Feature Stories
Our homeless students
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Pat Arnow
Rita McClinton uses the washer and dryer at PS 15. She shares her three-bedroom apartment with two adults and five children, including great-grandson Chance, age 2.
Karen Miller knows what to do when one of her 22 kindergarten students at PS 15 on the Lower East Side comes in sleepy. “I let the child take a nap,” she says. A hungry child can grab a “Breakfast to Go” bag from the cafeteria if he arrives late.
Miller knows the fatigue and hunger she sees in her students is only the tip of the iceberg of a community in crisis. Manhattan rents are out of reach for many families who send their children to PS 15 on East 4th Street near Avenue D: 48 percent of its 190 students are living in shelters or doubled up with family or friends. Some are fleeing domestic violence.
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Pat Arnow
Cory, 5, enjoys breakfast at the school and class trips, thanks to teachers attuned to his needs.
PS 15 is a model of how New York City public schools are addressing the needs of homeless students. But it has been put on notice by the state Department of Education that unless test scores improve it can be placed in receivership. The school is partnering with Pathways to Leadership, a nonprofit that specializes in counseling and mentoring, to improve student outcomes.
For Miller, it’s frustrating that the state does not consider the dire housing and other needs of its students when judging the school. “The state doesn’t want to hear about these factors, but we have to get our students’ basic needs met to give them academics,” she says.
As part of the mayor’s School Renewal Program, PS 15 is also establishing itself as a community school, making official what it has been doing for the past four years: Connecting students and families to food, shelter, medical care and other assistance.
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Pat Arnow
'We try to build relationships so students feel safe at school,' says Elaine Liu, a guidance counselor.
In the school’s main office, parents can update their resumes and look for jobs. There’s also a small washer and dryer on site for families to use, a crucial benefit for those living in shelters or cramped spaces with few amenities and little spare change for a Laundromat.
The school gets high marks from the Henry Street Settlement, which operates one of the family shelters in the area. “PS 15 has always been on point,” says Beverly Atkinson, the settlement’s senior case manager. “The children need a little more attention, and they’ve been great with that.”
PS 15 provided uniforms for all three of Maria Marte’s children — pants, shirts and sweaters. “That was a big weight off my shoulders,” says Marte.
Marte used to live with her husband and three children in a shelter in a remote part of the Bronx. “People were fighting all the time at the shelter,” recalls Marte. She and her husband, who works part time in a supermarket, decided to move in with his mother in the nearby Lillian Wald Houses.
When Eduardo, one of her older sons, had a reading problem in kindergarten, special education teacher Stephanie Baskin gave him special after-school classes — and gave Marte strategies to help him. “She taught me how to help him sound out words,” says Marte.
This year Miller made sure Marte’s youngest son Cory was not left out of a recent class trip, even if the family could not afford the fee. “They told me your child is not going to miss the hayride,” she says.
Erika Perez, another PS 15 parent, fled a domestic violence situation. “I have four kids and sometimes it’s overwhelming for me,” says Perez. “I’m living with my mom now.” She credits the school with helping one of her sons overcome a speech problem. “They worked with him and he did a whole 360,” says Perez. The school provided uniforms for her children, too. “And the after-school programs give them activities and give me time for myself,” Perez says.
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Pat Arnow
Parents and students know they can go to Mia Murphy, the parent coordinator, for help with just about anything.
Staff members build a network of support for students and each other. Students are given the chance to discuss and manage their feelings. “We try to build relationships so students feel safe at school,” says Elaine Liu, a guidance counselor. “Children here can be angry about something that happened at home, but they can’t manage their emotions.” An accidental push from another child can trigger tears. “We tell them it’s OK to have those feelings, but to take a five-minute break or take a deep breath and count to 10,” says Liu.
As she spoke, three children arrived late to school. Mia Murphy, the parent coordinator, made sure each received a “Breakfast to Go.” “Our parents adore Mia,” says Liu. “She’s on the attendance committee and will pick children up and bring them to school. They know they can go to her for help.”
Murphy says she takes comfort in the small things she can do to help the families: a gift card for clothing purchases, a voucher to purchase food at the local supermarket.
“Just to see their day getting better makes my day better,” says Murphy.