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Julian’s Story
Julian is a 3-year-old preschooler with delays in his language skills, but the DOE failed to provide recommended services.
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02.13.2015 | Gothamist | A children’s advocacy group has found that large numbers of NYC charter schools are violating state and federal law in their disciplinary practices, handing out excessive suspensions and expulsions—often without due process—to children as young as five. Through Freedom of...
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02.13.2015 | WNYC SchoolBook | Bernard Dufresne, a staff attorney with Advocates for Children of New York, said he also hoped to eventually eliminate suspensions for insubordination. However, he called the proposed new code a "good start." He also noted the appointment of a new School Climate...
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02.17.2015 | Chalkbeat New York | On Tuesday, parents said that help was still sorely needed, telling stories of student report cards and progress reports not being sent home in a parent’s native language, fliers telling parents about their right to translation services mailed home in English, and...
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02.17.2015 | New York Daily News | Federal law grants immigrant public school parents a right to translation and immigration services. A city Department of Education policy requires language services in the nine most common languages other than English spoken by city parents — Arabic, Bengali,...
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02.12.2015 | WNYC SchoolBook | Advocates for Children of New York looked at the policies for 164 of the city's nearly 200 charter schools. Staff attorney Paulina Davis said 107, or two thirds, of those reviewed allowed children to be removed for any infraction, even if it's as minor as littering or...
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02.13.2015 | In response to Mayor Bill de Blasio’s announcement of a package of school discipline reform proposals, Kim Sweet, Executive Director of Advocates for Children of New York, issued the following statement: “We thank Mayor de Blasio for taking this important step forward on school...
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02.13.2015 | Capital New York | The Department of Education announced a series of long-awaited reforms to the school discipline code on Friday, including new policies aimed at lowering suspension rates, and new funding to support restorative justices practices and students in the criminal justice...
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02.13.2015 | Colorlines | New York City charter schools’ harsh school discipline policies violate city discipline standards and state law, researchers at the New York City group Advocates for Children (PDF) found. The new report, released Thursday, details a troubling narrative: families, who at...
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02.11.2015 | In response to New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito’s State of the City Address, Advocates for Children of New York issued the following statement: We are pleased that New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito highlighted school discipline reform as a...
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02.12.2015 | New York Times | Most of New York City’s charter schools have disciplinary codes that do not meet either state or federal requirements, according to a report by a children’s advocacy organization that is to be released on Thursday. The finding adds a new dimension to a long-running...
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Resource: Guide to Charter School DisciplineThis guide explains charter school discipline policy, what to do if your child has been suspended from a charter school, how to appeal a charter school's suspension decision, and your rights throughout the process. Includes information for families of students with disabilities.
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01.28.2015 | Epoch Times | Some 9,000 children six years old and younger are homeless in New York City, states a report by the New School’s Center for New York City Affairs, released Wednesday. The report points out homeless children would benefit the most from city-funded child care programs, but...
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01.22.2015 | Today, NYC Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña announced significant changes to the system of support and supervision for the City’s public schools. Kim Sweet, Executive Director of Advocates for Children of New York, said, “Re-structuring is never easy, but it very much needs to be...
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12.18.2014 | Chalkbeat New York | The state is also considering a policy change that would let students substitute a different exam for one of the five they must currently pass to graduate, and another that would let English learners appeal low scores on their English exams. Abja Midha, a project...
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12.17.2014 | As the year comes to a close, we want to take this moment to thank all of you for your partnership and support. We are truly privileged to devote our professional lives to work that has a profound impact on the futures of low-income children and families. The past year included...
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12.15.2014 | Chalkbeat New York | Advocates of Children of New York says the charter school sector’s compliance problems go well beyond a handful of schools. The nonprofit says it reviewed more than 150 charter school discipline policies and is “alarmed by the number of policies that fail to...
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11.20.2014 | SchoolBook | Bernard Dufresne, a staff attorney at Advocates for Children, said he thought the school missed an opportunity to encourage a conversation between the parties in a much more constructive setting. "Principals in many ways see a suspension as the first option," he said,...
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11.13.2014 | Chalkbeat New York | While there are dozens of programs able to serve thousands of high-school students who fall behind, fewer than 450 slots exist in programs for overage middle school students, according to a recent report by the nonprofit Advocates for Children... Ashley Grant, a...
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11.06.2014 | Chalkbeat New York | The matter is especially delicate at Boys and Girls, which was the subject of a class action lawsuit a decade ago alleging that the school warehoused troublesome students in the auditorium as a way to push them out. Brown’s claim—that he was pressured to transfer...