Chalkbeat

Still reeling from pandemic, NYC students call for more peer mental health support

2025-04-07T20:46:09+00:00

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After her father died during her sophomore year, Gisela Rosa felt pressure to complete her schoolwork and attend her classes, even though her mother encouraged her to stay home and take time to grieve.

Rosa struggled to readjust, though found some solace in the social worker at Manhattan’s Central Park East High School, who would track her down and pull her out of class to talk.

“Aside from her,” she said, “I didn’t feel like anyone at school understood where I was at in my life.”

Seven years after she graduated high school, Rosa now works as a therapist and is pursuing a doctorate degree at Alabama’s Auburn University for counseling psychology — a field she never anticipated entering while in high school. In recent years, she’s provided mental health support to college students, both as a therapist and as a peer mentor while she was still earning her undergraduate degree.

Increasingly, mental health professionals, like Rosa, have highlighted the importance of peer support in addressing mental health challenges, giving young people the space to speak openly with one another and training them to support their peers.

It’s a model that city and state officials have looked to since the onset of the COVID pandemic, when concerns rose about an uptick in students struggling with mental health challenges. A higher share of the city’s high school students reported feeling so sad or hopeless that they gave up their usual activities, as well as experienced suicidal ideation, anxiety, and depressive symptoms, based on 2021 Health Department data.

New York City Council members have passed legislation to bring mental health professionals into middle and high school wellness clubs, as well as expand informational materials for students seeking to start their own wellness club and training for students interested in peer-to-peer mental health programs.

Meanwhile, state officials have invested in programs to train high school students in recognizing and responding to signs of mental health and substance-abuse challenges among their peers. And New York City schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos is hoping to enlist students for peer-led anti-vaping and anti-bullying campaigns.

According to a national poll from 2022, teens were more than twice as likely to seek mental health information from their friends than teachers or other adults at school.

Though it’s been years since she graduated, Rosa still thinks about how her time in high school might have been different if she’d had access to mental health support from her peers — if she’d been able to talk with other students who could relate to the pain of losing a parent.

“I feel like my experience in high school would have been completely different,” she said. “It would have reminded me that I was a person, and I was allowed to grieve.”

Still reeling from pandemic, NYC students turn to peers

For students in New York City and across the country, the sudden onset of the pandemic in 2020 upended day-to-day life. Classes shifted online, and for many students, that meant a period of extended isolation from their peers. And as the virus spread, some saw their families experience personal or financial loss.

Though years have passed, educators continue to report lingering behavioral concerns. It’s something students, too, feel persisting.

“Every second, I still feel it,” said Cree Griffin, a senior at the Repertory Company High School for Performing Arts in Manhattan. “COVID really took its toll. It changed the world, and it will never go back to what it used to be.”

During her freshman year, Griffin led a mental health club for her peers, giving students space to speak openly about the challenges they faced. But the club eventually dissolved after Griffin faced a suspension at school, and though she tried to start it up again after a friend died during her junior year, she struggled to find support.

For Brandai Arnold, a freshman at the Thurgood Marshall Academy for Learning and Social Change in Manhattan, returning to school has meant grappling with an instinct to isolate.

“It’s like, since I didn’t have that space to talk before, now I don’t want to talk at all,” she said. “Even when there are a lot of people around, you’re still isolating yourself, because that’s what we got used to.”

Although Griffin and Arnold haven’t always felt they could confide in adults or peers at school, both students said they’ve felt embraced by the community at The Brotherhood Sister Sol, a Harlem-based nonprofit that provides support and programming for city youth.

The nonprofit was one of several groups to call on the city to invest further in peer-to-peer mental health support during a City Council hearing in November.

“Peers just trust each other more,” said Rox Costello, a licensed social worker who works at Brotherhood Sister Sol. “When we ask them, ‘Who are you more inclined to go to to talk about these issues?’ They’re like, ‘Yeah, I’m going to talk to my best friend. I’m going to talk to my partner. I’m going to talk to my girlfriend, or my boyfriend, or whoever it is.‘”

Though Costello said it would be ideal for every young person to have a trusted adult to confide in about mental health challenges, they noted that isn’t the case for many teenagers. For some, their families might not understand the mental health challenges they face, making it even more difficult to speak up.

