BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) - Buffalo Schools Superintendent Kriner Cash is pushing back on a recent report which highlighted the poor attendance at Buffalo Public Schools.
According to a report last week by Investigative Post, only one-third of students at the district have satisfactory attendance this year, though the report also said the district's attendance issues happened prior to the coronavirus pandemic.
"The Investigative Post story is garbage," Cash said when asked by WBEN about the report. "It's a piece of garbage so shame on you for reading it. It's garbage."
When asked why he feels that way about the report, he said it was inaccurate and claimed the outlet did not ask the district about attendance.
Cash acknowledged that some students are not regularly attending school. He said the district will be partnering with parents to try and come up with solutions to the issue but also called on parents to encourage kids to motivate themselves to go to school, saying they need to put in the work.
"We got to get out and get everybody to say it's time to get up," Cash said. "That's what (former Chief of Staff and Current Williamsville Superintendent Darren Brown Hall) said. He had a strong family support...who made sure going to school was a non-negotiable...He said he had a strong church family and strong church home...I've asked the pastors...but I want all the kids in a church home. I want them in there. That's what we talk about in our community schools."
But Cash also railed into reporting on Buffalo Schools and said the attendance issues also affect suburban districts from Tonawanda, Cheektowaga, Amherst, Williamsville, and other districts.
"Too often, racism - flat out racism - creeps into your narrative," Cash said. "It gets right into your narrative and you start blaming these beautiful children. You start blaming all the families. You start blaming all the communities of color about intractable problems when these things have been going on in all schools around...They don't make it into your media. Start covering the whole story and put us as part of the quilt and not only the bad patch in the quilt."
Nearly 31,000 students are enrolled at the region's largest district, which is also one of the largest in the state. 28% of public school students in Erie County attend Buffalo Schools.
"If some of them didn't come to school this year or didn't check in at attendance, we'll get caught up," Cash said. "Kids are resilient. They'll get caught up. What draws kids to school is all the great programming that we're going to have in there. More advanced courses, more athletics than they've ever seen before beginning in fifth grade with modified school programs, more arts and music in every school."
