Queens Elementary School Re-named to Honor Héctor Figueroa

On Tuesday, Jackson Heights, Queens elementary school PS 398 was re-named The Héctor Figueroa School. The re-naming honors the late union leader and 32BJ SEIU President who passed away earlier this year.

Héctor Figueroa was an international labor movement leader and president of the Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), which represents more than 175,000 security guards, school cleaners and handypersons, doorpersons and airport workers. He was a leader in the Fight for 15, a grass-roots effort led by fast-food workers which started in New York City and grew into a nationwide campaign for a higher minimum wage. Born in Ponce, Puerto Rico, Figueroa came from a family of educators; his father was a school principal and his mother was a teacher and principal.

“I am proud, and a little sad, to celebrate PS 398 taking on the name of my dear brother Héctor Figueroa,” said Kyle Bragg, President of 32BJ. “Héctor loved Queens as a place where families from all over the world learned to call each other neighbors, friends, and family. That’s why we are so glad his name and legacy will have a chance to live on in the county he called home, where he was so happy to raise his family and work to make things better for all families.”

Open for the first time in the 2019-20 school year, The Héctor Figueroa School currently serves 117 Pre-K and Kindergarten students. The school will grow to serve 476 students in grades Pre-K through fifth grade. Read more in LaborPress.