The City Council’s Education Committee, chaired by Council Member Daniel Dromm, will hold an oversight hearing, “Oversight: Meeting Physical Education Requirements” as well as to consider Int. 644. Below is information regarding the upcoming hearing:
Hearing on: Oversight: “Meeting Physical Education Requirements” and Int. 644
Date: Wednesday, June 17, 2015
Time: 1:00 p.m. (*public testimony is estimated to begin at or after 3:00pm)
Place: Council Chambers – City Hall
According to the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), as many as 40% of elementary school children in New York City are overweight or obese and less than half of NYC children meet physical activity guidelines. Despite the alarming obesity rates among City school-age children, and the documented benefits of physical activity and physical education (PE) for children’s health and academic achievement, City public schools are not meeting State PE mandates. The American Heart Association completed a study in 2013 demonstrating the lack of adequate PE in the City’s public schools. On May 5, 2015, the Comptroller’s Office released a report, “Dropping the Ball: Disparities in Physical Education in New York City Schools,” revealing that 32% of City schools lack a full-time, certified physical education teacher; 28% lack a dedicated physical fitness space; and nearly 10% of schools lack both a full-time, certified PE teacher and a physical fitness space.
The Committee will also hear testimony on the following:
Int. 644-2015 - A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring the department of education to report information on physical education in New York City schools.
The full text of Int. 644-2015 can be found at the following link on the Council’s website: http://legistar.council.nyc.gov/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=2170477&GUID=2682A7A6-EE35-49F7-947A-4DC6FC69B2E2&Options=Advanced&Search=
We invite members of Community Education Councils, parents, students, educators, advocates, and all other stakeholders and interested members of the public to testify at this hearing. Testimony will be limited to 2-3 minutes per person to allow as many as possible to testify. Although the hearing starts at 1:00 p.m., the Administration (Department of Education), as well as other witnesses (such as elected officials) have been invited to testify and answer questions from Council Members at the outset, so we do not expect to hear from others until approximately 3:00 pm or later. Please make sure you fill out a witness slip on the desk of the Sergeant-at-arms if you wish to testify. If you plan to bring written testimony, please bring at least 20 copies. If you are unable to attend the hearing and wish to submit written testimony, please email your testimony to jatwell@council.nyc.gov.