PS 207 shows need for school safety reform

We expect a lot out of schools these days. Not only do they have to provide quality education to students; they are expected to offer enriching after-school activities, an amount of social services and a meaningful sense of community. While parents, policy makers and others debate the best ways to pursue these goals, one criterion that is non-negotiable is student safety.

Sadly, one local school appears to be failing in this respect. Parents of young children at P.S. 207, which serves only kindergarteners through second-grade students, say the Godwin Terrace school is the site of severe bullying, sexual harassment and administrative stonewalling.

Parents’ accounts, reported in an ongoing Press series, comprise a catalog of horrors. One mother said her second-grade son has been so badly bullied since kindergarten that he has come home with a concussion, bruises and torn clothing. She says the P.S. 207 administration long thwarted her efforts to get the boy transferred to a different school. Since her story appeared in The Press, the administration has shown signs of finally facilitating the transfer, but that is an unfair burden on the student and potentially leaves other cases unresolved.

One father was so fed up with seeking help from P.S. 207 after his daughter told him of sexual harassment by two classmates, he ultimately decided to pull her from the institution and home school her.

Many other parents say it is nearly impossible to communicate with their school, citing a phone system that doesn’t work and a principal who avoids meeting with them.

Simply removing the students who may have suffered the most is an unacceptable solution to the problems at P.S. 207. The DOE must take immediate steps to restore safety at the institution. It should start with a thorough examination of parents’ and students’ complaints and a speedy investigation of the administration. If need be, the principal and any other culpable staff must go.

The situation at P.S. 207 raises troubling questions about the state of public schools as a whole.