Editorial/Opinion .... Pages 12,13 Education

Private school (for all) looks to fill gap left by public schools

By STEPHON JOHNSON

Amsterdam News Staff

Each journey begins with a single step. This journey begins on the corner of Water and Bridge Streets in Brooklyn.

The Art of Words Community School (or TAWCS) wants to provide a different outlet for education that children might not get elsewhere, especially for children of color.

Founder and Director Dr. Lisa Scott, a former teacher who’s worked in public school with marginalized children, wants to make learning fun and teach kids how to think critically and for themselves as well. Scott’s school teaches art and literature with its content directed toward social justice and community-based learning. The combination of integrating art and literature is missing in today’s public schools where the students are majority Black and Latinx. TAWCS looks to fill that gap. Scott wants to grab those students and the parents of kids from marginalized communities who are disillusioned about education and have given up on school as a concept.

“These children of color just, you know, I could just imagine that you feel you don’t feel valued, because you’re not meeting the objectives and you’re not meeting those milestones that have been set before you and so you don’t feel capable of doing that,” said Scott, while sitting in the lobby of the school. “So like what kind of future are we setting up for this vision? I said I just wanted to create a school that had a different narrative of their children.”

Scott and company have put their tuition on a sliding scale based on income, which makes it affordable to all.

“He’s afraid. He’s afraid of revealing himself, and he’s afraid of being vulnerable I think,” said Scott when speaking

Brooklyn's new school TAWCS (The Art of Words about one student. “And so Community School) held its first-ever, first day of I think that him being unschool on Sept. 8 comfortable is necessary. A little bit. But I think for him it’s uncomfortable because he can’t let it go.” She hopes to pull that creativity out of the child soon. She wants him to accept that he’s not alone. “You’re awkward. We’re all awkward!” said Scott. TAWCS is currently enrolling K-3, 6th grade and (Jessica Rosa photo) 9th grade students. Gary Li, a kindergarten and first grade teacher who’s spent time in public and charter schools, said that everyone learns differently, which makes a teacher’s style more important. “We’re not focusing so strongly on a curriculum that’s completely to the test,” said Li. “We’re focused on a personalized individual curriculum for each student. And because of that, we can really focus on their interests and cater to them, and then build on those strengths and work on building connections.” TAWCS uses the CLAP Method of educating kids. CLAP stands for Community, Literacy, Art and Projects. The school wants to combine the best of Waldorf-inspired curriculum with STEM.

“When they enter this space, they know that it’s a loving environment and their interests will be addressed and they come here for the therapeutic escape they need in order to continue to build on,” added Dr. Scott.

TAWCS sits on the corner of a gentrified DUMBO neighborhood, but don’t mistake this private school for something catering only to the new residents. This is a private institution for everyone and its barebones operation shows it. To be of the people, many entities must start with a few followers. TAWCS has more than a few and is looking to grow beyond its current location. Scott needs new people to buy into the concept. She believes they will. Especially when they see how she gets through to students.

“You know the different modalities that we use in the classroom, it’s like I want you to smell it, taste it, experience it, see if you get it,” Scott said. “Because subject matter competency is more important to me than anything else. I want you to be inspired by something—that doesn’t necessarily mean something that I would be interested in, but I want you to know something about everything.”

First day

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school year and the success of the Summer Rising program as reasons for the city not providing parents with a remote option.

The city’s guidelines for keeping schools COVID free include a combination of ventilation, cleaning, and other actions.

“I talked to kids that hadn’t been in school in a year and a half, and they’re ready, parents ready to see their kids go someplace else for a little while, and a lot of staff, a lot of teachers really excited to have kids back,” said de Blasio. “But, so far, we’re hearing really, really good things.”

De Blasio is full speed ahead for all parties coming back. Despite cries from the New York City Council to slow things down, the mayor believes that his agenda will win in the end. But with the Delta variant of the COVID-19 virus, found in a few New Yorkers who tested positive for the virus, his actions were deemed unacceptable by New York Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and Education Committee Chairman Mark Treyger during a hearing two weeks ago.

