expansion talk for CPE II, which tried to move to the Jackie Robinson Complex in 2013. Instead, the space was unexpectedly given to East Harlem Scholars Academy Charter School.
“I thought the meeting went well,” said CPE II principal Naomi Smith, noting a change in tone this time around. “It’s already better. The last time, the charter school was not very nice.”
During the meeting, parents and teachers from P.S. 108 asked about some of the logistics of the co-location, including whether they would lose any parking spots and how they would share spaces like the gymnasium and auditorium.
“I don’t want to give up something and not get something back,” said Angela Durpee, who has a niece at P.S. 108 and a daughter in a school that shares a building with two other schools. “It can be a mess. I feel like my kid is not getting what other kids are getting.”
The expansion plan would add between 150 and 180 students who would take up eight rooms at P.S. 108. One grade level will be added per year starting sixth grade during the 2015-2016 school year, according to the proposal.
Students at CPE II's elementary school would be given priority to attend the middle school, and then admission would open to students in District Four. The same admissions policy would exist at P.S. 108.
The Office of District Planning evaluated other sites for the co-location but settled on P.S. 108 because it has enough space. Even with the added students, the building would only be at 95 percent occupancy, said Kai Higgins of the district planning office.
“As you can imagine, space in Manhattan is very scarce,” Higgins said. “We believe there is enough room.”
CPE II’s elementary school is currently co-located with P.S. 171 at 19 E. 103rd St. and will remain there, according to the proposal.
Because space is so hard to come by in Manhattan, Smith said it is likely P.S. 108 will need new school space. She told parents and administrators that they know how to make sharing the building work and are open to using off-campus options, like Randall’s Island for students to play tennis.
“If you are going to have a neighbor, and you probably will, we will be your best neighbors,” the principal said.
CPE II has been trying to expand for several years now, and parents say there are no options in the district for public progressive schools.
Debbie Meyer, whose son is a fourth-grader at CPE II, said she doesn't know where she would send her son to middle school.
“There is nothing,” she said.
Meyer's son, who has dyslexia, has excelled with CPE II's experimental approach to education, Meyer explained. She worried that sending him to a more traditional school may get in the way of his progress.
Parents at P.S. 108 had concerns about the move but were generally open to the idea, especially if CPE II is willing to be a good neighbor.
There will be another public hearing at P.S. 108 January 23. The Panel for Educational Policy will vote on the proposal January 29.