Peer-to-peer models can be critical for adding another layer of support, Costello added, with young people trained to recognize signs their peers are struggling, give them space to speak openly about their mental health, and connect them to resources that will help.

Arnold said she generally feels more comfortable talking about mental health with people close to her own age.

“Most of the people close to my age, I feel like I can talk to them better than I could anyone older,” she said. “When you talk to someone older, it feels like they won’t understand you.”

NYC mental health organization invests in peer support

In New York City, the National Alliance on Mental Illness of New York City has been ramping up peer-to-peer support for teenagers.

Tamar Cox-Rubien, a youth peer leader at the alliance, leads a free, weekly support group for teens. As a near-peer leader, Cox-Rubien has drawn on her own challenges with mental health to connect with the students in her support group.

“When you’re working in a peer-led model, I can share what’s going on with me,” she said. “I can share what works for me, empathize with them, and let them know that I have been in their shoes.”

The organization also operates a helpline, providing callers with emotional support and connections to mental health resources like therapy. That helpline opened for teenagers in January.

For many of the teenagers that Cox-Rubien works with, the pandemic significantly disrupted development, she said. With schools shuttering and moving online during their third or fourth grade years, many teens missed out on critical time with their peers, experiencing immense social isolation, she said.

“Teens are far more likely to entrust the mental health symptoms or emotions they may be going through to their friends, as opposed to adults,” Cox-Rubien added.

Eventually, the support group will transition into being led by the students themselves, after the organization trains interested students to serve as volunteer facilitators. Cox-Rubien said she’s seen the peer support model play a critical role in countering feelings of isolation.

“It offers that chance for teens to connect with others who’ve had similar experiences to them,” she said. “Creating that space of complete non-judgment and empathy, where they are learning together, where they’re going through similar things together, and where they’re combatting that isolation that comes with dealing with mental health struggles.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC students, educators emphasize importance of diverse curricula amid Trump’s attacks on DEI

2025-04-04T18:30:09+00:00

This story is part of the P.S. Weekly podcast, a collaboration between Chalkbeat and The Bell. Listen for new episodes Thursdays this spring.

It started as a class project, then turned into a class itself.

Tasked with an assignment to help amplify the voices of people of color during her sophomore year, Marame Diop pitched an African American studies course. It was 2020, and the work felt especially important as Diop saw communities across the nation grapple with protests over systemic racism after the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer.

For the next two years, she worked with her teacher and other students at Manhattan’s Beacon High School to turn that vision into reality.

“This divide and this tension is because we are not taught what racism really is, and how it started,” Diop said. “All these common misconceptions need to be reconstructed, and it all starts with education.”

Today, students at Beacon continue to take an ethnic studies course designed by Diop and others in the school community. Their effort coincided with several larger city initiatives in recent years to increase access to diverse and inclusive curriculums — an expansion under threat from President Donald Trump.

In the latest of a series of attacks on diversity, equity, and inclusion, the Trump administration on Thursday threatened to withhold federal funding from public schools if state education officials don’t return a memo within 10 days saying they’ll eliminate programs that promote DEI efforts the administration deems unlawful.

New York City schools have made an effort in recent years to expand instruction that celebrates diversity, including this year’s systemwide rollout of a prekindergarten-12th grade Black studies curriculum developed by a group of educators, nonprofits, and government leaders, while a growing number of schools around the city have looked to offer an Advanced Placement African American Studies course.

The Education Department is continuing to add Hidden Voices curriculums, highlighting stories about individuals from diverse backgrounds who often aren’t part of history books and whose stories risk being overlooked. Hidden Voices curriculums have offered students a glimpse into narratives from the Global African Diaspora, Asian American and Pacific Islander history, LGBTQ history, and more.

But some students and educators fear that an escalated push by Trump to restrict how topics of race, gender, and sexuality are discussed in the classroom could make it more difficult for students to access such curriculums in the future. Trump had also issued a flurry of executive orders aimed at schools in recent months, with some explicitly seeking to restrict instruction that addresses issues of race and racism.

Legal experts have questioned whether the orders are lawful, and states, local districts, and teachers retain significant control over how topics are addressed in classrooms.

New York City’s attorney general, Letitia James, led a coalition of attorneys general last month issuing guidance to K-12 schools and higher education institutions countering the Trump administration’s push to eliminate education policies promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. Officials from the city’s Education Department recently told parents they were not changing any programs or practices, and Schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos this week responded to the Trump administration’s directive, saying, “Diversity is a superpower here in New York City, we are always going to honor that.”

