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Do We Know Where Our Children Are - An Analysis of Major Problems that Cause Children to Get Lost at the Start

of the School Year September 14, 2008

A Report By: THE OFFICE OF THE BRONX BOROUGH PRESIDENT ADOLFO CARRION PREPARED BY: Director of Policy Noah A. Franklin Director of Education and Youth Services Jesse Mojica Deputy Director of Policy Jessica Colon

Policy Interns Brian Chen Grace Akinrinade Maribel Vasquez

With a special thanks to Advocates for Children for their tremendous help, advice and recommendations.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1

Executive Summary

Introduction

Background Information on the Department of Education

Analysis

Conclusions

15

Recommendations

17

Appendix

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Department of Education has undergone tremendous transformations over the past several years. Mayoral control has helped advance an ambitious reform agenda and the results have been widely hailed. However, these changes have not come slowly. It seems that every year we have been confronted with massive adjustments to a system that has profound implications on the lives of millions of New Yorkers. Lately, and with increasing urgency, we have heard from administrators, educators, parents, and students alike about problems that cause students to get lost in the system at this crucial time of year. We have heard about students waiting to be told which school to attend well after the school year has begun; parents waiting in the dark for their children to arrive home on buses that are chronically late; educators waiting to be given the information they need from the Department of Education to help parents and students navigate the education system. In short, we have seen that there is a systemic problem in the way that the Department of Education approaches, and plans for the new school year. A systemic problem that has not gone away despite all the changes the Department has undertaken; a problem that if allowed to persist, will continue to leave countless New York families out in the cold, waiting for their children to receive the quality education they have been promised, and deserve. In this great City that presents itself as an example to the rest of the world - we must do better. We must learn from the frustrations of educators and families, and we must heed the lessons of these past years. We must do this so that our children have the opportunity to learn, to be educated, and to help us all continue to build an even stronger future for our City. Our goal in presenting this report, "Do We Know Where Our Children Are?An Analysis of Major Problems that Cause Children to get Lost in the School System at the Start of the Year, is to unravel the recurring, systemic problems that emerge at the start of the year, and to urge DOE to work with principals to come up with solutions and begin tackling these problems before the next school year. Methodology To assess the challenges confronting students at the start of the school year, we conducted interviews with DOE officials and educational nonprofits, and held a focus group with Bronx school principals. In addition, we surveyed all Bronx principals, asking about previous and current problematic issues. What are the major problems? They are problems with school bus services, attendance, enrollment, pupil registration, and school transfers. These are problems found across the Bronx and across various grade levels. While the school year has just started, we feel secure in saying that the problems raised by principals are not likely to evaporate over time without significant reforms from DOE.

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Recurring Major Problems Identified by Principals: 1. Too many principals find yellow school buses unreliable and difficult to deal with causing students to be late for school, stuck on buses for hours, neglected or abused. 2. Poorly planned registration and enrollment policies are causing widespread confusion and children are not being enrolled. 3. Too many students are not showing up during the first days of class or registering almost a month after school starts causing students to miss valuable time in school. 4. Strict and complicated transfer processes are forcing too many students to stay in schools that could be dangerous for them.

Suggested Solutions for DOE to Prevent Recurring Problems: 1. DOE must respond to excessive and repeated lateness and negligence of yellow school bus drivers. DOE must ensure bus drivers know their routes, children are assigned to the most convenient routes and bus company personnel are properly trained to supervise children. 2. The DOE must simplify enrollment and registration for parents and principals and do a better job of explaining new policies to parents and principals. 3. The DOE must respond quicker to students that are absent or register late at the start of the school year. Children that are absent or not registered at the start of the school year need to be tracked better and DOE must do more to follow up with parents to ensure students are in school and register on time. 4. The DOE must simplify the School Transfer Process. The DOE can do more to allow children who have legitimate reasons to transfer within practical limits, especially when it is recommended by principals.

