UFT: Tweed's policies not helping homeless students

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UFT Vice President Karen Alford testifies while John Khani, assistant director for political affairs for the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators, looks on.

As the number of homeless children attending New York City schools grows, UFT Vice President for Elementary Schools Karen Alford told a joint hearing of the City Council’s Education, General Welfare and Youth Services committees on Oct. 18 that “some of this administration’s policies are working at cross purposes to its stated goals” of helping these children.

The corrective, at a minimum, Alford said, is “intensive intervention delivered seamlessly across all agencies, with accountability residing at City Hall.”

Without the proper support, she said, homeless children risk failing in school.

“Our schools are anchors in the communities they serve,” she said. “This becomes even truer for children destabilized by homelessness and poverty.”

Alford argued that the Department of Education’s emphasis on accountability measures and progress reports “doesn’t address these children’s needs, while budget cuts often eliminate the very programs and supports that are most critical for their success in school.” The layoff of 700 school aides, health aides, parent coordinators, family assistants and others, she said, was a case in point.

“It is not enough to have data pinpointing high absenteeism rates, free lunch eligibility and low performance,” Alford testified. “We need to fix what the data identifies.”

So what works? Alford cited the example of Cincinnati, with a student population with high needs and high poverty. In 2002, she said, all Cincinnati schools became community learning centers.

“Its leaders, educators and community partners have crafted a model that seamlessly aligns instruction with the delivery of health and social services at the point of need — where the students are,” she said. “Schools must engage support organizations to meet students’ needs.”

In Cincinnati schools, Alford noted, community partners supply mental health services, primary and dental health care, after-school programs, tutoring and college guidance, mentoring, parent engagement, and adult education.

Alford’s full remarks are available here.