Success Academy To The New York Times: Tell The Truth About The Abuses Inside Traditional Public Schools
February 23, 2016
Contact: Dan Bank, (212) 681-1380
Letter to New York Times Deputy Metro Editor documents nearly 50 incidents of abuse inside traditional public school classrooms that have gone unreported by the paper
New York, NY — Success Academy today called upon The New York Times to uphold its pledge to explore patterns of abuse inside traditional public school classrooms. After receiving criticism for Kate Taylor’s story, “At Success Academy School, a Stumble in Math and a Teacher’s Anger on Video,” the Times provided a statement which said, “We would have done this story if that video were filmed in a traditional public school, a Catholic school, or an independent school, and we would have explored the question of whether or not it represents larger problems within those institutions.”
However, in a letter today to The New York Times Deputy Metro Editor Amy Virshup, Eva Moskowitz documents that the Times has failed to devote any of its considerable resources to nearly 50 incidents since 2014, which clearly indicate a pattern of violence against children inside traditional public schools:
“Over the last week, we took the opportunity to research potential abuses that have occurred inside schools since the incident at Success Academy you so loudly trumpeted in the pages of the Times. What we found were dozens of horrifying examples of misconduct ranging from direct physical abuse of a special-needs child, to inappropriate touching of young girls, to incredibly demeaning behavior toward kids. Some of the adults who committed these transgressions were fired. Many were not. But these disturbing incidents all had two things in common.”
To read the full letter and to see a list of all the incidents that have gone unreported by the New York Times since 2014, click here.
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ABOUT SUCCESS ACADEMY CHARTER SCHOOLS
Founded in 2006, Success Academy Charter Schools are free public pre-k through 12 schools open to all children in the state through a random lottery. With 34 schools across Brooklyn, the Bronx, Manhattan, and Queens, Success Academy enrolls 11,000 students, primarily low-income children of color in disadvantaged neighborhoods: 74% of students receive free or reduced-price lunch, 95% are children of color, 13% are children with disabilities, and 8.5% are English language learners. Ranked in the top 1% in math and the top 3% in English on 2015 state proficiency tests, Success Academy schools received more than 22,000 applications for fewer than 2,300 open seats last year. Two Success Academy schools, Success Academy Harlem 1 and Harlem 3, have been honored as National Blue Ribbon Schools by the U.S. Department of Education, the only Harlem schools in the last 25 years to receive this prestigious award.
For more information about Success Academy, go to Successacademies.org and virtualtour.successacademies.org.
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