INTRODUCTION
In recent years, Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion has received numerous complaints at the start of school year from principals seeking assistance and has made efforts to intervene on their behalf with DOE to resolve problems which students are facing that are beyond the means of the principals authority. Typically, these principals call the Office of Bronx Borough President (BBP) because their attempts to navigate New York City's complex education system have been frustrated. Principals indicate that dealing with new school year problems can at times amount to having two full-time jobs, one consisting of putting out fires while the other involves fulfilling their existing responsibilities. To compound the problem, principals often reach out to DOE central administration staff regarding these problems- only to find their emails, phone calls, and voicemails unanswered. In addition to entrenched bureaucratic and societal issues, DOE has made navigating its complex education system to be all the more challenging for principals due to reorganizations over the last six years. Pursuant to the New York City Charter, the BBP is empowered to track complaints about city services in the Bronx and report to the city administration and the public on recurring complaints and the BBP's recommendations for improving the city's response to such complaints. In accordance with this responsibility, the BBP conducted a survey of Bronx principals to determine what issues that have been problematic for students in the past at the start of the school year, in order to determine if the city's response is adequate and what can be done to improve it. This report is based on the findings of this research. Prior to this report, the BBP released the Back to School Enrollment Fact Sheet on August 5th, 2008, which was distributed throughout the borough to help parents prepare for the new school year and be ready to navigate the confusing public school enrollment process. (See the Appendix for a copy of the Fact Sheet) The fact sheet was released as a part of an outreach campaign by the Borough President to address repeated issues that arise for parents when dealing with Bronx public schools at the start of year.

BACKGROUND ON DOES ROLE Before examining problematic issues at the start of school year, this report first looks at the background of specific DOE departments and programs responsible for dealing with these issues including: the Office of Student Enrollment Planning and Operations; the Office of Pupil Transportation; the Office for Family Engagement and Advocacy; and special education ser-3-

vices and attendance procedures.

NYC Department of Education The New York City Department of Education operates the largest public school system in the United States, serving children from pre-kindergarten to secondary education, as well as special education and home-schooled students. It is composed of over 1,450 schools, 135,000 employees (including more than 80,000 teachers and 1,400 principals), 1.1 million students and an annual budget of greater than $17 billion.(1) On any given school day, there are at least 55, 300 classes in session.(2) In the Bronx public school system, there are a total of 353 schools, 353 principals and 199,772 students. There are 122 elementary schools with 74,215 students; 45 elementary/ middle schools with 32,659 students; 61 middle schools with 29,573 students; 26 middle/ high schools with 12,119 students; and 90 high schools with 48,236 students. Finally, for schools that cover grades k-12, there are 9 schools and 2,970 students.

Office of Student Enrollment, Planning and Operations The Office of Student Enrollment Planning and Operations (OSEPO) serve a critical role at the start of school year. In the months leading up to and during the start of the new school year, OSEPO is responsible for coordinating student enrollment planning and policy for all schools except those in District 75 and District 79.(3) On a citywide basis for all grade levels, OSEPO tracks enrollment numbers at schools to determine placement options considering the number, academic levels and special needs of students admitted to all schools; manages the placement decisions of student going into particular schools in accordance with established admissions processes and procedure; determines what school a student is eligibility to attend is based on their residence within a defined geographical area within a zoning district; evaluates and determines transfer approvals for students seeking to move from their current school to any other school; directs programs that allow students to apply to their schools of their choice; and creates materials and host educational forums that help students and parents make decisions at critical junctures- like going from middle school to high school and determining which schools to attend.(4)

School Transfer Process When a student seeks transfer from one school to another, schools are required to meet with the
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families to review transfer requests and provide all supporting documentation when a transfer is requested and warranted. Acceptable causes for transfers include: Childcare Location Hardship Transfers (elementary school students only); Sibling Transfers (elementary school students only); Medical Issue Transfers; School Safety Transfers; and a Travel Hardship Transfer. Other transfers may be granted to address a particular hardship, provided all requisite documentation is presented. In all cases, the OSEPO will either deny or approve the transfer request and will determine the school to which a student will transfer.(5) If a student gets turned down for transfer, they can appeal to the Borough Enrollment Office. If that doesn't work, they can turn to the chancellor's office. Each request will be reviewed by the Office of Zoning and Integration to make sure both the student and the district have followed transfer request guidelines.(6)

