It’s been reported that sexual misconduct cases in city schools have increased by almost 40%. Click below to read more about this!

Melissa Nash

An upsurge in sexual misconduct allegations is rocking city schools — with more than 150 complaints against staffers in April and May alone, official data show.

The last two months continue the trend of more complaints than in 2011 — a 37% increase over last year’s numbers.

“It’s alarming, it’s very alarming,” said Mona Davids, president of the New York City Parents Union. “We need to start addressing this. We’re seeing the stories in the paper and parents are concerned.”

In the last week alone, there were allegations against two women teachers, including Erin Sayar, an English teacher at James Madison High School, who faces statutory rape charges for allegedly having sex with a 16-year-old student half a dozen times last year.

“Some of the cases have been sort of sensational, so that’s gotten a lot of publicity,” said Special Commissioner of Investigation Richard Condon. “But that doesn’t explain all the other cases that are coming up.”

Overall, the special schools investigator opened 528 misconduct cases in the first five months of this year — 28% more than last year — including 223 cases involving sexual misconduct.

At the same time, Condon’s office has closed 334 cases — a 7% decline since last year.

More school staffers have been arrested so far this year than in all of 2011, according to data from the NYPD, the special schools investigator and news reports. At least 23 Department of Education workers were busted by cops so far this year. In 2011, there were at least 13 arrests.

“I don’t know if in the past [sexual misconduct\] was being covered up or swept under the rugs,” said Chancellor Dennis Walcott, speaking in Albany, where he was lobbying for a new law to give the chancellor instead of arbitrators the final say on firing teachers.

“I think we are giving it much more attention, and one of the things the mayor and I are very clear about is trying to make sure people understand the ramification of these cases.”

United Federation of Teachers president Michael Mulgrew noted yesterday that his union “believes in zero tolerance” on sexual misconduct with children.

“That’s why our contract already includes the toughest penalty in the state — automatic termination — for any teacher found guilty of this offense,” he said in a statement.

Zakiyah Ansari, advocacy director for the Alliance for Quality Education, said proven abusers must be removed promptly from the classroom. “We have to make sure this is about keeping our children safe and nothing else,” she said.