Diop urged local students to keep advocating for courses like ethnic studies.

“It’s a step, and it’s not like it’s all going to change in one day,” Diop said. “But classes like these are what is going to keep the spark alive and not let us lose hope.”

A student-led course 2 years in the making

For two years, Diop, now a sophomore at Yale University, worked with her teacher and other school students to design the course. In some ways, Beacon’s status as a consortium school, where students are exempted from most Regents exams made it easier to create such a class.

“It was really all hands on deck,” she said. “After-school meetings literally almost every single day for hours on end.”

The course’s first unit centers on community-building, with students discussing their own cultural and racial identities, culminating in pairs of students making an hour-long podcast about their identities. The second unit focuses on the history of racial injustice and the movements that led to the creation of ethnic studies, with a particular emphasis on youth activism. For their final project, students write an advocacy letter or op-ed they send to media outlets for possible publication.

Diop said the course resonates with many students, who “appreciate their histories being taught in the class rather than just sitting through a boring, 50-minute lecture on some old, white, dead guy.”

With more severe restrictions in other states about how certain topics are taught, Diop is worried about the national picture.

“It’s looking so bleak,” she said. “To think that what we’re doing in New York is far-fetched and a fantasy to kids in Florida is just really insane.”

Executive orders spark fears over self-censorship in schools

Even before Thursday’s threat from the Trump administration, many worried that educators might “self-censor” out of fear of drawing backlash for embracing diverse and inclusive practices in their classrooms — or that classes like Diop’s might become even more difficult to develop.

Last month, a local affiliate of the Public Broadcasting Service erased a series of videos on LGBTQ history that had been developed in partnership with the city’s Education Department. Though the Education Department quickly reposted the videos to its own site, some concerns lingered over whether the move might diminish the reach of the videos, as well as whether other organizations might opt to take similar action.

Monica Carter, director of the Lambda Literary Writers in Schools, a program that brings LGBTQ authors to classrooms to discuss their work with students, said she’s noticed “an uptick in self-censorship” in schools this year.

“We’ve had to maintain a low profile in order to keep the program going,” she added.

Still, in spite of concerns, Carter said demand for the program had only grown this year — operating in roughly 200 schools across the city. The organization sought to help educators prepare for potential backlash, developing inclusivity guides for teachers with advice for navigating challenges they might face, while seeking new strategies to protect authors and affirm support for LGBTQ students as their rights face attacks from conservatives.

“We want to be part of the resistance, and I think that the educators and librarians and principals that participate understand that,” she said.

“There’s just a general atmosphere of fear, and students are trying to figure out how they can exist in a world where their very lives are threatened,” Carter added. “That’s a difficult thing to deal with and it’s also a difficult thing for them to talk about. We hopefully provide critical safe spaces where they meet an LGBTQ+ author, where they can discuss these things, and see that you can still thrive and survive as an LGBTQ+ person.”

Sonya Douglass, a professor at Columbia University’s Teachers College and director of the Black Education Research Collective who helped develop the city’s pre-K-12 Black studies curriculum, said recent threats from the federal government only heightened the importance of courses like Black studies.

“For those of us who have been working to ensure that we’re teaching the truth about American history, the current moment speaks to why,” she said. “Educating young people about history is really critical to ensuring that our democracy functions properly, and that includes learning about all of the different experiences of individuals and groups that have made the country what it is.”

Douglass noted the city’s Black studies curriculum is a “corrective,” offering students an education that has historically been denied to them. She urged school communities not to “obey in advance” with the executive order and to continue advocating for these curricula and others.

“Yes, there is a chilling effect, which is the intent of these executive orders and policies, but we can’t be dissuaded by that,” she said. “We actually have tremendous power as a community of educators, and so it really is up to us to make those decisions in the classroom.”

Michael Elsen-Rooney contributed.

Bernie Carmona is a high school senior at Beacon High School in Manhattan and an intern at The Bell.

Isabella Mason is a high school senior at Midwood High School in Brooklyn and an intern at The Bell.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Turning passion into profit: NYC high school art students launch Etsy shops through new program

2025-03-19T22:49:30+00:00

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As a freshman, Vivien McNab was already thinking about how to turn her passion for cartooning and fan art into something others could enjoy.