Office of Pupil Transportation DOEs Office of Pupil Transportation (OPT) is responsible for ensuring that eligible general education and special education students receive safe, reliable, and clean transportation services.(7) OPT oversees the transportation of more than 170,000 students. OPTs primary focus is stop-to-school busing, door-to-door busing, providing student MetroCards for use on public transportation, and bus service for school field trips.(8) A significant part of OPTs monitoring role in pupil transportation is ensuring that bus contractors comply with service requirements and safety regulations.(9) To that end, OPT inspectors regularly do inspections to evaluate yellow buses that are used to transport students., Inspectors focus primarily on the safety and soundness of the operating conditions of the yellow buses. Most inspections seek to ensure that school bus contractors properly maintain school bus equipment.(10) OPT also monitors other services such as the scheduling and the timeliness of bus arrivals and drop offs of students. Yellow bus contractors are required to report all school bus delays to OPT.(11) In addition, parents or a school may report a yellow bus delay to OPT. When a school bus is reported delayed, OPT posts these delays on its website so that parents and OPT personnel can keep track of real- time delays taking place.(12) In addition, OPT oversees and deals with inadequate/ nonperformance of duties by bus drivers or matrons.

Office for Family Engagement and Advocacy The Office for Family Engagement and Advocacy (OFEA) also provides outreach and assistance to parents about the enrollment process at the start of school year. OFEA provides a support team structure for new and current parents at schools, which is organized from individual
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school level to school district level to borough-wide level.(13) Largely through Parent Coordinators based on schools, OFEA is the first and central point of contact for parents who need help with a particular issue regarding their childs school. Parent Coordinators that are trained to help parents find answers to their questions and concerns that arise in the process of enrollment; i.e. such dealing with registration problems, assisting with the school transfer process, and helping to secure special education services.(14)

Attendance Tracking Programs Every child from 6 17 years of age is required to attend school full time.(15) The chancellor is responsible for setting the overall minimum standards and guidelines of attendance, and ensuring schools have adequate resources to carry out the chancellors attendance policies. Principals are responsible for planning, implementation and supervision of the school attendance program. Teachers are responsible for taking attendance for each student and maintaining accurate records. The attendance coordinator (a school administrative assistant), under the supervision of the principal, is responsible for the overall operation of the school attendance program. This includes ensuring that each students attendance is recorded accurately, all documentation is appropriately signed and available for review, parents are contacted following a students absence, all documents related to attendance tracking are filed appropriately and all procedures are followed.(16) When a student has been absent for 10 consecutive days, 20 aggregate days and 8 days after a prior problem, they become an absentee case. Absentee cases that cannot be resolved by the school attendance coordinator must be referred to the principal for action. Subsequently, the principal could contact the Administration for Childrens Services (ACS) to follow up with the family.(17)

Special Education Services The delivery of special education services is governed by the federal law called IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act). If a child has a disability, he or she may have many rights under the IDEA and also be entitled to accommodations or services under another disability law known as Section 504. The basic steps to get special education services are: Referral- referring a child for evaluation; Consent- parental consent for evaluation and to initiate services; Evaluation- evaluating the child; IEP review meeting- meeting with the parent and professionals to make decisions about eligibility and create an Individualized Education Plan for the child; and Recommendation- recommending and offering services, which could include a classroom setting, for the child.(18)
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Each student who is recommended for special education is evaluated at their school by an Individualized Education Program (IEP) team, which is comprised of school staff and a students parents. If the team determines that a child has a disability that requires special education services, DOE will work to make certain that the child is provided with what he or she needs to succeed. This process is overseen by the principal and the school-based IEP team. For children who are not attending public schools, this process is overseen by Committee on Special Education (CSE). Generally New York State regulations mandate that DOE complete the special education process within 60 days from the time a parent consents to an evaluation or referral for reevaluation.(19)

ANALYSIS OF FINDINGS
METHODOLOGY Several methods of research were utilized to conduct this analysis. First, a review of press coverage and studies of DOE policies was conducted. Second, interviews were done with the nonprofit, Advocates for Children and the DOE, and a focus group was held with Bronx principals. Lastly, two rounds of a survey were undertaken of all Bronx principals to learn more about the issues they face at the start of the school year.

Interviews and Focus Group In July 2008, the BBP conducted an interview with staff from the nonprofit organization, Advocates for Children, to learn more about the challenges Bronx families face at the start of the school year. Major areas of concern raised during the interview included: difficulties with the new DOE process for pre-K and Kindergarten students, the lack of outreach to immigrant parents, poor dissemination of information, and serious concerns with placements and available resources for special education students. In July 2008, the BBP met with the Department of Education to learn more about registration, enrollment, transportation, parental outreach and other issues that arise at the start of the school year. Representatives from the Office of Student Enrollment Planning and Operations (OSEPO), the Office of Pupil Transportation (OPT), the Office of Family Engagement (OFEA), the Chancellors Office of Communications and Media Relations, and the Chancellors Office of Intergovernmental Affairs were present.
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In July 2008, the BBP conducted a focus group with 5 principals and 3 assistant principals from the Bronx to learn more about the challenges they deal with at the start of the school year. The principals were from all areas of the Bronx and represented elementary, middle and high schools. Major areas of concern raised during the focus group include: list notices, over-thecounter placements, a lack of sufficient resources for newly enrolled special education students, and the inability to place zoned students in a school due to overcrowding.

