By Gregg McQueen
The machines will allow students to wash their clothes more easily.
Six months after becoming principal at P.S. 132, Wendy Poveda noticed something unusual.
Members of the staff at the elementary school were bringing home and washing the clothes of students.
Approximately 25 percent of P.S. 132 Juan Pablo Duarte’s students suffer from housing insecurity, either residing in shelters or apartments that are overcrowded.
Some students would fail to come to school because they did not have clean clothes to wear, Poveda said.
“It impacts attendance, it impacts self-esteem,” she remarked.
A solution came in the form of suds.
The school, located at 185 Wadsworth Avenue, has installed an on-site washer and dryer to ensure that students have clean clothes.
The laundry room is the debut project of a new program – dubbed JPD Cares – designed to offer services and programming to aid families in need.
Read more: Uptown school installs student laundry room | Manhattan Times
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