Borough Park mother pleads for special needs school in COVID red zone to reopen

A Borough Park mother and her children's school are making a plea to the governor and mayor to allow their school, which provides services for kids with special needs, to reopen.
Anna Fridman is a mother to three young boys who are all on the spectrum.
With schools being closed due to the uptick in coronavirus cases in the area, she says her children are not receiving the services they need.
"The speech, the OT, the PT, the therapy they get in school,” says Fridman.
The school, Shema Kolainu in Borough Park, was shut down because it is in a COVID red zone.
"The school has tried everything they can; they send us videos, live chats, anything they can do to help. But unfortunately, unless the child is able to cognitively understand and participate online learning does not work,” says Fridman. "I just don't understand the governor's, the mayor's rationale in punishing children of families with disabilities.”
Dr. Joshua Weinstein is the founder and CEO of the school.
"We should be open for the preschoolers because we have a day care license. But the mere fact that we also have a school age program here negates the whole thing. It's horrendous,” says Dr. Weinstein.
Fridman and Dr. Weinstein says they are begging the governor and mayor to revise the plans in place for red zones that way they can open their doors adding they are safely prepared to do so.
"There are six children in a classroom so there's social distancing. There's a self-contained bathroom so the children don't have to go out. Lunch is in the classroom everything is right there. From the minute they walk into the minute they walk out,” says Dr. Weinstein.
Fridman saying she hopes they'll be allowed to reopen before things get any worse.
"We have tremendous amount of regression, which is very, very painful as a parent to see,” says Fridman.