Online Survey The BBP created and conducted a survey, The Bronx Back to School Survey, of Bronx principals in order to identify what issues are the most problematic and widespread at the start of the school year. The survey was available online through the Survey Monkey website. (See appendix for a copy of the survey questions and summary of results). A link and instructions to the survey was emailed by the BBP Director of Education and Youth to all 353 Bronx public school principals on August 7th, 2008 with a due date of August 15th. Follow up emails and calls were made to school principals by the BBP to remind them to complete the survey before the due date. The survey had a response rate of 52%. There were 207 responses to the survey and 185 surveys were completed (Three respondents did not identify their name or school and not all surveys were completed past the first section. Surveys that were not completed past the first section were not included in the analysis.) These principals represent over 100,000 Bronx public school students. The survey results were representative of all grade levels and school districts in The Bronx. (See the appendix for more detailed information about the profile of the survey respondents). The survey asked questions related to general information about each respondent and common problems that schools face at the start of the school year. Questions about specific issues concerning registration, zoning and transfers, special education students, parental outreach, translations services and transportation were also included. Another survey requesting open feedback of concerns during the first week of the school year was also sent to all Bronx principals on September 2 with a due date of September 5. 79 principals responded. (For a copy of this survey see the appendix). This second survey confirmed many of the problems that were identified during the first Bronx Back to School Survey but also identified alarming problems for special education students. Many principals have reported transfers of special education students that were supposed to take place last spring have not occurred and students are not being placed in appropriate schools. Additionally, many principals have major delays and other scheduling deficiencies with yellow bus service for special education students.
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SURVEY FINDINGS Principals that responded to the Bronx Back to School Survey identified a wide variety of problems they experience at the start of the school year. Though many problems appear to be pervasive throughout all public schools, there were specific problems that were unique or particularly burdensome for each grade level. These areas of concern encompass multiple issues such as yellow school bus arrival times, parental knowledge of the transfer process and late registration. The survey also found that elementary, middle and high schools are dealing with several specific yet pervasive issues through each school level.

The top areas of concern confronting each grade level are:


Elementary Yellow School Buses Middle Schools Transfers and Zoning High Schools Registration

Overall, the top 5 issues for all schools were:


No shows/Absent students School Transfer Process Changes to the Enrollment Process Late Registration Lack of Parental Knowledge about the Registration Process

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Major Problems Confronting Each Grade Level All grade levels (elementary, middle and high schools) experienced many of the same problems. However there were particular problems that disproportionately impacted one grade level or were only experienced by one grade level. The following summary provides a brief overview of the responses and findings for the top problem confronting each grade level.

Elementary Schools Many elementary schools are experiencing serious problems with the reliability of Yellow School Bus service. Of particular concern for principals were scheduling, pickups, and bus routes. 69% of principals identified off-schedule bus arrival times as a problem that occurs very often or often. 59% of principals identified the size of bus routes as a problem that occurs very often or often. 52% of principals identified buses picking up at all scheduled stops as a problem that occurs very often or often.

Special Education buses were late at least 1 and onehalf hour late. One child was brought and left at our school but she belongs at another school. ~Bronx School Principal

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Middle Schools - Almost half of all middle school principals identify significant problems with zoning and transfer issues. 46% identified parental knowledge of their zoned school as very problematic or problematic. 51% identified student ability to transfer due to zoning and 51% identified availability of seats for a students zoned school as very problematic or problematic.

Zoning regulations are not being followed by the office of enrollment. ~Bronx Principal School

High Schools - High School principals reported having the most problems with the overall registration process. 71% identified DOE school transfer process, 69% identified parental knowledge of registration process, 65% identified students registering in the 3rd of 4th week of September, 57% identified transfer of documents from one school to another and 48% identified receiving a DOE list notice or over the counter placements for new students as very problematic or problematic.

