Committee on Education meeting
April 29, 2026, 1:00 PM
Jointly with the Committee on Public Safety.
The Committee on Education held a joint hearing with the Public Safety Committee on school safety and crossing guard operations at DOE schools, examining bills on crossing guard coverage (Int 0457, Int 0788) and a resolution urging the State Legislature to act on school safety. No votes were taken.
What was discussed
- Opening Statements — Joint Hearing on School Safety and Crossing Guard Operations Chairperson Dinowitz (Education) and Chairperson Feliz (Public Safety) opened the joint hearing, with Dinowitz describing his background as a public school parent and former teacher. Council Member Farías delivered opening remarks on Res 0392. Witnesses were sworn in and agency testimony began.
- NYPD School Safety Division on Current Staffing, Vacancies, and School Safety Agent Operations Deputy Chief Mary King, Commanding Officer of NYPD's School Safety Division, testified about the division's current headcount of 3,555 agents (including Assistants) against a budgeted 4,065, a shortage of 360 positions. King described recruitment, ICE response protocols, and coordination with DOE.
- What is the School Safety Agent vacancy rate and what is being done to fill positions? Chairpersons Dinowitz and Feliz questioned Deputy Chief King and NYPD witnesses on staffing shortfalls, asking why 360 vacancies persist even with a new recruit class, whether principals reported students arriving late due to understaffing, and how the Agency would reach pre-pandemic levels. King
- What weapons are being found in schools and how effective is metal-detection equipment? Chairperson Feliz asked in detail about weapons confiscations and metal-detection technology. NYPD witnesses reported 680 knives confiscated during the school year, described three tiers of detection equipment (open gate, traditional metal detectors, X-ray), and acknowledged aging X-ray machines in
- How does the NYPD Crossing Guard Program work, and what are the current vacancy levels? Deputy Inspector Hwan Kim, who oversees crossing guards through the Chief of Patrols office, testified that crossing guard uniforms are about five to seven years old. Feliz and others pressed on vacancies, hours of coverage, and whether schools without sufficient crossing guards put students at
- How does ICE presence near schools affect students, and what are NYPD's and DOE's updated protocols? Chairperson Dinowitz raised an incident where a principal had verified ICE presence near a school before dismissal. DOE's Chief Rampersant and NYPD confirmed that protocols were updated in January, but the Council pressed for clearer public communication and coordination between agencies when ICE is
- How effective is the Project PIVOT program in reducing school discipline incidents? Chairperson Dinowitz asked DOE about Project PIVOT, a supplementary safety program in selected schools. Rampersant described it as a supplementary program focused on discipline prevention at specific schools. The Council pressed for outcome data on its effectiveness and how many schools participate.
- Union Representatives on School Safety Staffing Shortfalls and Worker Conditions Donald Nesbit of Local 372 (Board of Education Employees) and Stamo Karalazarides of the Council of Supervisors testified about the impact of School Safety Agent vacancies on students and workers, calling for higher wages and smaller caseloads to improve retention.
- Students on School Policing Culture and the Impact of Safety Agents on Learning Multiple panels of students testified about their experiences with School Safety Agents, describing incidents of being searched, stopped, or made late to class. Students from schools in Brooklyn and Manhattan called for a shift from punitive safety approaches toward restorative practices.
- Advocates on Alternatives to Punitive School Safety Approaches Naphtali Moore, Isa Abraham, Vladimir Tlali, and others from community organizations testified about the harm of over-policing in schools and called for investment in restorative justice, mental health counselors, and community-based safety models rather than expanded law enforcement presence.
Agenda
4 items
- T2026-1564 Oversight - Examining School Safety and Crossing Guard Operations at DOE Schools. Hearing Held by Committee
- Int 0457-2026 A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to reporting on crossing guard deployment. Hearing Held by Committee
- Int 0788-2026 A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring annual reports on employment turnover of school safety agents and other school safety personnel Hearing Held by Committee
- Res 0392-2026 Resolution calling on the New York State Legislature to Pass and the Governor to Sign, S.9274/A.10381, also known as the Didarul Islam Police Recruitment Act Hearing Held by Committee