But the city could measure its success by the numbers. According to Schools Chancellor Meisha Porter, those numbers weren’t ready yet.

“We had a ton of students showing up registering at schools yesterday, and so we don’t have a number because the number is rolling every single day, more students are registering, more students are showing up at schools, but as the mayor said, as soon as we get to the point where we have full attendance taken across our system, we’ll share those numbers,” Porter said to reporters.

When the city’s numbers finally arrived, there was a dip in attendance when compared to the first days of school in 2019 and 2018, the pre-COVID years. According to the New York City Department of Education, 82.4% of eligible students attended school on Monday. In 2019, the number was 90%. In 2018, the number was 89.5%.

De Blasio said the numbers weren’t bad under the circumstances and that he expects the numbers of registrations to rise in the next few weeks.

United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew said that educators played a large part in the opening of the school year, but he wasn’t available for a full comment by press time.

Last week, when the AmNews asked the DOE about the lack of a remote option, we were directed to the city’s guidelines that included vaccinations for all education employees, consistent school maintenance and options for immunocompromised public school students, and mandatory vaccinations for anyone participating in high contact Public School Athletics League (PSAL) sports that require people being up close.

But this week, New York State Supreme Court Judge Laurence signed a temporary restraining order request brought by the Municipal Labor Committee against vaccines for all city workers, which includes DOE employees. While the city said it would carry on in the meantime, some parents believe that a remote option would have helped a situation like this one.

Shalonda Curtis-Hackett, president of the New York State Congress of Parents and Teachers (PTA), said that denying families a remote option is a “death wish.”

“We decided to keep our children 2nd, 5th, 9th home until we get a remote option. Our decision was based on the inadequate response to parents like myself from Meisha Porter who claimed school would be safe,” said Curtis-Hackett, in an email. “Just looking at social media kids are not social distancing, masks are not being used properly and schools are overcrowded. At no fault to the schools as I believe administrators are doing the best they can with the directives, policy and facilities they have. It’s the mayor and chancellor who are rigid and have this air of toxic positivity that it’s safe and gaslight us even though we can see with our own two eyes it is not as safe as they want us to believe.”

Community Education Council’s Presidents’ Representative Tom Sheppard is not happy with the mayor, the schools commissioner and the city.

“Is this what we have been reduced to?” asked Sheppard. “Have we been reduced to a society where a mayor and a schools chancellor can completely ignore the concerns, anxiety, and fears of parents, educators, and administrators and impose their will on all of us because they can?

“What can I do to stop this reckless behavior before one of our children dies from this?”

Sheppard protested the school reopening by keeping his children home. Sitting with them on the steps of Tweed Courthouse in lower Manhattan with signs advocating for a remote option.

“I wanted them to understand for themselves what they are being forced back into,” said Sheppard.

Amid all of the hoopla, if one were to give the city a grade on Monday’s operations, what would it be?

“I would rate the city’s job C (Fair),” said New York Republican gubernatorial candidate Curtis Sliwa. “Unfortunately, things changed every other day. Communication did not sort that out for parents and students. And one of the biggest problems I saw was children and young adults fiddling with their masks.”

The AmNews reached out to New York Democratic mayoral candidate Eric Adams’ people for comment, but were waiting for one, that was promised, by press time.

U.S. Secretary of Education Dr. Miguel Cardona was more straightforward on social media.

“ A+,” Cardona said on Twitter. He elaborated with reporters on Monday.

“Enjoy the school year,” Cardona said during his visit to P.S. 121 in the Bronx, with Porter this week. “They did it right. And I know this is going to be an awesome year for New York, for everyone. And we have a special guest that wants to say, hello, Mayor. Come on over, special guest. Tony the Tiger’s ready to kick things off.”