Gov. Kathy Hochul doubled down connected banning phones successful classrooms Thursday — saying kids shouldn’t beryllium distracted by screens during emergencies — aft a lockdown astatine an Upper West Side schoolhouse left parents railing against her proposal.
“They request to beryllium laser focused connected nan big successful nan beforehand of nan schoolroom to lead them to information per training and protocols,” Hochul said astatine an unrelated property convention successful Manhattan. “That’s straight from rule enforcement what should hap successful those situations.”
The governor’s connection came successful consequence to a mobility from The Post astir past week’s incident astatine Louis Brandeis High School that sparked outrage from parents who said they were near successful nan dark by schoolhouse officials and rule enforcement arsenic their kids texted and called them.
Schools Chancellor David Banks said past week that nan Department of Education was opening an investigation into why parents weren’t notified of nan yet unfounded threats that a man was locked successful nan schoolhouse pinch a gun.
“I americium very sorry to apologize to immoderate genitor who was not being communicated pinch successful existent time. That is unacceptable to maine arsenic nan chancellor and for maine personally arsenic a parent,” Banks told reporters.
Hochul besides acknowledged Thursday that nan deficiency of connection pinch parents during nan astir hour-and-a-half agelong lockdown was a “shortcoming.”
“I perfectly agree, location has to beryllium connection channels good successful beforehand of immoderate situation aliases disruption happens connected a field astatine each azygous school, pre school, elementary, mediate schools, precocious schools,” Hochul said.
“That’s thing we tin attraction on, is make judge that nan connection plans betwixt parents and rule enforcement and nan schoolhouse territory are tightened up and followed.”
The politician is still mulling nan specifics of a statewide argumentation that would spot restrictions connected telephone usage successful schools.
Banks has antecedently floated implementing a prohibition successful metropolis nationalist schools, though 1 did not materialize by nan commencement of nan schoolhouse year.
“We’ve not put an charismatic compartment telephone prohibition successful place, but I deliberation that location are a wide scope of reasons why we deliberation compartment phones are profoundly distracted successful schools,” he said aft nan Brandeis HS incident.
United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew told The Post past month that he supports nan governor’s push for a telephone ban, but said specified a argumentation should springiness individual districts leeway connected really to instrumentality it.
The teacher’s union’s statewide umbrella organization, New York State United Teachers, is holding a convention successful Albany connected Friday addressing nan effect of cellphones and societal media connected kids.
The UFT released a survey of its members earlier this week that showed 63% of Big Apple teachers support banning phones citywide.
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