New city policy on kids' swimming trips

One year after a Harlem public school student drowned in Long Beach while on a class trip, the New York City Department of Education has established a tougher policy on school outings that include swimming and other water activities.

In a statement Wednesday on the department's website, city schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott said the revised policy, effective immediately, is to "ensure the safety and welfare of our students and staff . . . regarding the planning and execution of these trips."

Among the changes related to the drowning is a regulation that principals ensure that a lifeguard will be on duty at all times when students are swimming.

Other revisions include requiring additional supervisors on trips that include swimming, the wearing of life jackets by all students involved in water activities, and a more stringent policy on permission slips for such outings.

Nicole Suriel, 12, drowned while swimming off Long Beach last June 22, before regular weekday lifeguard staffing at the beach began for the season.

In a statement Wednesday, Walcott said, "Tragically, last year we lost one of our students in an accident on a school field trip to the beach.

"While we can never change history, we can take action to prevent future tragedies and better protect our students on field trips," he said.

Schools spokeswoman Marge Feinberg said not all the revisions were related to the Suriel drowning, noting a change for more supervision on international trips.

Walcott said that because school trips are coming up as the academic year comes to a close, he is using a section of the state education law that allows him to implement the new guidelines "on an emergency basis." New York City's Panel for Educational Policy will vote on the revisions in a regularly scheduled meeting on Aug. 17, Walcott said.

Parents were not issued permission slips for the trip last year. Suriel was a sixth-grader at Columbia Secondary School for Math, Science and Engineering.

After the drowning, the department of education fired Suriel's teacher, demoted the school's assistant principal and issued a two-year probation to the school's principal.

Suriel's drowning, along with the drowning death of a 19-year-old Brooklyn man in May of last year, prompted the city of Long Beach to produce a film identifying the dangers of ocean swimming when no lifeguards are on duty.

Long Beach officials wanted to play the five-minute public service announcement in New York City schools but school administrators refused the offer.Long Beach City Manager Charles Theofan called that unfortunate. "If this film only saves one life, it would be worth the effort," he said last month.