8/6/2019 Affidavit of Rachel Dahill-Fuchel Dated 7-29-2011 in Support of Plaintiffs' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment

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ED: NEWYORK COUNTY CLERK 08/03/20111

CEF DOC. NO. 119

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK

NEW YORK COUNTY

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - )(

LISA STEGLICH, individually and as parent and natural

guardian of ALEXANDER HERLIHY, infant, RIC

CHERWIN, individually and as parent and natural guardian:of MARLEY CHERWIN, infant, CAROL BARKER,

individually and as parent and natural guardian of OMARI :

BROWN, infant, GINA DEMETRIUS, individually and as

parent and natural guardian of SEBASTIAN

DEMETRIUS, KIMBERLY JARNOT, individually and as

parent and natural guardian of MARGARET THOMAS,

infant, NYDIA JORDAN, individually and as parent and

natural guardian of HARRY D. JORDAN, infant,

KAVERY KAUL, individually and as parent and natural

guardian of ASHOK KAUL, infant, RUBEN and

GERALDINE LOPEZ, individually and as parents andnatural guardians of SHANE LOPEZ, infant, MADELINE

OLMEDA, individually and as parent and natural guardian

of CRISTINA JULLIA CRUZ, infant, LAZARA

QUINONES, individually and as parent and natural

guardian of DORIS ALCANTARA, infant, and

MARIL YNN SARJEANT, individually and as parent and

natural guardian of ALIYA CLUNIE, infant,

Plaintiffs-Appellants,

-against-

THE BOARD OF EDUCATION OF THE CITY SCHOOL:

DISTRICT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK a/k/a THE

PANEL FOR EDUCATIONAL POLICY, THE

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION OF THE CITY OF

NEW YORK, and DENNIS M. WALCOTT, as Chancellor :

of the City School District of the City of New York,

Defendants-Respondents,

- and-

UPPER WEST SUCCESS ACADEMY CHARTER

SCHOOL a/k/a SUCCESS ACADEMY CHARTER

SCHOOL, MATTHEW MOREY, individually and as

parent and natural guardian of infants THOMAS MOREY

and CLAIRE MOREY, MARTIN AARES, individually

and as parent and natural guardian of infant SABINE

BALOU-AARES, GABRIEL BAEZ, individually and as

1150971.1

INDEX NO. 107173/

RECEIVED NYSCEF: 08/03/

Index No. 107173/11

AFFIDAVIT OF

RACHEL DAHILL-

FUCHEL

8/6/2019 Affidavit of Rachel Dahill-Fuchel Dated 7-29-2011 in Support of Plaintiffs' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment

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8/6/2019 Affidavit of Rachel Dahill-Fuchel Dated 7-29-2011 in Support of Plaintiffs' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment

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3. As of July 29, we still have 171 students on our roster - all students who have

been notified by the DOE that they have a seat in our school. Even if, over the next month 20%

of the incoming students decide to enroll elsewhere, we will still have 147 students in our 9th

grade class of2011-2012. With a maximum of 450 slated for our total capacity, and already

having 211 students on our register, this leaves barely room for 95 students to join us for the

2012-2013 school year. There has been tremendous demand within the community for seats at

Global Learning; we had over 850 applications for 2011-2012.

4. In addition to the fact that we are slated to have 50 more students than for which

we have been allocated space, Global Learning has a very high percentage of high needs

students, English Language Learners (ELLs) and Special Education or IEP students.

5. Currently, we have over 67 ELL students. Some of these students are categorized

as "SIFE", Students with Incomplete Formal Education. These children are functionally, and

sometimes socially/emotionally, illiterate in their own language as well as in English. The DOE

established Global Learning as having a Bilingual program into which they could pour ELL

students into the school. Accordingly, the number of ELL students who will be enrolled in

Global Learning will only increase. These students, whether they are SIFE or have intermediate

English proficiency, require significant support services which in turn requires additional space.

6. At present, Global Learning has more than 60 IEP students, including 18 who

came to Global Learning designated for instruction in a Self-Contained Classroom due to the

nature of their disabilities. In September, 2009, the DOE urged Global Learning to change their

designation to that of Cooperative Team-Teaching, (CTT). Since then, due to the urging of the

Special Education teachers who have worked with some of these students for two full years, the

31150971.1

8/6/2019 Affidavit of Rachel Dahill-Fuchel Dated 7-29-2011 in Support of Plaintiffs' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment

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DOE supported re-designating some as in need of more intensive District 75 settings. However,

to date, these students are still on our roster.

