A 6-year-old was locked out of his Queens elementary college after recess by oblivious staffers, The Put up has realized.
First-grader Yosef Alwakzeh was shut out of the PS 35 constructing in Hollis after employees missed him whereas calling in college students from the schoolyard on Oct. 11, the boy’s outraged father, Nagi Alwakzeh, instructed The Put up.
Hours later, a faculty safety agent confided to Alwakzeh {that a} father or mother discovered Yosef wandering the streets alone earlier than bringing him again to the 191st Avenue college, the father-of-seven mentioned.
“’They locked the door and I knocked on the door, I cried. No one opened the door,’” the boy instructed his father.
It’s unclear how lengthy Yosef was left outdoors or how far he strayed on the 68-degree day, however Alwakzeh mentioned his youngster recalled seeing a ladder at one level. That led him to consider his son might have wandered lower than 200 toes down 191st Avenue to the busy nook of Jamaica Avenue, the place mentioned hardhats have been at work in current weeks, he mentioned.
Alwakzeh mentioned he didn’t hear from the college about his son’s disappearance till he picked him up that day at dismissal — and solely after a trainer requested him concerning the mishap.
“When one thing occurs like this to any youngster, it’s best to name the dad and mom instantly,” he mentioned. “After which it’s best to name the ambulance to verify the child’s OK.”
PS 35 apologized to Alwakzeh for the incident, though sources forged doubt on whether or not the kid obtained out onto the road, with one noting there may be building gear scattered across the constructing, together with the college yard.
The boy’s ordeal isn’t the primary time questions of safety have rocked PS 35 lately.
Two years in the past, when the constructing had an early morning intruder alert, college leaders ordered employees to brush the hallways for the possibly armed trespasser, though cops had but to reach, sources mentioned. The warning turned out to be a false alarm, however one trainer fumed that the college’s management put their colleagues lives on the road.
The varsity’s principal, Aneesha Jacko, additionally employed an ex-con who had been convicted in a 2010 gun case to function a full-time substitute classroom aide.
The aide was booted in June 2023 after The Put up reported on his legal historical past and complaints from employees about his erratic habits and use of inappropriate language in entrance of kids.
DOE spokeswoman Jenna Lyle mentioned the college’s newest blunder had been reported to investigators.
“District management is working with the college to make sure correct security and supervision always whereas offering essential assist for this pupil,” she mentioned.
A spokesperson for Particular Commissioner of Investigation for metropolis faculties mentioned the impartial watchdog is reviewing the allegation.
Jacko didn’t reply to requests for remark.
Extra reporting by Susan Edelman and Georgia Worrell
Supply hyperlink