President Bush is heading uptown today to showcase a flourishing Harlem school, thrilling the school’s students, but not its neighbors.
Bush will use the Harlem Village Academy Charter School on W. 144th St. as a backdrop to push Congress to extend his No Child Left Behind law.
The fifth- to eighth-grade students – who are assigned two hours of homework a night and posted impressive state math scores last year – are delighted by the visit, the school’s founder said. “It gives them a sense of pride that the President wants to come to Harlem to honor all of their hard work,” said founder Deborah Kenny. “It makes me so happy to see them feel great about themselves.”
The four-year-old charter school teaches a challenging population, according to administrators, with 88% of students living at or near the poverty level and many already lagging behind academically.
The neighborhood is also preparing for Bush’s visit, as garbage cans are removed and no-parking signs are posted on surrounding streets.
Nellie Bailey, founder of the Harlem Tenants Council, felt it’s galling for Bush to visit Harlem, because so many residents are opposed to the Iraq war and feel he’s done very little for them.
“It’s a bit of adding insult to injury,” Bailey said. “I think Harlem is with the rest of the country. His popularity is as low in Harlem, or even lower, than it is in the rest of the country.”
Edward Simmons, an accountant whose office is around the corner from the school, has concerns about Bush’s foreign policy, but he plans to be a gracious host. “If you are a fan or not, you’re still an American and you are still patriotic,” he said. “They’re not going to be unkind. He’s the President.”
Bush will also stop at a fund-raiser for the Republican National Committee at the Park Ave. home of Steve Schwartzman, CEO of the Blackstone Group equity firm, GOP sources said.
