New York parents say more needs to be done to keep kids safe at school

With the violence sweeping the city’s schools, NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell answered questions from children Saturday at a Harlem event meant for kids to get to know the police.

But while the teens wanted to know what it was like to be in charge of the police, some families said more needed to be done to keep the kids safe.

“We need more security. More police around schools,” said Washington Heights grandma Myra Palacio, 58. “In schools, teachers and staff should be more concerned when children leave school. They should have increased security inside and outside the schools.”

Palacio helps take care of his grandchildren, including a 9-year-old who attends KIPP Infinity Charter School in West Harlem.

In the current academic year, cases of shooting and stabbing among students have become more frequent: three teenagers were killed near their schools.

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Harlem resident Marsha Taylor, 53, whose children attend the Global Community Charter School in Harlem, says their safety is always a concern.

“Kids not attending school, not attending sporting events, shooting – it annoys me. My children are small. You never know what can happen anytime, anywhere,” she said.

Taylor insists that her children, aged 8 and 10, take cell phones to class, even though this is frowned upon at school.

“In an emergency, I want to be able to communicate with my children if they are in isolation. If someone, unfortunately, gets into this school – and it happens right here in New York – my children, of course, will be horrified. You just never know,” she said.

Sewell did not respond to questions following a Police Athletic League event in Harlem sponsored by anti-violence group Harlem Mothers SAVE.