Attending events like New York Comic Con, she developed “a habit” of buying key chains and art, and started developing her own mock-ups, experimenting with art she might one day be able to sell.

“I absolutely adore collecting work from other artists, just because I love seeing all the different styles, and I love seeing people’s different interpretations of characters,” said McNab, a senior at Manhattan’s High School of Art and Design.

Now she’s receiving support to get her own store off the ground. McNab is one of the hundreds of high school juniors and seniors participating in Artist Youth Entrepreneurs, a pilot program Art and Design launched this year to help students build the necessary skills to thrive as working artists.

Throughout a 10-week course in the fall, students learned about key financial and legal concepts, like how to file taxes as a freelancer, price products in their stores, or make sense of relevant copyright laws. Starting in April, students will have the opportunity to launch their own online stores, selling their work directly to customers through the school’s partnership with Etsy, an online marketplace that allows users to create their own shops. Students can receive a stipend from the program and other support at school, like communal shipping supplies and assistance mailing out orders.

The youth entrepreneur program comes at a time when schools across New York City and the state have indexed heavily into career and technical education, offering students opportunities to jump start their careers before they earn their diplomas. At Art and Design, students major in one of eight artistic fields, with each CTE-certified program preparing students for higher education and careers in their industry.

Ella Alarcon-English, a junior majoring in cartooning at the High School of Art and Design in Manhattan.

Principal Maximillian Re-Sugiura said the idea for his school’s program came in part from concerns about the financial stability of artistic fields.

“When a lot of young professionals and young folks go to their families and say, ‘I want to be an artist,’” he said, “the response has historically been: ‘Don’t do that. You’re not going to make a dime.’”

Re-Sugiura hopes to shift that narrative for the city’s students.

“So now,” he said, “a young person goes to their family and says, ‘I want to be an artist, and here’s my plan on how I will design, sell, save, and iterate on my personal brand and concept.’”

Students see side hustle, potential careers in online stores

Across the nation, a growing number of young people are turning to side hustles to earn extra cash — with experts noting that online platforms have made them more accessible and effective.

Ella Alarcon-English, a junior majoring in cartooning, had already launched her own Etsy store last year, to connect with customers she met during her school’s annual Fanfaire convention. But through the new program, she’s gained valuable skills to help run her store, while being able to benefit from the program’s perks and curriculum.

Carolina Liang Li, a senior majoring in animation at Manhattan's High School of Art and Design.

“Some of the lessons that we’ve learned, like taxing and pricing, are tools that I wish I had when I first started my Etsy shop,” she said.

For Carolina Liang Li, a senior majoring in animation who plans to attend NYU in the fall, the program has meant gaining a platform to earn additional income and increase the reach of her artwork — one that will persist beyond her time in high school.

“If you have a store, you can also build a lot more connections, especially in an industry like this,” she said. “It helps you establish yourself.”

She said she’s hoping to sell items made from clay, like keychains, in addition to digital art and prints.

The program has helped ease some of the anxiety around the costs of higher education, with an online store offering one potential source of income during her time in college, said Daphnee Pascal, a senior majoring in fashion design.

Pascal hopes to sell bags, wallets, and other items she’s sewn once her store launches this spring. And longterm, she’s hopeful that she can one day transition the online store into her own brand for her designs.

Daphnee Pascal, a senior majoring in fashion design at the High School of Art and Design in Manhattan.

“A lot of us really wanted a way to sell our designs, because we make a lot of things throughout the year,” she said. “So it’s really helped in that aspect — letting us share what we do with everyone else.”

Artist Youth Entrepreneurs brings in legal, financial, and tech experts

To Re-Sugiura, the youth entrepreneur program not only provides an opportunity that didn’t exist for him and his peers growing up, but also helps better prepare students “for a world that seems increasingly geared towards freelance work and gig economics for artists.”

Parents and families have been involved in the program from the outset, with families helping students set up their accounts, and the school providing parents with resources and guidance for checking in with their students about their online stores.

In addition to Etsy, the program has brought in other partners from various industries to assist with instruction. Lawyers at Proskauer Rose LLP and MetLife talked about copyright law, while staffers from Ridgewood Savings Bank shared financial best practices — and gave students the opportunity to open free accounts at the bank.

