A bitter conflict between a Manhattan principal and her staff has teachers at one of New York City’s top elementary schools headed for the exit and parents worried about what the coming school year will bring.

Just a short walk from the United Nations, P.S. 281 — known as “The River School” for its location in Murray Hill close to the East River — is in many ways a model neighborhood school. Students receive a top-notch education close to home. Parents mingle at the park across the street, and an active PTA hosts monthly bake sales and a talent show.

In 2023, their efforts paid off when the U.S. Education Department named P.S. 281 a National “Blue Ribbon” School , one of a dozen local schools selected that year.

But the honor concealed a deeper problem.

Tensions have been simmering

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