NEWS

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NEW YORK – A New York City councilwoman is giving new meaning to the phrase that “clothes make the man,” or woman, or, in this case, a child.

She wants education officials to expand a program to put washers and dryers in schools that have large numbers of those living in shelters, including migrants.

This puts a new wrinkle, you should pardon the term, in the effort to make migrant children feel at home in New York City, and do well in school.

Manhattan Councilwoman Gale Brewer is leading the charge.

The sound of clothes being cleaned in a school washing machine may be almost as important as being able to recite the ABCs, especially if you live in a shelter, according to Brewer.

“The worst experience of any student is to get bullied. You already have stigma from being in temporary housing. Now you’re being bullied because you smell,” Brewer said.

Brewer is embarking on a campaign to get education officials to install washers and dryers in city schools with large numbers of kids who live in temporary housing after she conducted a study of the schools in Manhattan’s District 3, which she represents. She found that 1,752 students live in shelters, including 581 children of migrants.

“The sheltered children often do not have laundry facilities in their facility, and they go to school and they have dirty clothes,” Brewer said.

She found that 38 of 45 schools do not have washers and dryers, including P.S. 191, the Riverside School for Makers and Artists, which has over 100 students living in shelters.

“Nobody wants to be bullied, don’t want kids to be ostracized because they came from a shelter,” Brewer said.

Officials at P.S. 38 in East Harlem went to great lengths to get a washer and dryer for their school. They not only wash soiled clothes, but they collect apparel and jackets for kids whose parents may not be able to afford it. They say their program makes a big difference.

“We have a huge migrant population, especially here in East Harlem, about 125 of 218 students. So it’s super important we have all kinds of services,” P.S. 38 Community Coordinator Barbara DeLaleu said.

“It also helps with attendance, right? Because if students don’t have any clothes, they don’t want to come to school. So when we provide that service, they’re able to come in and wash their clothes,” Assistant Principal Vanessa Ramos said. “They come in with clean clothing. They don’t feel any pressure.”

“Do you really think it makes a big difference in people wanting to come to school?” CBS New York’s Marcia Kramer asked.

“Yes, definitely,” Ramos said.

Brewer says she’s willing to help find money in the budget to help schools install washers and dryers. She’s also seeking help from the Department of Education.