DOE Return to School Survey Results

From the Office of Family and Community Empowerment (FACE):
 
It’s hard to believe that it is already July. We know that the start of school in 2020-21 will be different, and have been working to plan for a school reopening that will welcome our students and staff in the safest way possible, while also ensuring that learning happens immediately. Today, our Chancellor met with principals across the city to update them on fall re-opening planning, and shared this presentation. Thanks to all of you for giving your feedback and perspective about how we can best approach this challenge together.  
 
Fall 2020 Return to School Survey Results 
 
The results of the Fall 2020 Return to School Survey Results can be found here. We received responses from 301,138 families and 117,700 students from across the city. Thank you to everyone who completed this survey to help inform this important planning process.   Among our preliminary findings were: 
  
Health and Safety Results 
We are developing a system for staff to apply for medical accommodations that would allow them to work from home due to COVID, and will honor student medical accommodations as well.  
More than 90% of respondents identified the importance of having cleaning supplies such as hand sanitizer available 

• 48% of student respondents (Grades 6-12) said they were very or mostly comfortable wearing a mask to school every day 
• 51% of family respondents said they were very or mostly comfortable with their child wearing a mask to school every day, though the results varied by grade level: 
  • 43% of families grades Pre-K -2  
  • 51% of families grades 3-8 
  • 62% of families grades 9-12   

Preferred Schedules Results 
For families that want to have an all-remote schedule next fall, we will be sending additional information in the coming weeks on how to register. Students will not need a medical reason to register for this option.  

• 53% of parents feel very or mostly comfortable sending their child back to school. 24% feel a little comfortable and 22% feel not at all comfortable. 
• 72% of parents prefer sending their child back to school if safety measures are in place. When presented with the option to alternate days, alternate weeks, or learn at home every day,  
  • 48% of students and 53% of families prefer alternating days 
  • 25% of students and 26% of families prefer to learn from home every day  
  • 25% of students and 19% of families prefer alternating weeks

Student Experience 
While overall results were similar across districts, results vary for each school community, and we will share school-level data with principals next week.  

• 76% of students and 81% of families identified core instruction areas (math, science, social studies, ELA) as priorities for in-person instruction more than other classes like PE, art and electives 
• 55% of students and 69% of families prefer having a variety of methods to learn at home, including paper packets, live instruction, and one-on-one tutoring 

This feedback, along with information from public health experts, will continue to guide our reopening plans.  We will continue to: 

• Promote behaviors that reduce spread by requiring physical distancing, which currently calls for 6 feet at all times, face coverings where developmentally appropriate while inside buildings, and increasing access to hand washing and sanitizer.  
• Make changes to school buildings including configuring space to ensure physical distancing, identifying an Isolation Room in the event someone becomes ill, and holding lunch in classrooms or requiring assigned seating in cafeterias  
• Enhance cleaning and disinfection through deep cleaning on a nightly basis with electrostatic sprayers which dispense disinfectant so that it adheres to surfaces without the need to physically touch them, and improving HVACs for ventilation. The DOE will also order cleaning supplies including an initial order of 11,000 cases of hand sanitizer and 100,000 cases of disinfectant wipes, in addition to providing disposable face coverings to students and staff, and many other cleaning supplies.  

We also continue to monitor testing and screening guidance, and will be working with principals to determine best practices for entry and exit protocols. Schools will continue to follow health guidance that states the best thing to do is to stay home when sick, and we will partner with NYC Health + Hospitals on contact tracing and follow-up. 
 
NYC Budget Passed 
This week, City Council voted to approve New York City’s $88.1 billion budget.  Overall, the DOE's budget has been reduced by a net of $275 million. This includes $400 million in new cuts, and $125 million in restorations of previous cuts.  Even with the restorations, going back to last July, the net impact of budget reductions over Fiscal Years 2020 and FY 2021 has been over a billion dollars.  The Mayor has stated that if there is no federal or state intervention by October, the City will have to consider layoffs.  Full school budgets for next year will be released on Wednesday, July 8th. 
New cuts include:  

• $50 million in summer busing savings as a result of Summer in the City programming going remote. 
• $10 million in additional savings to central offices resulting from the hiring freeze. As stated to divisional COOs, this means that vacant positions will not be backfilled. 
• $10 million in cuts to the Schools Out NYC (SONYC) afterschool program. 
• $21 million in cuts to per session budgets, reducing the amount of enrichment, services, and support for students outside of the school day. 
• Funding for field operations has been reduced by $20 million. 
• Reductions to centrally-administered school support initiatives, including Comprehensive School Support, EduStat, Teaching Fellows, Teacher and Principal Leadership programs, and Community Schools.  
• Further reductions include cuts to central OTPS budgets that support travel, food, and other contract spending.  
• We will continue to keep you posted as developments arise, but it’s also important to recognize that there was also some positive news today: 

Restorations of previous cuts include: 

• A previously proposed $100 million Fair Student Funding reduction, now restored. A school-based hiring freeze remains in effect. 
• The Single Shepherd program, as well as certain social worker positions, have been restored after previously proposed cuts. This will maintain critical academic and mental health counseling support to historically underserved schools. 