I am so overcrowded I don't have enough chairs for the students. I informed HS Enrollment that they were sending too many students but they kept sending them anyway. ~Bronx School Principal

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General Problems Confronting All Grade Levels 1. A majority of school principals struggle with the number of absent students. These students are either currently enrolled or newly enrolled and do not show up during the first days or weeks of class. 60% of all school principals identified No Shows/Absent Students as very problematic or problematic. 50% of elementary schools, 60% of middle school and 65% identified this issue as very problematic or problematic.

Our only problem is no show students and the arduous task of tracking down no shows, especially those that have moved out of city/ state/country. ~Bronx School Principal

2. A majority of all schools are experiencing significant problems with the DOE school transfer process for students. 55% of all school principals identified the DOE School Transfer Process as very problematic or problematic. This problem disproportionately impacts students in middle and high schools. 33% of elementary schools, 61% of middle schools and 71% of high schools identified this issue as problematic or very problematic.

There has to be a better way of placing students who are our most in need of consistency, understanding and respect. ~Bronx School Principal

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3. A majority of all schools are experiencing significant problems with DOE changes to the enrollment process. 54% of all school principals identified DOE Changes to Enrollment Process as very problematic or problematic. This issue is more problematic for middle and high schools. 39% of elementary schools, 65% of middle schools and 58% of high schools identified this issue as very problematic or problematic.

Office of Student Enrollment is always an issue. They just register kids in the school with no communication to the school. ~Bronx School Principal

4. A majority of all principals reported late registration of students is a serious problem. This includes students who register during the 3rd or 4th week of class. Overall, 53% of principals reported students registering during the 3rd or 4th week of September were very problematic or problematic. This is a particularly challenging problem for middle and high schools. 36% of all elementary schools, 53% of all middle schools and 65% of all high school principals identified this issue as very problematic or problematic.

We have had our usual huge number of no-show students (over 150) ~Bronx School Principal

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5. A majority of all school principals identify the lack of parental knowledge about the registration process as a significant problem. 51% of all school principals reported Parental Knowledge of Registration Process as very problematic or problematic. This issue is particularly problematic for middle and high schools. 30% of elementary schools, 53% of middle schools and 69% of high schools identified this issue as very problematic or problematic.

The changes to the enrollment process force schools to complete registration for parents, placing us at odds within our own communities. ~Bronx School Principal

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CONCLUSIONS
While some problems confronting school principals at the start of school year are related to the overhaul of New York Citys public education system, other problems are due to bureaucratic problems and societal issues that have existed for decades. The goal of this report is to determine the causes of problems that come up at the start of school year. The following paragraphs will outline some of the multiple causes that have been identified.

1. Too many school principals find yellow school buses unreliable and difficult to deal with. Principals are reporting wide spread problems with off-schedule bus arrival times, buses picking up students at all scheduled stops and the size of bus routes. This issue impacts the citys most vulnerable school children - elementary school students and special education students of all grade levels. Late buses cause students to miss valuable class time, are disruptive to school administrators and teachers, and can increase absences for students who cannot wait a long period of time outside for buses. According to principal responses, the DOE appears to be doing a better job of ensuring the buses are functioning mechanically. Therefore, this issue is more of a result of the management at bus contracting companies, the level of training for bus drivers, and the size and locations of bus routes. During the last couple of years, DOE has made and is continuing to make several ambitious attempts to consolidate bus routes to increase their efficiency. These reforms have had their problems but, according to the DOE, are leading to greater efficiency. However, there is also a problem with the level of oversight principals have over bus drivers and bus companies. Bus drivers or contracted bus companies have absolutely no accountability to the principals and schools they serve. The current system places the rights of bus drivers and bus companies over students and principals. They are only accountable to the DOEs Office of Pupil Transportation (OPT). If a driver is repeatedly late in dropping off students at school it is very difficult for a principal to document these late arrivals then navigate the complaint process with the bus contractor and OPT. Processing complaints against a bus driver or bus company can take months, especially if there is an appeal by the driver. 2. New registration and enrollment policy changes are causing widespread confusion and administrative problems. The process from start to finish is poorly understood by too many parents, students and admin- 15 -

