Eliza Shapiro, The New York Times
Published: 03 Jun 2021 01:52 PM BdST
Updated: 03 Jun 2021 01:52 PM BdST Theresa DiCristi, custodial engineer, in a corridor at Public School 276 in lower Manhattan on May 6, 2021. Last year, one million students and their teachers emptied out of New York City’s school buildings as the pandemic took hold of the city. DiCristi is one of the staff members who stayed. (Elianel Clinton/The New York Times)
When the nation’s largest school system shuttered last spring, the 1 million students that had flooded its classrooms were abruptly sent home. Tens of thousands of teachers had just a few days to collect their papers and prepare for online classes before schools were mostly emptied. But in the absence of children and educators, there was a vast and often unseen force of essential school staff that never left New York City’s 1,800 school buildings.
Last year, one million students and their teachers emptied out of New York City’s school buildings as the pandemic took hold of the city. These are the staff members who stayed.