UWS Has Lowest Opt-Out Rate For In-Person Learning In Manhattan

Upper West Side NY

22 September, 2020

1:08 PM

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UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — The number of Upper West Side public school students opting out of the city's in-person learning plan continues to be among the lowest in New York City, and is the lowest out of any school district in Manhattan. According to the latest data released Monday by the Department of Education, 39 percent of District 3, which covers the Upper West Side, have chosen to start the year with distance learning when school reopens. That amounts to about 8,294 of the district's roughly 21,200 students. The numbers are higher in every other Manhattan school district, and only three districts in all of New York City have opted for remote learning at a lower rate. Here are the figures for the other Manhattan public school districts: District 1/Lower East Side: 51 percent have opted for remote learningDistrict 2/Lower West Side, Midtown, UES: 47 percent have opted for remote learningDistrict 4/East Harlem: 49 percent have opted for remote learningDistrict 5/Central and West Harlem: 41 percent have opted for remote learningDistrict 6/Inwood and Washington Heights: 46 percent have opted for remote learning While the Upper West Side opt-out rate of in-person learning has remained comparatively low, it has gradually grown over the past couple weeks. It has gone from 26 percent at the end of August to 33 percent on Sept. 8, to its current 39 percent figure of students choosing to learn from home. That increase coincides with Mayor Bill de Blasio's abrupt announcement last week that the start of in-person classes would be pushed back for most students. Originally set for Sept. 21, staffing shortages forced the city to switch to a phased reopening that will last through the beginning of October. Citywide, about 46 percent of New York's one million students are requesting remote learning, according to the city data — up from 39 percent last week. City officials have said they expect the numbers to change as more families opt-in or out of remote learning throughout the year. Patch reporter Nick Garber contributed to this report.