http://www.nydailynews.com/boroughs/brooklyn/2007/05/10/2007-05-10_arabic_school_switch_.html
After months of parent protests, city education officials announced plans yesterday to move a proposed Arabic language school from its original planned site in Park Slope to a high school campus in Boerum Hill.
The Khalil Gibran International Academy will be housed at 345 Dean St., now home to the Brooklyn High School of the Arts, as well as the Math and Science Exploratory School, a popular and sought-after middle school that boasts top reading and math scores.
“We are confident that the three schools can share space effectively,” Education Department spokeswoman Melody Meyer said.
The academy had been slated to move into Public School 282 in Park Slope, a decision that sparked outrage among parents of the elementary school.
In a March 14 letter to schools Chancellor Joel Klein, parents association officials called for a halt to the plan.
The “objections are in no way based in ethnic or religious intolerance,” the letter stated. “Our concerns are based solely on the allocation of limited resources.”
Parents went on to protest several times in front of Education Department headquarters in Manhattan, chanting, “No middle school at 282.”
After meeting with the school’s principal and leadership, officials decided last week to pull the academy from the PS 282 campus, saying it would be “detrimental” to its academic programs.
Several PS 282 parents expressed relief yesterday.
“I’m glad our efforts paid off,” said Susana Smoleac. “We have our school back, and that’s the most important thing.”
The new location is more appropriate, said Xiomara Fraser.
“They’re in the right place. A middle school belongs with another middle school,” she said.
The academy will begin in September with a sixth grade of as many as 60 students. It will use three rooms - two for instruction and one for offices - and will share common areas, such as the cafeteria, with the other two schools.
The Boerum Hill campus will be a temporary site for two years. No programs at the existing high school or middle school should be affected, officials said.
