Bed-Stuy Has Too Many Charter Schools, Local Education Council Says
BEDFORD-STUYVESANT — A Brooklyn education council is concerned that too many charter schools are teaching children in the district.
The Community Education Council for District 16 worries that if additional charter schools make their way into Bedford-Stuyvesant, the neighborhood will reach a “tipping point” of having more students in charter schools than those in traditional public schools.
In a letter to the Department of Education’s Panel for Educational Policy, CEC 16 members said the area has 44 percent of its kindergarten through eighth-grade students enrolled in charter schools.
The concerns come as a new, 450-seat Success Academy is proposed to open in the district in the fall, according to the group.
As the panel and state review the application for a Success Academy to be co-located with P.S. 25 on Lafayette Avenue near Marcus Garvey Boulevard, along with future charter applications, the CEC is asking them to consider the impact on the future of traditional public school education in central Brooklyn.
“Not every child thrives in a charter school environment and therefore we must work to preserve and improve traditional school options in our community,” the letter reads.
“Additionally, please understand that District 16 is in the midst of significant transition due to shifting demographics and increasing charter school placements at this time could hinder the good work of improving enrollment at traditional public schools that is now underway.”
Current enrollment in traditional public K-8 schools is at 5,098, according to the CEC. Charter enrollment is at 3,923.
As of December 2015, there were eight charter schools in the district, state data shows.
With parents creating their own group to seek ways to improve education in the district and the continued rallying from elected officials and community members fora gifted and talented program, residents have long called attention to the state of education in the area.
The district recently received a new Interim Acting Community Superintendent afterformer Superintendent Evelyn Santiago stepped down at the end of 2015.
The city has also proposed several co-locations for district schools, citing low enrollment.
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