When his 10-year-old daughter Mercedes came home from her first day of summer school last week, North Bergen resident Ralph Morilla couldn’t believe his ears when Mercedes told him what happened.
Along with every other student, Morilla’s daughter was asked to leave North Bergen High School, where the summer sessions are held annually, and stand outside of the school for 20 minutes while the teachers took a lunch break.
Morilla was mortified. He didn’t understand why his 10-year-old daughter was left to fend for herself on the Kennedy Boulevard side of the high school, along with much older students.
“They’re putting a teacher’s break over the children’s safety,” Morilla said. “I couldn’t understand that. They’re exposing all these kids to Kennedy Boulevard. They’re exposing the older kids to be with the younger ones. I was so mad when I learned about this.”
Morilla was not alone.
Jenny Reyes was also angry that her 11-year-old son Juan had to endure the same procedure.
“I really didn’t know what went on until someone told me,” Reyes said. “I then had to ask Juan what went on and he told me that every kid had to stand outside. Well, I don’t want my son standing on Kennedy Boulevard with the older kids. That’s just not right.”
According to school officials, this has been a standard procedure at the school since summer school has been offered at the high school.
In fact, parents are informed of the procedure on the application for summer school. The 20-minute break is listed prominently on the application.
“We’ve never had a problem before,” said Al Tommasino, who is the summer school director. “In fact, it’s not a problem at all now. Before the students are enrolled in summer school, the parents have to sign the application. The break is clearly listed on the application, right there with the times of the classes and the other rules and regulations.”
Tommasino said that extra security presence is in place during the break period.
“During that break, there are four Board of Education security guards out there and two North Bergen police officers to watch the kids and secure their safety,” Tommasino said. “The police officers are there to make sure that the kids don’t cross Kennedy Boulevard in the middle of the street. We haven’t noticed or heard of any problems. Everything has run quite smooth.”
There are two summer school sessions at the high school. The first session runs from 8:15 a.m. to 10:55 a.m., then there is the break for the teacher’s lunch, which is required by their union contract. The second session then begins at 11:15 a.m. and runs to 1:55 p.m.
Of the 1,000 students, both elementary and high school, who attend summer school classes, approximately 600 are required to attend one session because they failed one subject during the school year. The other 400 or so attend both sessions because they failed two subjects. Any student who failed more than two is required to repeat the scholastic year again in the fall.
The problem stems from those students who have to stay and attend both sessions. The other students obviously go home if they don’t have to remain for the second session.
According to Tommasino, the numbers of younger students attending summer school are very minimal. Most of the students who attend summer school are either in junior high, including seventh and eighth grades, or high school.
“Of the 380 elementary school kids we have, only 82 are taking two subjects,” Tommasino said. “We have 37 fourth and fifth graders and only 16 take two subjects. It’s an extremely small number of students.”
School officials also said that many parents come to take their children away for the 20-minute break and bring them back in time for the second session.
Not an option
But that was not an option for Morilla, considering both he and his wife work. Reyes lives all the way across town and does not drive, so she would have to take a bus just to stay with her son for that break period.
“They could put the kids in a classroom or a cafeteria for that time,” Morilla said. “I was told that it costs too much money to open the cafeteria, so I suggested that they could have high school seniors who want to be teachers volunteer their time and sit with the younger students during that time. They spend money on a patrol. Well, why can’t they do it inside? I tried to handle everything professionally, but I didn’t get any answers. I just don’t think it’s fair.”
School officials said that opening the cafeteria was never an option because it required hiring more staff to coordinate the area. Also, the entire summer school is held at the high school because, in a further attempt to save money, the elementary schools are closed for the summer.
Tommasino said that the summer school is offered free of charge to North Bergen residents, even if the children do not attend a school in the North Bergen public school district. For example, Morilla’s daughter attends Our Lady of Libera School in West New York.
“It’s a free service,” Tommasino said. “I know West New York doesn’t offer summer school. I know other local towns, like Cliffside Park, don’t either. This is a privilege that we give to North Bergen residents, a big-time privilege.”
One school official who requested anonymity posed a poignant question.
“Where does the responsibility of the school end and the responsibility of the parent begin?” the official said. “If these children weren’t in summer school, then what would these parents do with their children? We’re not running a babysitting or daycare service.”
Tommasino said that he has not received any complaints from concerned parents, but the North Bergen Reporter received as many as five phone calls wondering about the procedure. Three of the parents did not want to be quoted in this article.
“I have no problem saying how I feel,” Reyes said. “Something should be done about this. It’s not right that my son is left alone for 20 minutes with kids much older. I don’t like it at all, but what can I do?”
Morilla had another option. He took his daughter out of the summer school and enrolled her at a summer school at St. Joseph of the Palisades in West New York, where he’s paying $330 for each subject.
“I had to take my daughter out and put her in a private school,” Morilla said. “I pay a lot of taxes in this town and this is the thanks I receive. I took my daughter out and no one even called me back, wondering where she was.
Added Morilla, “I tell you, this will become an issue when a kid gets hurt or even killed.”
North Bergen school officials do not foresee any tragedy occurring.
“I don’t see where there can be a problem,” Tommasino said. “I understand the concern of the parents, but they just don’t understand that nothing can happen.”