FIRST VICTORY!!!

NYC’s American Museum of Natural History to serve as early-voting site

April 9, 2024

"The American Museum of Natural History is set to make a bit of New York history this spring, serving as an early-voting site for the first time. 

The 155-year-old Upper West Side museum...has stepped up to serve as a polling station after locals pushed back on the use of a nearby school as a voting site.

In February, three local lawmakers wrote to the museum asking it to consider serving as a polling site, citing concerns that the nearby, 1,500-student William O’Shea public school complex was ill-suited to the task.

Since 2022, the school building’s cafeteria has hosted early voting, forcing students to relocate lunchtime to the hallways, according to the letter by state Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal and City Councilwoman Gale Brewer.

'Unfortunately, the nine days of early voting impair school operations, restrict nutritional options for students, and compromise student safety,' they wrote, adding that the use of the school as a voting site pauses students’ access to hot lunches for a week.

The museum’s reply: yes. The museum’s president, Sean Decatur, offered thanks to the three lawmakers for bringing the issue to the museum’s attention."

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@NoSchlsEarlyVt

www.noearlyvotingatschools.com

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Urgent action is needed to address safety concerns in our NYC public schools during early voting on school days. Incidents of security breaches, with voters intruding into student areas and even displaying aggression towards staff, are an ongoing threat that has gone unaddressed, despite the pleas of school principals and parents. To be clear, this petition is not against early voting, but seeks to ensure school safety and eliminate the impact of early voting on schools.

Enlace de petición en español
中文请愿链接
ссылка на петицию по-русски

In 2024, over 30 NYCPSs served as early voting sites across Brooklyn, the Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island. Queens had no public schools used as early voting sites.

Security Incidents — Among the many issues schools face, the issue of paramount concern is security. Voters have wandered into areas of the school where students are present – in or near hallways, classrooms, lunchrooms and student restrooms. In November 2023, a voter wandered into the lunch room at P.S. 8 on Staten Island, grew agitated, shouted at a staff member, made threatening gestures, and spat on the floor. 

Who is responsible for our children and staff if someone is harmed, or worse? Is it the BOE or DOE? Parents have a right to know!

Lack of Support — Why can’t schools increase security? Principals are dipping into their own already limited budgets to pay for additional staff to increase security, but it's not enough and shouldn't be the school’s responsibility in the first place. Principals are left to shoulder the burden of safeguarding their students, even as the Board of Elections (BOE) and the Department of Education (DOE) fail to provide the necessary support and resources. 

Against Policy… and Common Sense — Nothing is more important than the safety of our students. NY State and DOE policy clearly state that the use of schools cannot jeopardize student safety.

SECTION 414: Use of schoolhouse and grounds (NYS Law)

“...in the city of New York each community school board shall be authorized to prohibit any use of schoolhouses and school grounds within its district which would otherwise be permitted under the provisions of this section. Such regulations shall provide for the safety and security of the pupils and shall not conflict with the provisions of this chapter and shall conform to the purposes and intent of this section and shall be subject to review on appeal to the commissioner of education as provided by law.”

Chancellor’s Regulation A-412: Security in the Schools (Sec I-A) 

“Public schools should provide a safe and secure environment for students, staff, and parents…” 

Where Are We Now? — We have not been silent. Principals have raised the issue with their leadership and parents have raised the issue with their schools. The issues have been reported in major news outlets (links below). Still, there has been no response or effort by the BOE or the DOE to address these concerns.

Read more:

• NYC parents push back against using public schools for early voting (NY Daily News)
• Parents rip into Eric Adams after mayor says they might have to volunteer to protect NYC schools after new safety agents cut: ‘Not my job!’ (NY Post)
• ‘The State Kind of Dumped This On Us:’ Early Voting Stirs Anxiety in N.Y. (NY Times)
• Parents slam early-vote invasion at NYC schools (NY Post)
• An Early Voting Headache: Parents, Administrators Cite Safety and Disruption Concerns for 33 NYC Schools (NY1)

Viable Alternatives — To address the safety concerns while maintaining the convenience of early voting, we propose utilizing sites such as places of worship, libraries and community centers as early voting sites, and there are a number of options near each school. 

“When asked about recent concerns regarding student safety with the designation of polling sites at public schools across the city, Ryan [Michael Ryan, executive director of the Board of Elections (BOE)] explained the BOE has been working closely with the Department of Education (DOE) to ensure the safety of students. He said an issue in New York City is that the BOE doesn’t own any of the facilities that operate as polling sites. ‘If there are other locations throughout the city that have less operational impact, those are things that we will explore moving forward,’ he said.” — Staten Island Advance (October 2019)

Sign the Petition and Spread the Word! — It’s only a matter of time before something more serious occurs. The upcoming 2024 presidential and congressional elections will likely draw large voter turnout, increasing the likelihood of future safety incidents. Let’s come together and make sure that our concerns are heard and addressed. Our students deserve nothing less!

Write to Local Elected Officials — Express your concerns urging them to prioritize our children’s safety. Click here for a letter template you can use as a starting point, as well as a list of elected officials and their contact information.