Student Safety at Risk — Eliminate Early Voting from NYC Public Schools
Student Safety at Risk — Eliminate Early Voting from NYC Public Schools
The Issue
May 2025 Update
We need your support again! A new bill is working its way to Governor Hochul’s desk and we need as many New York State Assembly Members to co-sponsor as possible. Fortunately, helping is easy to do.
Simply click the three links below—best if done using your phone. Each one will open a pre-populated email asking the assembly members for their co-sponsorship. Sign your name at the bottom and hit send.
*******
@NoSchlsEarlyVt
www.noearlyvotingatschools.com
*******
Urgent action is needed to address safety concerns in our NYC public schools during early voting on school days. Incidents of security breaches, with voters intruding into student areas and even displaying aggression towards staff, are an ongoing threat that has gone unaddressed, despite the pleas of school principals and parents. This petition is not against early voting, but seeks to ensure school safety and eliminate the impact of early voting on schools.
Enlace de petición en español
中文请愿链接
ссылка на петицию по-русски
In 2024, over 30 NYCPSs served as early voting sites across Brooklyn, the Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island. Queens had no public schools used as early voting sites.
Security Incidents — Among the many issues schools face, the issue of paramount concern is security. Voters have wandered into areas of the school where students are present – in or near hallways, classrooms, lunchrooms and student restrooms. In November 2023, a voter wandered into the lunch room at P.S. 8 on Staten Island, grew agitated, shouted at a staff member, made threatening gestures, and spat on the floor.
Lack of Support — Why can’t schools increase security? Principals are dipping into their own already limited budgets to pay for additional staff to increase security, but it's not enough and shouldn't be the school’s responsibility in the first place. Principals are left to shoulder the burden of safeguarding their students, even as the Board of Elections (BOE) and the Department of Education (DOE) fail to provide the necessary support and resources.
Against Policy… and Common Sense — Nothing is more important than the safety of our students. NY State and DOE policy clearly state that the use of schools cannot jeopardize student safety.
Read more:
- NYC parents push back against using public schools for early voting (NY Daily News)
- Parents rip into Eric Adams after mayor says they might have to volunteer to protect NYC schools after new safety agents cut: ‘Not my job!’ (NY Post)
- ‘The State Kind of Dumped This On Us:’ Early Voting Stirs Anxiety in N.Y. (NY Times)
- Parents slam early-vote invasion at NYC schools (NY Post)
- An Early Voting Headache: Parents, Administrators Cite Safety and Disruption Concerns for 33 NYC Schools (NY1)
Viable Alternatives — To address the safety concerns while maintaining the convenience of early voting, we propose utilizing sites such as places of worship, libraries and community centers as early voting sites, and there are a number of options near each school.
“When asked about recent concerns regarding student safety with the designation of polling sites at public schools across the city, Ryan [Michael Ryan, executive director of the Board of Elections (BOE)] explained the BOE has been working closely with the Department of Education (DOE) to ensure the safety of students. He said an issue in New York City is that the BOE doesn’t own any of the facilities that operate as polling sites. ‘If there are other locations throughout the city that have less operational impact, those are things that we will explore moving forward,’ he said.” — Staten Island Advance (October 2019)
Sign the Petition and Spread the Word! — It’s only a matter of time before something more serious occurs. The upcoming 2024 presidential and congressional elections will likely draw large voter turnout, increasing the likelihood of future safety incidents. Let’s come together and make sure that our concerns are heard and addressed. Our students deserve nothing less!
2,237
The Issue
May 2025 Update
We need your support again! A new bill is working its way to Governor Hochul’s desk and we need as many New York State Assembly Members to co-sponsor as possible. Fortunately, helping is easy to do.
Simply click the three links below—best if done using your phone. Each one will open a pre-populated email asking the assembly members for their co-sponsorship. Sign your name at the bottom and hit send.
*******
@NoSchlsEarlyVt
www.noearlyvotingatschools.com
*******
Urgent action is needed to address safety concerns in our NYC public schools during early voting on school days. Incidents of security breaches, with voters intruding into student areas and even displaying aggression towards staff, are an ongoing threat that has gone unaddressed, despite the pleas of school principals and parents. This petition is not against early voting, but seeks to ensure school safety and eliminate the impact of early voting on schools.
Enlace de petición en español
中文请愿链接
ссылка на петицию по-русски
In 2024, over 30 NYCPSs served as early voting sites across Brooklyn, the Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island. Queens had no public schools used as early voting sites.
Security Incidents — Among the many issues schools face, the issue of paramount concern is security. Voters have wandered into areas of the school where students are present – in or near hallways, classrooms, lunchrooms and student restrooms. In November 2023, a voter wandered into the lunch room at P.S. 8 on Staten Island, grew agitated, shouted at a staff member, made threatening gestures, and spat on the floor.
Lack of Support — Why can’t schools increase security? Principals are dipping into their own already limited budgets to pay for additional staff to increase security, but it's not enough and shouldn't be the school’s responsibility in the first place. Principals are left to shoulder the burden of safeguarding their students, even as the Board of Elections (BOE) and the Department of Education (DOE) fail to provide the necessary support and resources.
Against Policy… and Common Sense — Nothing is more important than the safety of our students. NY State and DOE policy clearly state that the use of schools cannot jeopardize student safety.
Read more:
- NYC parents push back against using public schools for early voting (NY Daily News)
- Parents rip into Eric Adams after mayor says they might have to volunteer to protect NYC schools after new safety agents cut: ‘Not my job!’ (NY Post)
- ‘The State Kind of Dumped This On Us:’ Early Voting Stirs Anxiety in N.Y. (NY Times)
- Parents slam early-vote invasion at NYC schools (NY Post)
- An Early Voting Headache: Parents, Administrators Cite Safety and Disruption Concerns for 33 NYC Schools (NY1)
Viable Alternatives — To address the safety concerns while maintaining the convenience of early voting, we propose utilizing sites such as places of worship, libraries and community centers as early voting sites, and there are a number of options near each school.
“When asked about recent concerns regarding student safety with the designation of polling sites at public schools across the city, Ryan [Michael Ryan, executive director of the Board of Elections (BOE)] explained the BOE has been working closely with the Department of Education (DOE) to ensure the safety of students. He said an issue in New York City is that the BOE doesn’t own any of the facilities that operate as polling sites. ‘If there are other locations throughout the city that have less operational impact, those are things that we will explore moving forward,’ he said.” — Staten Island Advance (October 2019)
Sign the Petition and Spread the Word! — It’s only a matter of time before something more serious occurs. The upcoming 2024 presidential and congressional elections will likely draw large voter turnout, increasing the likelihood of future safety incidents. Let’s come together and make sure that our concerns are heard and addressed. Our students deserve nothing less!
2,237
Supporter Voices
Petition created on November 15, 2023