Co-location; One Parent’s Suggestions

Not much good has been said of co-location’s (the sharing of one school building space between a charter and a public school). Many teachers, parents, students and politicians argue that the DOE’s decision to move in charter’s into public school space created a hostile environment between the cohabiting schools, resulted in unfair distribution of funding, and slacked in communicating the changes to the community, the public school and all parties affected. The overall arbitrary process to divvy up school space has met more scowls than smiling faces but Carol Boyd, a parent of two and parent leader of the NYC Coalition for Educational Justice, suggested that if the DOE was more inclusive, accountable and communicative maybe co-location wouldn’t look so bad. Although her “7 rules” by no means solves this complicated mess of co-location and school closings they seem like obvious do’s that the DOE have irresponsibly neglected to, well, do–like independent reviews of how co-location would affect the students, communication with the school and the community leaders that they are being reviewed for possible co-location, and building improvements or renovation to be done throughout the school building (not just for the charter’s side)– instead of pushing in charter’s and “counseling-out” high-need students. For more one Boyd’s article click here.