PS 290 Gets Waiting List -- NY Times Coverage

The NY Times covers the decision to cap enrollment and institute a wait list for PS 290 here. Families living in the school zone were told there is a waiting list for seats in the school. Excerpt:

On the Upper East Side, City Councilwoman Jessica S. Lappin said her office had been inundated with calls from people who received letters from P.S. 290 saying their children were not being offered one of its 125 kindergarten seats “at this time.”

“We sincerely hope that we will be able to accommodate all zoned families seeking a seat at P.S. 290 in the 2009-2010 school year,” wrote the school’s principal, Sharon Hill, without offering parents guidance on how to proceed.

Ms. Lappin faulted the mayor and the schools chancellor, not individual principals, for the situation.

Sample letter to parents here.

The article makes an error in stating the UES schools are "newly inundated" with children. PS 290 has been amongst the city's most overcrowded schools for many years and surrounding schools have become progressively more overcrowded as the Bloomberg administration has failed to match school capacity to the rampant residential development.