Teachers developed lesson plans and other instructional materials with the help of nonprofit tech company PlayLab, which provided educators with AI-powered tools trained on Etsy materials and the school’s curricula.

Bethany Crystal, an AI, education, and workforce advisor to Tech:NYC, partner of the city’s FutureReadyNYC initiative that has helped with developing the program, noted teachers have been able to build their own AI-powered tools to help students.

One educator, for example, built a tool that helped students generate descriptions for their online stores and products. That tool then sparked a discussion with students about when and how to use AI.

Crystal added she’s been excited to see students engaging with the work in the program.

“It’s not to say every single kid is going to be an entrepreneur in this way,” she said. “But showing them how it begins, which is the hardest part of that journey, I think is so incredible.”

Re-Sugiura hopes the program’s model will serve as an inspiration for other schools — both CTE schools and others — who can adapt the materials and structure to serve their own communities.

“All of it is designed to showcase to the larger New York City community that this is something that you can do,” he said.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Bill to strip power from Memphis-Shelby County Schools board moves ahead

2025-03-18T19:09:02+00:00

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A Tennessee bill that would strip power from Memphis-Shelby County Schools board and create a state-appointed panel to oversee the district advanced in the legislature.

In a 6-2 vote along party lines, the bill from Republican Rep. Mark White of Memphis cleared the Tennessee House’s K-12 subcommittee after a hearing Tuesday, and moved ahead for consideration by the full education committee.

The hearing was lawmakers’ first public discussion of the legislation, which could overhaul how decisions about Tennessee’s largest school district are made. The bill would create a nine-member, state-appointed board to manage the district for at least four years. The elected school board would continue in an “advisory capacity,” but the state board would be able to veto the elected board’s choice of superintendent and direct a range of its actions, according to the draft legislation.

Critics of the legislation warned that the bill, if approved, could set a precedent for the state to encroach on local control in other districts across the state.

White insisted the legislation should not be framed as a state takeover.

It is not that, he said. “I am a representative of the city of Memphis. I am locally elected by the citizens of Memphis and Shelby County, and they have asked me to push forward on such legislation.”

The board members would all be Shelby County residents, and they would be experts in facilities, curriculum, contracts, budget, finance, K-12 education — “all the above things that you need to run the school system,” White said.

Under the draft legislation, the governor would appoint five members to the state-appointed board of managers, with the speakers of the state Senate and House each appointing two others. It also allows the state education commissioner to recommend that district public schools convert to charter schools.

Under the bill, modeled on a Texas law, the state board would have “full authority to right-size the district,” said White.

The legislation leans on Tennessee’s public accountability act, which enables the state education commissioner to intervene if at least 30% of a district’s schools have a D or an F letter grade and 25% of the students are chronically absent, White said.

In the Memphis Shelby County Schools district, just 17% of students are proficient in math, while 1 in 4 are proficient in reading, and the district has more than $1 billion in deferred maintenance needed for its facilities, White said.

MSCS recorded some improvement in the latest round of school letter grades released in December, with more schools earning A’s and B’s, and fewer schools earning F’s. However, 11% of eligible schools in MSCS earned failing grades, the largest proportion of F’s among districts with 50 or more schools.

White said he wants to see better outcomes given that $1 out of every $7 of the state’s $1.8 billion education budget goes to Memphis-Shelby County Schools.

“Our students deserve better than what we’re giving them,” White said. “The state deserves better, and so what I’m working on is a system of intervention.”

The proposal follows several years of leadership turmoil in the district. After Superintendent Joris Ray resigned under a cloud of scandal in August 2022, it took the school more than a year to find a permanent successor. But that successor, Marie Feagins, lasted less than 10 months on the job before the board fired her on the grounds that she misled the board about a range of topics.

The move divided the board and drew strong criticism from educators and members of the community. While some board members saw the firing as a necessary removal of an uncooperative leader, others saw an abrupt, potentially destabilizing decision driven by personality conflicts, and warned that it could invite state intervention.

White had urged the board to retain Feagins, saying the board’s conflict with the superintendent was distracting members from focusing on students’ academic challenges.

District advocates and officials, including school board members, sharply criticized White’s bill this week, and Democrats voiced their opposition at Tuesday’s hearing.

Rep. Sam McKenzie, a Knoxville Democrat, questioned whether the state was an appropriate body to address issues in the local school system, and said passage of the bill would override the rights of local voters to determine how their school district is managed through representatives on the board.

