GothamSchools — daily independent reporting on NYC public schools

Chancellor Walcott takes questions outside P.S. 208 on 1West 11th Street.

Dennis Walcott’s first stop on a busy Friday was to reassure anxious families at Harlem’s P.S. 208, where a teacher was arrested yesterday on charges of molesting a third-grader. Walcott has made a series of similar visits this spring at schools around the city amid a spate of sex abuse accusations.

The surge in accusations has spurred Walcott to campaign for a state law that would make it easier for him to fire teachers who commit sexual misconduct, a campaign that he took to the op/ed page of the New York Times today. But Walcott said the bill would not likely apply to a case like P.S. 208′s, which is being handled by the District Attorney, not Department of Education or city investigators.

School workers who are convicted of sex crimes in criminal courts are fired under existing rules. But if they are charged but acquitted, non-criminal investigators can still find culpability, which would trigger a discipline hearing that could result in the teacher being fined and reinstated.

“We’ll have to see what happens with the case itself,” he told reporters. “One of the things I’ve been talking about is cases that may not be a conviction, but have been substantiated by the Special Commissioner of Investigations. I want to move those decisions out of the hands of arbitrators.”

Walcott spoke to lawmakers in Albany last week, and has sent city officials to hold more meetings this week. But sources told the Daily News that the bill is not likely to pass during this legislative session, which concludes on Tuesday. (more…)