Stringer unveils detailed plan to safely reopen schools in September

New York City Comptroller’s plan for reopening schools includes a major staff increase and smaller cohorts of students all wearing masks. Eagle file photo by Jonathan Sperling

By David Brand 

City Comptroller Scott Stringer issued a new report Tuesday detailing the various steps that schools, staff members and students must take for New York City to safely reopen classrooms in the fall.

The plan, titled “Strong Schools for All: A Plan Forward for New York City,” calls on the Department of Education to make masks mandatory, enforce social distancing, establish small cohorts of students sharing classrooms, hire on-site nurses for every school and administer daily temperature checks for all building visitors.

“It’s imperative that the DOE act with urgency to provide a strategic roadmap to reopen city schools,” said Stringer, a candidate for mayor. “If we aren’t smart and prepared for a robust upcoming school year, our students will suffer — especially lower-income students of color who are already facing severe challenges — and our economic recovery will be severely hampered.”

“Without school there can be no real return to work for so many of our families,” he added.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said last week that schools are on track to open for the fall semester, but Gov. Andrew Cuomo countered that the decision is his alone to make. The uncertainty has left families in limbo about if and when students will return to classrooms.

Public schools closed on March 16 and education moved online on March 23. 

To pay for his plan, Stringer said the city would need “robust” funding from the federal government. Stringer has proposed frequent testing and contract tracing for students and staff, hiring new staff members through a CUNY pipeline and employing “enhanced” cleaning protocols.

The cost of implementing the plan will offset the economic impact of improper or inadequate action, however, Stringer said. Parents unable to work, for example, will have a dire affect on individual families and the city economy, he said.

“We can’t let down our guard on the quality of our city’s educational system at this moment — and we can’t afford to make mistakes with our children’s futures,” he said.