After cop pummels NYC teen, middle school boosts support for classmates

The pummeling of a 14-year-old on Staten Island by a NYPD officer prompted her middle school to station staff and “community partners” to support students during Thursday dismissal.

The cop, identified by sources as Nicholas Scalzo, was suspended without pay after he was caught on camera repeatedly punching Kyonna Robinson at a bus stop near her school while trying to break up an after-school brawl on Tuesday, the first day back after winter break.

Officials from School District 31, which spans Staten island, visited Intermediate School 51 Edwin Markham on Wednesday as the video went viral on social media. They met with the student council and “will be working closely with students in the coming days and weeks to ensure the necessary supports are provided,” said city Education Department spokeswoman Jenna Lyle.

“Counselors and social workers are available at all times at the school, as well as access to a student mindfulness room,” she added.

Kyonna’s mother Taneesha Robinson previously said she’d learned of the beating from her daughter’s classmates, who came to her house and showed her the shocking clip.

“I have nothing against NYPD or anything like that — but I do understand that the girls want to feel protected when they go to school,” the 39-year-old parent said Wednesday.

The NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau is looking into the incident, which took place around 2:40 p.m. about a block away from Kyonna’s school in Port Richmond.

“Let me be clear — violence against our children is unacceptable [and] will not be tolerated,” said local Councilwoman Kamillah Hanks, a Democrat. “I appreciate the community’s patience while the NYPD conducts its investigation.”

The Education Department noted that all public schools have access to a social worker, guidance counselor or school-based mental health clinic, at minimum.

“Every one of our schools, including IS 51, is a caring and supportive environment where our students can connect with one another, communicate with a caring adult and access the resources they need to heal,” said Lyle.