istrators and often creates lots of confusion. Though students and parents have more choice in what schools they can attend, they also seem to be more confused. In addition to a lack of knowledge among parents and school administrators, schools are also reporting many problems with processing new registrations at the start of the school year. For high schools and middle schools, there are problems with the movement of students into schools, such as not receiving a notice or receiving a last minute notice of the placement of large numbers of new students from the DOE. Elementary schools are having the most difficulty adjusting to new pre-K admission processes. In an attempt to create more uniformity in the pre-K admissions process, the DOE centralized last year the process and the task of allotting spots was contracted to an out-of-state company. Local schools have lost a great level of choice and discretion in how many and which students to accept. Another source of confusion and disruption for principals and parents is that children who are admitted into pre-K are not guaranteed a slot in the same school for Kindergarten. The DOE has stated there are plans to spread this centralization to the Kindergarten enrollment process, despite the fact that elementary school principals feel the new pre-K enrollment process was poorly implemented. In addition to problems with general education enrollment, principals are reporting serious problems with the enrollment of special education students this year. Enrollment and transfer requests for special education students that were supposed to be processed before this school year have not taken place. This has left countless special education students in schools without the appropriate services or out of school all together. This is a grave violation of state education law. 3. Too many students are not showing up during the first days of class or registering during the 3rd of 4th week of classes. Students that are absent or no shows during the first few days or weeks of classes is a frequent problem, particularly for many middle and high schools. Valuable time and resources must be used to track down these students. Students who arrive late can disrupt teachers lessons plans because those students are behind everyone else and may need the schools assistance to catch up. Since many students who are absent at the start of the school year are older students, their parents may not even be aware this situation is occurring. 4. Transfers and zoning processes are causing too many problems for schools. Unhappiness with school placements is a common problem. When parents and students are not happy with the school and want a transfer, but OSEPO wont allow it, the students often just dont go. Presently, the transfer process is currently too confusing for parents and students, and
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causes too many administrative problems for principals. The current process can lock a student into a choice that was poorly informed. Of course, students should not be allowed to transfer to any school they wish at any point during the school year because this would be too disruptive to students and schools. The current regulations regarding that currently limit transfers to documented medical or safety reasons do prevent many needless transfers. However, the transfer process as it stands now also forces students into a choice they may no longer want for very legitimate reasons. The current middle school transfer zoning and zoning process is especially confusions for middle schools, making it more difficult for students to transfer, and limits the availability of seats for students in their zoned school. Currently, some districts are zoned and others are choice districts. Most elementary and middle schools in New York City are zoned, which means that students attend a school determined by their address and typically close to where they live. However, students in middle school districts that allow other options, or choice districts, can also apply to schools outside their immediate neighborhoods. These distinctions may be clear to someone very familiar with DOE regulations, but this is not always so clear to parents. In particular, it can be problem to a parent who might have moved from a choice district to a zoned district.

RECOMMENDATIONS
The purpose of this report is to highlight recurring problems that principals experience at the start of the school year and bring them to the attention of the DOE. The following recommendations should be a starting point of dialogue between the DOE, Bronx school principals and the Office of the Bronx Borough President to begin tackling these challenges. These problems are not occurring as isolated incidents, but are systematic. Therefore, these problems require a systematic response from the DOE because principals on their own cannot remedy these issues. 1. The DOE must respond to recurring problems with yellow school buses. Every year there are reports of late, lost, abusive or negligent bus drivers and bus companies at the start of the school year. These repeated problems are unacceptable because they put our children in harms way and are preventable. The DOE must do more to ensure that bus drivers know their routes, children are assigned to the most convenient routes and bus company personnel are properly trained to supervise children before the start of the school year. The DOE, Office of Pupil Transportation and contracted bus companies must be held accountable to principal complaints.
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To improve yellow bus service and make bus companies more responsive to principal concerns, DOE can increase the severity of violations issued to bus contractors and for scheduling deficiencies with yellow bus service; provide a role for principals in reviewing the renewal of contracts for bus companies serving their school; and expand initial efforts to have cameras and GPS tracking systems on all buses as soon as possible, if the pilot is successful. 2. The DOE must respond to recurring problems with registration and enrollment. The current registration and enrollment process is causing too many problems in our schools and making the start of the school year chaotic for too many children, parents and principals. Children are registering late, are enrolled in schools without adequate services for them and too many parents and school administrators are confused about constantly changing policies. The DOE must streamline these processes, and ensure new enrollment and registration processes are fully tested before being applied to all city schools. Most importantly, the DOE must do more to keep parents, principals and students informed about changes with better outreach and information dissemination. To improve the registration and enrollment process the DOE can start with providing accurate and reader friendly information on the DOE website and making better use of parent coordinators. The DOE should also initiate more pilot programs in targeted areas for enrollment changes to work out the kinks before rolling them out citywide. 3. DOE needs to be more pro-active in responding to chronic student absences at the start of the school year and students who register late. Efforts to reduce absenteeism must include the child, the family, the school, and the DOE. Bronx principals report that many students are registering several weeks after the normal registration date or are absent during the first days of class. Parents must share some of responsibility and should be accountable for registering their children on time. However, given the responsibility of schools to look after the welfare of students, DOE also needs to do a better job of tracking down chronically absent students in a timely manner. To improve attendance during the first days of schools and prevent late registrations, the DOE can create an early response to absence system for calling parents to ensure a first day response to all absences by school administrators. In addition, the DOE can require the Office of Family Engagement and Advocacy to be charged with reaching out to the parents of late registering students within three days of missing attendance to determine the reasons for their absence and ensure the student comes in for registration.

