Parents at P.S. 9 in Prospect Heights had an inkling the school lost students last fall. Tanya Messado saw her daughter's class drop to 23 children, from 30.

"We’re all very close. I knew some of them had moved out of state, some of them had moved to private school, so it was very obvious from the start what was going on,” Messado, the parliamentarian of the school’s Parent Teacher Organization, said.


What You Need To Know

  • Public school enrollment fell 4% citywide, but the decline was sharper at schools like PS 9 in Brooklyn

  • Since funding is based on enrollment, schools with the largest declines will be asked to return money to the city

  • Parents at P.S. 9 are asking Mayor de Blasio to let their school keep the money they say they sorely need

Data just released by the Education Department made it official. Public school enrollment fell 4% citywide, but the decline was sharper at schools like P.S. 9, which lost 73 students, nearly 8% of enrollment. 

Since funding is based on enrollment, schools with the largest declines will be asked to return money to the city.

President of P.S. 9's PTO Jessica Flores says that could mean a debt of nearly $300,000 for this school. 

"It’s devastating to us looking at COVID and the additional services our children will require, but even on a regular year this would prevent us from providing the services our children need,” Flores said.

"The fact that the city is trying to balance the budget on the back of kids is something that seems unconscionable,” Messado said.

While P.S. 9 has lost students, educating them has become more expensive, thanks to the need for smaller class sizes and the blended learning model in use during the pandemic.

Flores says the school received $33,000 in extra city funding for COVID-19--related expenses, but is spending $20,000 a week on substitute teachers.

“What they've essentially given us is a week and a half out of 36 weeks of substitute teachers. And they would claw back ten times that with this funding requirement,” Flores said.

“We know our schools are going above and beyond for their school communities during these difficult times and despite having no demonstrable help from the state, the city has provided additional funding for schools’ new and increasing needs, including $80M for staff,” DOE spokeswoman Katie O’Hanlon said. “Every single year we make adjustments to school budgets to equitably distribute financial support, meet students’ needs, and in many cases provide additional funds for schools with increased needs.”

Parents at P.S. 9 launched a petition asking the city to allow schools in this situation to keep the money. Appearing on NY1, Mayor Bill de Blasio said that can only happen if the state passes along supplemental funding it received from Washington, and more federal stimulus aid is approved.

"If we get the right combination of funding, of course, I want to see these schools made whole,” de Blasio said.

In some ways, P.S. 9 may never be made whole. Sandra Santos-Vizcaino, a beloved educator here, was the first city teacher to die from the virus. Flores worries the extra support students need will be exactly the kind of help the school won't be able to afford.

“Students who were in her class last year are going to come back into the building, she’s not going to be here, and we won’t have the funding to help them through that,” Flores said.