Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Brooklyn Heights Parents Enraged By Kindergarten Space Shortage
By
Lauren Evans
Published Apr 16, 2015
Modified Apr 16, 2015
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Lauren Evans
Published Apr 16, 2015
Modified Apr 16, 2015
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Brooklyn Heights parents are enraged that their local public school is too packed to accommodate many of their young Georginas and Marmalades, forcing them instead to commute to not-so-nearby Vinegar Hill.
Of the 207 families zoned for P.S. 8, 40 percent were told to hit the bricks ("placed elsewhere"), to the rage of many neighbors who wrongly assumed that the proximity of their homes would ensure Little Servillete's spot at the school.
“We bought a home here and one of the main reasons was because it was known that kindergarten admissions were pretty much guaranteed,” one parent, Felix Shipkevich, told the Post.
"It’s incredibly unfair,” said another. “There are people who live across the street from P.S. 307 that get to come to my school and my kids don’t get to go there."
The overstuffing can be attributed to the influx of Brooklyn Heights residents in recent years, thanks to nearby residential developments bringing in more families than school facilities can accommodate. P.S. 8 has already lost its pre-K program, and is in danger of losing its art and music rooms as well, the Brooklyn Paper reports.
A parent-teacher group also told the paper that the number of classes in each grade has been increasing each year, with three fifth-grade classes set to graduate this year, and six kindergarten classes poised to move on to first grade.
With an additional 30 kindergartners are already pre-registered for next year, school administrators will be forced to become increasingly creative about space: Maybe class can be held in some of the campus's roomier supply closets? If dumpsters can be made into chic swimming pools, who's to say they can't be converted into music studios? Classrooms are everywhere, if you look hard enough and have all your shots!
Tagged
brooklyn heights
DOE
education
kindergarten
Lauren Evans
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Mamdani names re-entry specialist as chair of Rikers oversight board
Christopher Watler will help the department that a federal monitor says remains in crisis.
By
Ryan Kost
Published Oct 6, 2026 at 3:52 p.m. ET
NYC weighs expanding upstate reservoir following drought
The Delaware River Basin Commission is evaluating options to increase water storage, including expanding a reservoir in New York City.
By
Rosemary Misdary
News
NYC weighs expanding upstate reservoir following drought
The Delaware River Basin Commission is evaluating options to increase water storage, including expanding a reservoir in New York City.
By
Rosemary Misdary
Legionella found in Staten Island building's water system after 2 positive cases
By
Catalina Gonella
Legal 'loophole' helps NY Gov. Kathy Hochul, Bruce Blakeman raise millions
By
Jon Campbell
Police identify 2 men wanted for stabbing an off-duty NYPD officer
By
Ben Feuerherd
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .