Migrant families notified they have 60 days to leave the city’s shelter system say they’re worried their children’s education will be upended as they seek a roof over their heads just as schools break for Christmas.
Families staying at the Row — a Midtown hotel that was converted into a shelter last year — said notices in various languages are papered along hallways, warning that staff will be notifying them when they must leave. They said shelter staff began knocking on doors last week, handing out 60-day notices and referring them to a social worker for help finding another place to live. The first recipients of the notice face a deadline to leave right around the Christmas holiday.
Others say they’re anxiously waiting for the knock on the door and haven’t received any answers about what relocating means for their school-aged children.
“My kids tell me they don’t want to change schools because they have their friends and they love their teachers,” said Reyna Perez, who has been living with her three children at the Row. “They’re doing really well.”
City officials said 250 of the 60-day notices have been issued across shelters so far. Migrants have the option of reapplying for shelter. The policy previously applied just to single adult migrants, and was extended to migrant families last month.
Education and child advocates say the new shelter limits will force families to make difficult choices about keeping their children in their current schools while finding a new place to live. The advocates fear this will result in students facing longer commutes to get to school – or simply not showing up to class. Parents will also have the option of enrolling their kid in a new school. But many migrant parents and kids said they did not want to leave their school community.
Mayor Eric Adams insists the new rules won’t destabilize children’s education and federal rules guarantee homeless students the right to stay in their school even if they…
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