NYC schools would need staggered start times on remote learning days
NEW YORK CITY (PIX11) -- City officials are considering staggered start times on remote learning days after technical issues prevented many New York City students from logging in during a February snowstorm.
"If we have a remote learning day tomorrow, we should be working to stagger start times, which we agree is not ideal from a student and staff perspective," said Emma Vadehra, the education department’s chief operating officer.
The New York City Council held an oversight hearing on Wednesday to zero in on the technical problems that left many students and parents stumped in front of the computer. At the time of the incident, Mayor Eric Adams said IBM's system was to blame for the login issues.
However, officials from IBM countered that argument during the hearing saying, "It was not a failure of IBM technology." IBM was contracted to handle up to 400 "transactions per second," said the education department's deputy chief information officer, according to ChalkBeat. The city has over 1 million students and school staff.
School officials say that IBM suggested that the city upgrade its service contract, however, there is no estimate yet on how much that could cost.
Charline Charles is a digital journalist from Brooklyn who has covered local news along with culture and arts in the New York City area since 2019. She joined PIX11 News in 2022. See more of her work here.