7. Global Learning is designated as a Phase 1 Special Education school and we can

establish independent needs for each student, for each class. In many cases, this means that each

Special Education student requires the type of individualized instruction and supervision that can

only successfully be provided in smaller group settings. Again, this requires additional space

and room, for students to be pulled out of the regular classroom for such instruction, for resource

room activities and instruction, and for counseling. The Special Education teachers both within

our school, and within our network, have stated that to meet the needs of our Special Education

population, we require three designated Special Education classrooms and/or offices. At present

there are NO designated Special Education rooms available.

8. Of the roster for incoming students, 38 are Special Education students. Of the 38,

5 of them are designated as requiring self-contained classrooms, 14 are designated for integrated

co-teaching, and 19 are designated for resource room. Resource room instruction in particular

requires "pull out" space, if it is to be done effectively, again requiring additional classroom

space.

9. Since the construction began on the charter school-designated space on what had

been the multi-purpose second floor, the location of the shared art rooms and office spaces, we

have lost the common spaces which Brandeis High School Principal Liquori had graciously

shared with us. Since our school opened in Fall 2009, we had been able to use three rooms

within the Brandeis section of the school for counseling.

10. Since March, we have had to move our counseling department back into a former

book closet within our school's parameters. Annexed hereto as Exhibit A is a photograph of the

41150971.1

8/6/2019 Affidavit of Rachel Dahill-Fuchel Dated 7-29-2011 in Support of Plaintiffs' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment

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converted closet/counseling room. This is the only space our three counselors have to provide

services to over 200 students. It simply does not offer adequate space or privacy for effective

counseling to take place. Other office space is shared with no fewer than 7 staff members who

do not have classroom space, and who also require secure, private space for student

meetings/counseling during the course of a school day. These offices are rooms 416A and 316A,

and are not large. Often this leads staff to make use of stairwells and hallway corners to counsel

students, a situation that is unprofessional, distracting, not-private, and consequently, untenable.

Global Learning currently lacks space to adequately meet student needs, particularly students at

risk. The situation will only worsen as our student body and students' needs increase at a pace

that outstrips our space allocation.

11. For the fall of2011, the only change to our baseline allocation is the addition of 4

classrooms. No office spaces, no additional foyers, no additional multi-purpose rooms. Just 4

classrooms. While there are shared spaces, such as the gymnasia, library and science lab rooms

that we may use, in concert with the needs of the other high schools, they are not uniquely ours,

and schedules must be aligned to allow us access. One example of our overcrowding is the

scheduling of 20 advisories which meet during the same advisory period. The use of 20 or

smaller person advisories is supported by the DOE as a program which has been proven to

improve student behavior and academics. Advisors often take on roles of guidance counselors as

well as academic advising, to help move children towards community and individual success. It

is within this model that we use the Restorative Practices for which we have been trained by the

program supported by the DOE, and this model requires slightly smaller class sizes, as well as

ability to use "circles" as a mode of learning - consequently, lab rooms with fixed square lab

tables are not conducive to success with this mode of instruction. With only 14 of our own

5

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8/6/2019 Affidavit of Rachel Dahill-Fuchel Dated 7-29-2011 in Support of Plaintiffs' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment

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Global Learning rooms, we need to find 6 additional spaces for advisory classes. For example,

we have made due with using the library to house three distinct groups. This will still leave a

need for 3 groups of about 20 students apiece without space, as of now.

12. Due to the construction that is taking place, it appears that the second floor, which

formerly housed shared facilities, will be used by SACS. This means that high school students

are certain to move through SACS space, as the only way to the courtyard/garden, which the

Revised BUP has scheduled as a shared space, is through four different entrances on the second

floor. Art rooms have had to be relocated at great expense to another floor.

13. According to the Office of School and Youth Development - from September

through June of this year, Global Learning had 68 violent and/or disruptive incidents take place

in the hallways of the Brandeis Campus which were recorded in DOE's On-line Occurrence

Reporting System. (OORS). Overcrowding has caused students to walk through and "hide" in

other parts of the building, and due to insufficient personnel, there is no oversight or supervision

once they are out of our school boundaries. These incidents do not reflect the actions of 68

different students, but the frequent actions of a few. However, these few are the ones who

generally require the most "out of class" support - the ELL and special education students, and

other students who struggle with academics. Our limited staff and resources mean that we can

not follow and monitor them effectively once they are elsewhere in the building.

Sworn to before me this ~

day 0 ly,2011

Notary Public, State of~sll~.GRISSETT

IIDtIurPublfo,l tate of N ew V o t l c

ND.01GR6075310 6I I 5097 I I O t a m r e c t InN ew Y ork C ot:ln ty J

. ODmm lss ion Exp ir es June 3,20:..il