Bronx charter school closure leaves teachers without pay, families searching for answers
What should have been a joyful time for teachers and students looking forward to summer break is now filled with uncertainty.
More Stories
After more than 25 years in Claremont, the Harriet Tubman Charter School is closing its doors, leaving teachers worried about lost paychecks, health insurance and retirement funds.
What should have been a joyful time for teachers and students looking forward to summer break is now filled with uncertainty.
Kiara Tarver, who has taught at the school for 10 years, says she is now scrambling to find another job.
"It's not that easy to get a job in the summertime because a lot of schools don't really start their direct pay until September," Tarver said.
Many teachers at the school chose to spread their salaries over 12 months instead of 10 so they could continue to receive paychecks during the summer. But with the school closing, some say they may not receive money they already earned or keep their health insurance coverage.
"The health insurance is basically like the same amount of unemployment," Tarver said. "So, it's like we would have to basically struggle to pay the insurance."
Tarver says she is especially worried about losing health insurance after receiving a kidney transplant from a fellow teacher within the last year. She says she has doctor's appointments twice a month, but now she does not know how she will pay for them.
"I need to find one I can afford because I can't go uninsured," she said.
A state report lists several financial challenges facing the school, including expenses continuing to exceed revenue, resulting in a nearly $2 million loss. The report also cites a failure to pay into the teachers' retirement system.
"A lot of people that are retired is saying that they're not getting their payout," Tarver said.
The closure is also leaving parents searching for new schools before the next academic year. Barbara, whose granddaughter is in first grade, says this will now be her third school in three years.
"Charter schools are very limited around here, so it's difficult to get in," she said.
The school is set to close at the end of June. So far, there is no word on what will happen to the building.
