Three Yonkers schools to be restructured next school year; parents react
One of the schools that is impacted in Kahlil Gibran School.
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School officials in Yonkers say three schools will be reconfigured for the next school year.
One of them is Kahlil Gibran School on Rosedale Road.
After this school year, the school will no longer serve seventh and eighth grade students.
The move is drawing strong reaction from parents like Anna Aspras.
"I was very depressed because of my seventh grader," Aspras says. "One year in a new environment, wasn't really happy."
Officials say seventh and eighth graders at Gibran will be relocated to a nearby school.
Aspras says the change will also create logistical challenges.
"Now, I'm going to have two drop offs and two different pickups because I don't like the buses," Aspras says.
District leaders say the restructuring will help maximize staffing amid school aid and enrollment concerns.
Superintendent Anibal Soler, Jr. says there's not enough space at the school right now, either.
"They are extremely crammed. We have modulars that were built there over 30 years ago. Modulars weren't meant to be a permanent solution," Soler, Jr. says.
Aspras says she wishes parents had more notice.
"They waited until end of May, June to tell us about this change...As parents, we don't have a choice what school we want our kids [at]. It's just Dodson," Aspras says.
School officials say they recognize the timing of the decision isn't ideal, but add that they will work closely with families during this transition.