He pointed to the failures of the state’s Achievement School District — a state-run turnaround school district created in 2010 that took over many Memphis schools and turned them over to charter operators in arguing against the bill.

Ron Redwing, the founder of the Save Our Students coalition, told lawmakers he “vehemently opposed this bill.”

Redwing acknowledged the school district faced challenges, but asked lawmakers to let district leaders solve them at the local level. He also warned that the bill could give the state leeway to strip power from other local districts and their elected boards.

“Be careful of the doors you open,” he said. “Because it’s Memphis and Shelby County today, but it’s Crockett County, Fayette County, and every other county tomorrow.”

Max Lubbers contributed reporting.

NY Senate pushes back on Hochul’s ‘bell-to-bell’ school cellphone ban

2025-03-11T21:46:15+00:00

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Pushing back against Gov. Kathy Hochul’s proposal to ban cellphones from “bell-to-bell” in schools, New York lawmakers want to give districts more flexibility in setting their policies — and guarantee that students will not face suspensions due to cellphone violations.

The proposed changes came Tuesday as Senate Democrats unveiled their response to Gov. Kathy Hochul’s $252 billion executive budget, which would send $37.4 billion to schools across the state — a nearly $1.7 billion increase from the prior year’s budget. The governor’s budget proposal includes a $13.5 million plan to help school districts implement smartphone bans, amid growing concerns over their impact on student learning and mental health.

Under the governor’s proposal, students would be required to disconnect from their devices from “bell to bell,” including during classes, lunch, and in the hallways. School districts would have discretion over how to ensure compliance, but all would be required to identify at least one method through which students can store their devices during the school day.

However, lawmakers in the state Senate are seeking changes to the proposed legislation that would give districts leeway to allow students to use their devices “during non-instruction time.” Lawmakers also want districts to be required to consult local representatives and families, as well as be prohibited from suspending students over violations of the cellphone policy.

State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said lawmakers agreed with Hochul that “getting cellphones out of the hands of our children is a benefit to everyone.”

“We’ve heard from superintendents who want a little bit of flexibility, so we have injected that into the conversation,” Stewart-Cousins added during a Tuesday press conference. “But there is no doubt that we know that students will be better off if their phones are not with them and they’re able to concentrate on their lessons.”

The proposed changes to Hochul’s cellphone policy came as part of the Senate’s “one-house budget resolution,” its rebuttal to the governor’s executive budget. (The state Assembly’s one-house budget resolution did not address the issue).

Senate lawmakers also proposed changes to the state’s school funding formula that would see additional dollars sent to schools across the state — up $680 million from Hochul’s Foundation Aid proposal. Those changes would drive additional money to city schools, with lawmakers proposing an update to how the formula accounts for regional costs in the Hudson Valley and New York City.

Despite concerns from the Senate, Hochul said Tuesday she remained committed to pushing for a “bell-to-bell” cellphone restriction.

“I’ve not had time to digest every part of what the one-houses show, but I’m committed to fighting for bell-to-bell,” she said. “This is what the experts say, this is what the parents want, this is what the teachers want. I mean, our teachers are saying… if a student has it banned during a class, then they have it during recess, and then they come back, the next teacher has to be the enforcer.”

In New York City, principals currently can set their own cellphone policies during school hours. Among those with restrictions in place, some schools collect devices at the start of the day, while others store them in cubbies or locking pouches. And though the city’s Education Department seemed poised to implement a systemwide policy last year, it stalled after intervention by Mayor Eric Adams.

When schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos testified at a budget hearing in Albany earlier this year, she urged lawmakers to allocate more funding to implement a statewide school cellphone ban, arguing $13.5 million was insufficient to cover statewide costs.

“Roughly 800 of our schools have already signed up to do this work,” she told lawmakers in January. “What we don’t want to tell them is, ‘Continue to self-fund while we pay for other schools to get on the bus.’”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Teacher for a day: UFT wants mayoral candidates to spend a day in a public school classroom

2025-03-06T23:45:14+00:00

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This story has been updated to include responses received after publication.

New York City’s teachers union has a new requirement for any mayoral candidates seeking their endorsement: spend a day teaching in a public school classroom.

The announcement came Thursday as a crowded field of candidates vies for political support ahead of the June 24 primary and Nov. 4 general election.

