District 3 is headquartered at 154 West 93rd Street, the Joan of Arc building (Google Maps)
Free Upper West Side News, Delivered To Your Inbox
At Tuesday night’s Community Education Council District 3 meeting, an adult participant unmuted on Zoom and made what Superintendent Dr. Reginald Higgins described as “inappropriate, harmful, and racially offensive” remarks — while students were giving testimony.
Advertisement
The comments, which Dr. Higgins said included “disparaging language about Black students and demeaning assumptions about their abilities and futures,” were heard by many attendees, including children.CEC District 3 represents public elementary and middle schools on the West Side of Manhattan from W. 59th Street to W. 122nd Street, covering the Upper West Side, Morningside Heights, and parts of Harlem. The council’s mission is to advocate for District 3 families and support the educational needs of the district’s elementary and middle school students.
According to Dr. Higgins, the meeting had opened with a reminder that students were present and that adults share responsibility for modeling respectful behavior. Despite that, the remarks were made during student testimony. Community members, including parents and other attendees, called out the harm in real time, and several individuals later acknowledged the impact in the meeting chat.
“Our students demonstrated courage in sharing their experiences publicly, and they deserved an environment that affirmed and protected them,” Dr. Higgins wrote in an email to the District 3 community on Wednesday. “Instead, many were left feeling upset, targeted, and disrespected.”
Dr. Higgins said the district is taking several steps in response, including direct follow-up with the parties involved, support for impacted students and staff, and a review of conduct expectations at public meetings.
Advertisement
“Our district does not tolerate racist or discriminatory language, behavior, or conduct — in any form, in any space,” he wrote.Several school leaders and families have since reached out to district leadership expressing concern about the incident’s impact on the broader community, according to the superintendent’s email.
ILTUWS has reached out to District 3 and the Department of Education for further comment and to ask what specific actions will be taken to ensure this doesn’t happen again. Here’s the statement we received from the NYC Department of Education:
NYC Public Schools does not tolerate discrimination. We take these matters very seriously and the superintendent as well as our Office of Family and Community Empowerment are providing support to the district in response to this incident. Citywide and Community Education Councils are independent bodies, and their meetings are intended to be respectful spaces for students, families, and staff, and we are dedicated to supporting them in upholding that expectation.
Have a news tip? Send it to us here!