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4. DOE needs to simplify the school transfer process. While parents and students have the greatest responsibility to ensure they understand this process, DOE can do more to provide accurate and timely information to them and allow students to transfer within practical limits. To simplify the transfer processes for students who need them, DOE can reduce the quantity of documentation required to have transfers approved under the current process; eliminate the requirement of police report for safety transfers and require only that schools fill out an occurrence form. DOE should also allow middle school students one chance to transfer schools after their first year. To increase the parental and student knowledge about the transfer process the DOE can send a letter in the fall to all 9th graders informing them that they can reapply for a different high school in the 10th grade.

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ENDNOTES
1. "DOE Mission Statement." idealist.org. June 18, 2008 . Action Without Borders. August 19, 2008 <http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:Yo709qUbie8J:www.idealist.org/en/ org/130347332+new+york+city+Office+of+Student+Enrollment+Planning+and+Operations&hl=en&c t=clnk&cd=3&gl=us>. 2. Lukin, J. (2003) First Class School Safety: A Proposal from the New York City Department of Education, Office of School Safety and Planning to the United States Department of Education 3. "Regulations of the Chancellor." ADMISSIONS, READMISSIONS, TRANSFERS, AND LIST NOTICES FOR ALL STUDENTS. June 17, 2008. New York City Department of Education. August 21, 2008 <http://docs.nycenet.edu/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-11/A -101.pdf>. 4. "Office of Student Enrollment Planning and Operations ." New York City Department of Education. August 21, 2008 <http://nycchartercenter.org/pdf/jobs/ vpscgprojectdirector.pdf>. 5. http://docs.nycenet.edu/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-11/A-101.pdf 6. http://insideschools.org/index12.php?s=1&a=41 7. "Parent Resources." Pupil Transportation . New York City Department of Education. August 19, 2008 <http://schools.nyc.gov/Offices/Transportation/ParentResources/ default.htm>. 8. Lukin, Ibid 9. Thompson, Ibid, 1. 10. Thompson, Ibid, 4. 11. Thompson, Ibid, 10. 12. Thompson, Ibid, 6. 13. "Family Engagement and Advocacy." Offices & Programs. New York City Department of Education. August 20, 2008 <http://schools.nyc.gov/Offices/OFEA/default.htm>. 14. "DOE Parent Coordinators and Parent Support Offices." Keep It Going NYC. August 21, 2008 <http://www.keepitgoingnyc.org/doe-parent-coordinators-and-parent-supportoffices>. 15. Minors who have a) graduated from high school, earned a high school equivalency diploma, or who are between 16 17 and have been issued a full-time employment certificate are exempt from this rule. Regulations of the Chancellor - Regulation A-210: 1.1 and 1.4. 16. Absentee lengths that require a Form 407 Attendance and Outreach Referral: 10 consecutive days, 20 aggregate days (over a 4 month period), or 8 consecutive days (if there has been a prior 407). Regulations of the Chancellor - Regulation A-210: 4.7.1 17. Regulations of the Chancellor, Ibid. 18. "Parent Resources: Special Education." insideschools.org. Advocates for Children. August 20, 2008 <http://www.insideschools.org/st/ST_specialed.php>. 19. Special Education." Academics. New York City Department of Education. August 20, 2008 <http://schools.nyc.gov/Academics/SpecialEducation/default.htm>.