Mayor Eric Adams faces a difficult road to reelection amid a federal corruption indictment and a controversial bid by the Trump administration to drop the case against him. He will confront a slate of notable Democratic challengers, including former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who currently leads the pack, according to polling data.

And on Thursday, City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, who has called for the mayor to resign, entered the fray, announcing her own campaign for mayor.

To earn support from the United Federation of Teachers, which represents nearly 200,000 members, President Michael Mulgrew said candidates will need to spend at least seven periods in a public school classroom.

They’ll need to assist the teacher and paraprofessional with lessons, classroom management, and anything else students require.

“Mayoral candidates have traditionally promised to listen to educators and to base their education policies on the recommendations of the people doing the work. Then they get in City Hall and all that goes out the window,” Mulgrew said in a statement. “We have offered classroom time to candidates and elected officials, but they don’t take us up on it. So today we are on the record - if you want our endorsement you have to understand the work we do.”

The UFT will work with the city’s Education Department to identify classrooms for interested candidates and accompany them during their visit, union officials said.

Some observers were skeptical about the idea.

David Bloomfield, a professor of education, law, and public policy at Brooklyn College and the CUNY Graduate Center, supported mayoral candidates visiting classrooms, but questioned whether they should spend time teaching.

“What is a candidate to learn in 1 day that can be generalized to almost a million kids in 1,700 schools across 5 boroughs?” he said in an email. “Mayoral candidates need to think in system terms, appointing a Chancellor and [Panel for Educational Policy, a city board that votes on major policy proposals and contracts,] majority who can lead with expertise and judgment. Petty command performances are a ridiculous hurdle for the UFT to impose.”

Chalkbeat asked the 12 mayoral candidates — 10 of whom are running in the Democratic primary — whether they planned to participate. Several played up their own connection to public schools. Here’s what they said:

(Mayoral candidates are listed in alphabetical order.)

City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams

Speaker Adams will participate, according to a spokesperson for her campaign.

Mayor Eric Adams

Mayor Adams’ campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

Former state Assembly Member Michael Blake

Michael Ceraso, a spokesperson for Blake’s campaign, said the former state assembly member was “100% willing” to teach for a day.

“He has been a teacher in the past,” Ceraso said. “He’s gone back to Harvard, NYU, and Monroe College, where he’s gone back to teach, specifically on civics. This is not an issue for him, and something he’s willing to do regardless of the criteria.”

Former Governor Andrew Cuomo

Cuomo’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

City Comptroller Brad Lander

“As the son of a public school guidance counselor, a K-12 public school graduate myself, and the father of two NYC public school graduates, I couldn’t be more excited to spend a day in the classroom with today’s students and teachers — both central to our families’ and our city’s future,” Lander said in a statement.

State Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani

“I look forward to spending a day in a classroom and think it’s only fair that if we ask UFT for their endorsement, we make an effort to understand the work New York City public school teachers do to nurture and educate the city’s next generation,” Mamdani said in a statement.

State Sen. Zellnor Myrie

“As the son of a special education teacher (and UFT member) who taught in the Bronx for many years—Zellnor would love to!” said Olivia Lapeyrolerie, a spokesperson for Myrie’s campaign, in an email. “He was also the only boy on his school step team, so Z might also teach the kids a few moves.”

State Sen. Jessica Ramos

“I’m no stranger to a public school classroom, and I look forward to the opportunity to walk a day in the life of a teacher’s shoes,” Ramos said in a statement.

Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa

Curtis Sliwa will participate, according to a spokesperson for his campaign.

“I commend the United Federation of Teachers for giving mayoral candidates the opportunity to step into the classroom and see firsthand the challenges facing our schools,” Sliwa said in a statement. “It is essential for any leader to speak directly with teachers, students, and staff to understand what is truly lacking.”

Former City Comptroller Scott Stringer

Sam Raskin, a spokesperson for Stringer’s campaign, confirmed the former city comptroller — who the UFT endorsed in the last election — would participate.

“With two kids currently in public school, he has already spent a lot of time with his students and teachers in the classroom,” Raskin added in an email.

Investor Whitney Tilson

Tilson said he would be happy to spend a day teaching, but would not seek UFT’s endorsement.

“Since helping start Teach for America more than 35 years ago, I’ve always been a champion of great teachers like my parents,” he said in a statement. ”However, I believe the next mayor needs to solely fight for what is best for kids, and so I am not seeking the UFT’s endorsement.”

