Student walk in a hallway at P.S. 124 in Manhattan.Safety will be a top priority as about 900,000 students return to New York City classrooms this week, Department of Education officials say. Chancellor David C. Banks shared his multipronged plan to protect students both “physically and emotionally” at a press conference Wednesday morning.
like pepper spray, knives, and Tasers last year, as well as an increase in violent incidents outside of schools, according to Banks. Mass shootings at schools across the country have also prompted officials to ramp up emergency response training and bolster mental health services. Some students, educators, and parents have asked the city to pull safety agents — who are employed by the NYPD — out of schools altogether.
Banks, who worked as a school safety agent before becoming a teacher, said he would not apologize for keeping agents in schools.