NEW YORK (PIX11) — There is a teacher shortage in New York City, but according to the schools chancellor, there’s a desperate need for bilingual educators to support students.
Fourteen percent of New York City public school students are learning English as their second language. And according to the Department of Education, one and five students speak Spanish.
P.S. 111 in Hell’s Kitchen is just one of many schools that took in migrant children. As of right now, there are more than 70 migrant kids enrolled at the school. According to the superintendent for District 2, there are currently two teachers strong enough in Spanish to teach and support these asylum-seeking children.
The chancellor announced Thursday that 25 teachers from the Dominican Republic would be dispersed throughout New York City schools as part of a larger plan to help support Spanish-speaking students.
They will be cultural ambassadors and help with their education as they understand what these kids have gone through.
The plan is to start with 25 teachers and have 50 by the end of the year, the chancellor said. Then, in five years, they hope to bring up to 500 teachers from the Dominican Republic to New York.
If the rollout is successful, the DOE said this could be the foundation for a plan to bring more educators from other countries to address the needs of New York City’s diverse school population.
