Child sexual abuse probe launched at NYC elementary school – after city finds staff didn’t immediately report allegations: records

An upscale Upper East Side daycare and preschool that costs up to $40,000 a year is being investigated over allegations that a student was sexually assaulted by an employee — and angry parents say management kept them in the dark for more than a week.

The city’s Health Department was alerted to the grisly case and launched an investigation on April 27 at the Second Avenue Manhattan Schoolhouse after inspectors found that employees failed to report the grisly case within 24 hours, as required by law, according to agency records.

But Manhattan Schoolhouse, a chain of other Upper East Side facilities that serve children ages 3 months to 5 years old, didn’t talk about the situation publicly until a week later, when a social media post about the incident exploded on an online moms’ group, according to angry parents.

“We are cooperating fully with all authorities regarding the allegations,” read an email from Manhattan Schoolhouse leadership sent Thursday to parents and obtained by The Post. “Nothing has been confirmed and our extensive internal investigation has found no support for these allegations.”

A statement from a parent claiming to be the guardian of the suspects that has spread on social media revealed that the kindergarten’s “lack of explanation and response left us unable to choose to go to the pediatrician, which is what led to the investigation.

“We were very careful before we suspected and tried to work with the MSH leadership,” the document said, adding that “the MSH leadership was very painful to work with,” and the management “immediately removed our two children from daycare.”

“We thought it best to cut ties with this family by removing the second child who continued to go to school during the investigation for reasons, out of respect for the family and staff, that we should not share,” said the email from the leadership.

“This step has been taken to protect schools, staff and children from ongoing problems or risks.”

The school’s founding CEO Kamila Faruki declined a request for comment, citing an open investigation.

“Our highest priority is the safety and well-being of New York City children in child care and we take allegations of child abuse very seriously,” a health department spokesperson told The Post.

Penalties are “pending” in connection with Manhattan Schoolhouse’s “open” reporting violations, according to individual inspection documents.

Sending children to Manhattan Schoolhouse childcare comes with a price tag.

A typical 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily schedule costs parents $3,250 a month, or $39,000 a year. The pre-K program, however, is run by the city’s Department of Education and is therefore free — although wrap-up care after 2:30 p.m. can cost more than $25,000 a year for working families.

The news comes as Manhattan Schoolhouse told parents it would raise tuition for others by 20% and blamed the tuition increase in part on the “crippling” growth of preschools across the country.

Still, “a lot of our families don’t have a ton of money, it’s like the cheapest option, even after they’ve raised tuition,” said the parent. “We’re stuck here.”

“The child was sexually abused and did not report it,” added the parent. “The school has an obligation to report, but it didn’t.”

The parent, who declined to be named to The Post for fear of retaliation, alleged that the Manhattan Schoolhouse refused to provide a classroom camera at the guardians’ request.

“This is every parent’s worst nightmare every time they take their kids to school,” she said, “and they don’t see what’s going on?”

“We are all the same, except for us,” he added. “Some families are already talking about taking their children out of the Manhattan Schoolhouse. Some families … who were going to send their children to the Schoolhouse are now withdrawing.”

In a Thursday email to parents, school leadership contended that “cameras are active in all of our classrooms and common areas.

“We have reviewed all the camera footage and found no evidence or support for these allegations,” the school said. “We have shared all the video footage and documents with the agencies and will continue to provide them with anything else they ask for.”

This isn’t the first time the Second Avenue area has been subject to city violations, either.

An October inspection found that the floor/wall ceiling was “unmaintained; exposed or covered in toxic material,” according to inspection records. The issue was resolved later, the agency said.

In April 2025, inspectors also found that the child care service “failed to ensure that staff received required training within the prescribed time frame and/or failed to maintain training records,” and that the teaching assistant “did not meet age requirements and educational requirements.”

That violation was later corrected.

An inspection last year at another Manhattan Schoolhouse site at 1624 First Avenue found similar violations of “age and education requirements” for teachers, including one violation from last May that is still marked as “open.”

A review of the ruling from that time also found that employees working as group teachers “do not meet the necessary qualifications for the position.”

An October inspection found the building was not approved as a child care facility by at least one city agency. That breach has since been fixed – although the site suffered a similar breach in January.

At the 507 West 28th St. school site, inspectors found inadequate lighting and inadequate daily attendance records last year, and in January 2025, found the facility “failed to provide adequate security guards … to protect children from potential harm.”

Faruki declined a request to comment on the health department’s previous violations.

“We are doing everything possible to use this investigation and agencies to resolve it as quickly as possible,” added the email from the leadership.

“Unfortunately, we cannot control the speed of the investigation.”