School Safety will be Moving from NYPD to DOE 
School Safety Agents will be moving from the NYPD to the DOE.  In the next year, the transition will begin with additional DOE-led training in de-escalation, implicit bias, and restorative justice.  When the transition is complete, SSAs will be on the DOE payroll.  The agents will remain members of their current union. 
DOE will be convening a task force to develop recommendations on how to facilitate the transition of NYPD to DOE. 

Special Education and Remote Learning 
Information about Special Education and Remote Learning can be found on the DOE’s website here.  

Supporting Students with Disabilities who are 21 Years or Older 
The DOE is planning to deliver an extension of services for students who would typically be aging out of school but are in need of continued education or support services in order to graduate with a diploma or to transition to adult programs and services.  

Which students may receive services after aging out? 

• Students who are working toward a diploma and were unable to complete the credits needed this year due to the transition to remote learning due to COVID 19 but who would be able to if they were given up to one more year. You can check on credits by logging in to your NYC Schools Account (Open external link). For a student with 33 or more credits, please speak with their school about whether they can continue this summer or during the 2020–21 school year in order to complete their credits and earn a high school diploma.  
• Students with IEPs who are alternately assessed and will be receiving a Skills and Achievement Commencement (SAC) Credential but who have missed instruction and/or services because of the transition to remote learning, and/or who are showing signs of regression (losing knowledge or skills that they previously had) and have not met their IEP goals. These students can receive instruction and related services. 
• Students with IEPs who need to be connected with adult/postsecondary services or education but have otherwise completed school. These students can participate in transition support services, which include assistance with eligibility applications and access to post school programs and services as needed through the summer and 2020–21 school year. You can reach out to your borough TCAC or District 75 Transition Office as appropriate to access this service. Contact NYCTCACs@schools.nyc.gov or, for students in D 75 programs, Natalie McQueen.  

If you believe your young adult may be in one of these groups but you have not heard from their school yet, please contact their school as soon as possible to discuss. If you continue to have any questions or concerns please email specialeducation@schools.nyc.gov. 

What if my child has already been accepted to a college or program? 
Many students with IEPs may have already been accepted to college or an adult services program. In this case an extension of education or support services is likely not needed. However, if you have any questions or concerns please contact your school, or email specialeducation@schools.nyc.gov. 

In-Person Services to Students with IEPs 
DOE will be providing in-person services to students with disabilities over the summer.  DOE will be providing speech, occupational therapy and physical therapy, as well as transition services, which are consultations for students with disabilities 21 or over aging out of the school system to provide support and guidance for post-secondary education and career.  If you have any questions or concerns please email specialeducation@schools.nyc.gov. 

Summer School 
As announced in the June 26 and June 29 Principals' Digest, schools should have communicated to summer school students, by June 30, with instructions on how to log in to TeachHub and ILearnNYCSchool using their DOE student accounts.  Superintendent teams have been provided lists of the students (over 30,000) who have not yet accessed their DOE accounts and will be following up with schools to make sure outreach has been made to those students. 
Parent Coordinators, please make sure that you reach out to your families and students to make sure that students who will be attending summer school are able to access the iLearnNYC platform with their DOE accounts. 

Please click here to learn more about accessing Summer School 2020.   For more details, please review this Summer School Student Account FAQ page on the InfoHub. 

Summer Camps and Summer Youth Jobs 
Camps and jobs for more than 100,000 city youth could return this summer through a budget agreement set for a vote Tuesday evening, city officials said.  More to come. 
 
FACE 
The summer is an opportunity for Central offices to reflect on our work over the prior school-year, fine-tune our process, and strategically plan for the next school-year.  The Office of Family and Community Empowerment (FACE) is looking forward to a robust planning process over the summer, and will invite our parent leaders and colleagues in at critical points to provide us with feedback on how to improve our support.  We take pride in our office and work, and will continue to improve the way that we serve our communities, in partnership with our communities.  
 
This will certainly be one of the strangest July 4th holidays that any of us have ever experienced – no parades, large gatherings or hot dog eating contests on Coney Island. Even so, we hope that you can connect with your loved ones, take care of yourselves and rest and recharge.