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APPENDIX

SURVEY 1 RESULTS THE BRONX BACK TO SCHOOL SURVEY

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SURVEY 2 - FEEDBACK ON FIRST WEEK OF NEW SCHOOL YEAR Samples of Bronx Principals Comments on the First Week of School Principal made their comments to the Office of the Bronx Borough President anonymously through an online survey. 101 Bronx principals in total responded. Survey Question: 1. During this first week, please describe any issues that have been problematic in your school and any specific incidents that have occurred. (For example, problems such as: yellow bus service for special education and general education students; school transfers; changes to the enrollment process; late registrations; parental knowledge of registration process; list notices/ over the counter placements; zoning regulations; and no shows/ absent students.) Students in special education are being given metro cards to ride city busses. I had a grade two child who has turrets syndrome and hits himself who is asked to ride a city bus. The parent is not given a metro card so it is expected that thd child will ride alone. This is insane. Busses for special ed children arrive to my school 30 to 45 minutes after school has begun. So instead of more we give less to our most neediest students. -Thu, 9/11/08 9:53 AM OSEPO placements to non-existent or over crowded classes; confusing pre-k enrollment resulting in parents believing they can not register their child. -Mon, 9/8/08 6:40 PM yellow bus service for district 75 students was horrific. Examples: studnets arrivign home at 7 pm with bus companu unable to contact bus, buses arribvign at practically 10 am to school, paretns puttign in proper paperwork for cahnge of address during summer- new address not in system and bus goes to old address,studetns dropped from bus runs and not picked up unitl a week later -Fri, 9/5/08 4:23 PM We have have quite a few no shows this week and several absent students. Fri, 9/5/08 1:22 PM None of the students awaiting special education placement over the summer were placed. This has resulted in many students being in the wrong placement at the start of the school year. In addition, OSEPO has continued to enroll students at our school. This has created an unsafe condition at the school. We need assistance in getting the zone of the school reduced. Fri, 9/5/08 12:45 PM Special Education bussing for some students was terminated without explanations nor parent notification. No process was in place to rectify situation. OSEPO placed students in Special ED classes without giving priority to our own students. Summer placement was not done. Students are not in the proper classes. Pre-K registration was not fully understood by parents. Fri, 9/5/08 11:38 AM There were many bussing issues and OPT could not be reached. One of my students who attends an inclusion program was denied access to the building. Fri, 9/5/08 11:30 AM Biggest issue is lack of clear procedures from OSEPO - are we enrolling the students or are they - if they are doing it why do they send the kids here telling us to do it? Thu, 9/4/08 5:09 PM No shows, lateness and absent student are a very big problem> - Thu, 9/4/08 4:39 PM My school is served by 17 different special education buses, up from 10 last year. This makes dis-x-

missal very hectic. - Thu, 9/4/08 4:34 PM OSEPO sending students to the school that they know we don't have room for, lack of information about special education bus service, Office of Pupil Transportation is as unresponsive as ever, Discrepancies between CAP, ATS, and IEPS, missing IEPs for incoming students, students awaiting special educaiton placements from last year, special education articulation is a mess. - Wed, 9/3/08 7:04 PM The prekindergarten application process is a nightmare. The placement of special education students is also horrible. We still have students awaiting placement from last year. Wed, 9/3/08 1:54 PM Special Ed placement and articulation were not done properly in June causing residual effects in September. Additionally, OSEPO is a poor concept and an even worse reality. Wed, 9/3/08 1:21 PM OSEPO REGISTRATION- sending students to schools without appropriate documentation or placement. - Wed, 9/3/08 1:02 PM Spe Ed school bus not picking up students and parents screwaming about no bus and cannot get in contact with bus company or OPT, CSE placement of students who need much more than what they are giving, Regional registration that gave incorrect information to parents, parents still thinking they can register at any school with no consideration of zoning Wed, 9/3/08 12:41 PM Special Education requests for changes in placement that were sent out in May and June and offers for the new placements were not made during the summer. This means that they return to their old placement this week and their needs are already not being addressed. I have 8 students in this situation!!!!!! - Wed, 9/3/08 12:32 PM Buses not picking up special education students Buses arriving late at schools Students referred to least restrictive environments not be admitted to Community Schools, even with IEP documentation and placement letters OSEPO not placing students in a timely fashion Wed, 9/3/08 11:28 AM The new Pre-K registration regulations are a total disaster. It impeedes the Principal's ability to plan,organize and schedule his/her school. - Wed, 9/3/08 8:51 AM

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