There's a great NY Times article about the overcrowding at Richmond High School in Queens. The building was meant for 1,800 students, but 3,600 students attend the school. How is that possible? Well, there are 22 trailers "encased within chain-link fencing, occupy the school’s former yard, evoking the ambience of the Port Elizabeth container-ship terminal." Ha!
Given that Mayor Bloomberg keeps touting his success with the school system, it's interesting to hear about Richmond Hill. One of the reasons it's so crowded is the Department of Education's decision to open small schools and close failing ones, forcing Richmond Hill to accept the excess students. A dean and special education teacher who has been at Richmond Hill for 16 years, Brian Sutton, has the best quote:
“Who decides to treat people this way? You don’t build a school for 1,800 students and stick nearly 4,000 in it. Why? Who would want to do something like that to other human beings? On purpose.”
Actually, that's the best quote from a staffer. Here's one from a student:
When Christine Dayao entered Richmond Hill as a freshman in September 2005, she thought the 8:59 a.m. lunch period on her schedule had to be a misprint. “I was freaking out,” said Christine, 16, a junior. “My parents called up the school and said, ‘Is it normal for someone to have lunch that early?’ And they said, ‘At Richmond Hill, yeah.’ ”
To make it through her day, which ended just short of 3:30 p.m., Christine said she “drank a lot of water.” That way, her stomach at least felt full.
School staff and students blame the Mayor and Department of Education, which says that they hope smaller schools will help reduce the crowding. Last year, the Campaign for Fiscal Equality had suggestions on how some schools could reduce class size. And here's the city's preliminary report on class sizes and ways it says it will reduce class size.
Fun fact: Phil Rizzuto is an alum of Richmond High School.