Independent candidate Jim Walden

Walden’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Trump administration can’t ban DEI in schools, NY attorney general affirms in new guidance

2025-03-05T22:09:40+00:00

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New York Attorney General Letitia James and a coalition of 14 other attorneys general issued new guidance to K-12 schools and higher education institutions Wednesday in a bid to counter efforts by the federal government to eliminate education policies promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The guidance followed threats from the U.S. Department of Education in a Feb. 14 “Dear Colleague” letter to withhold federal funding from schools that engage in a wide range of practices related to diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI.

James led the coalition, which also included Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin.

“The administration cannot ban diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility efforts with a ‘Dear Colleague’ letter,” James said in a statement. “Schools and educational institutions can rest assured that they are well within their legal rights to continue building inclusive learning environments for their students.”

President Donald Trump’s administration has repeatedly attacked DEI practices in and out of schools — with Trump blaming without any evidence such programs for a fatal plane crash earlier this year. The federal Education Department’s Dear Colleague letter, citing a 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision that banned race-conscious admissions policies in higher education, gave schools until the end of the month to end all practices related to DEI or risk losing federal funding.

The letter created shockwaves in school districts across the country. In New York City, for instance, a previously scheduled City Council hearing on segregation in public schools was indefinitely postponed because of it.

Last week, the federal Education Department released an FAQ responding to questions raised by the Dear Colleague letter. Though it struck a softer tone, the FAQ warned school districts that a wide range of common practices related to diversity, equity, and inclusion could be illegal — adding that cases would be decided based on the facts on the ground. Federal officials may also investigate schools for “discriminatory intent,” according to the FAQ.

The Dear Colleague letter has already faced multiple lawsuits from educators and civil rights groups, who have argued the letter is overly broad and fails to justify its interpretation of the law.

James and the other attorneys general assured schools that efforts to seek and support diverse, equitable, inclusive, and accessible educational experiences “cannot be rendered illegal by an executive order or a letter from DOE — neither of which can make or change the law.”

The states’ guidance contended that the federal government had misconstrued Supreme Court precedent and wrongly implied that practices promoting diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility may be illegal. It emphasized that the federal guidance did not change existing law, adding the attorney generals sought to mitigate fear sparked by the Dear Colleague letter.

The guidance from the attorneys general urged K-12 schools to continue efforts seeking to ensure all students are prepared for college and careers after high school, including students from historically underrepresented backgrounds.

“In some circumstances, this may mean taking targeted action so that students from underserved communities, including communities of color, are aware of, have access to, and participate in these courses and programs,” the guidance stated. “Schools should be confident that these vital programs and practices remain lawful.”

Institutions of higher education can also continue to use holistic admissions practices that consider factors like “cultural competencies, income level, first generation to attend college, neighborhood or community circumstances, disadvantages overcome, and the impact of an applicant’s particular experiences on their academic achievement and on the perspectives they would bring to the school environment,” according to the guidance.

The attorneys general noted schools have a responsibility under the law to develop and implement plans to protect students vulnerable to bullying or harassment on the basis of race, gender identity, sexual orientation, and other factors.

In their guidance, James and the other attorneys general said that fears over the Dear Colleague letter or loss of federal funding were “not a justification to impose or reimpose discriminatory practices.”

“The Attorneys General remind all educational institutions that they must themselves abide by the nation’s civil rights laws, whatever changes they may make to their programming and policies,” the guidance stated. “The Attorneys General stand ready to enforce their States’ robust civil rights protections — which in many cases exceed federal civil rights protections — wherever discrimination may be found.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Adams appoints new head of City Hall office for child care, as advocates call for more funding

2025-03-04T23:40:49+00:00

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Mayor Eric Adams has appointed a new leader to oversee a City Hall office for early childhood education, filling the role more than a year after the former executive director departed.

Amber Cartwright, who previously worked as vice president of core services at Teaching Matters, will serve as the new executive director of the Mayor’s Office of Child Care and Early Childhood Education.

The announcement on Tuesday came weeks after Adams’ budget proposal sparked criticism for failing to renew millions of dollars in early childhood funding. The Adams administration has faced repeated pushback from City Council and advocates over its handling of the early childhood system.

“I am excited to continue supporting children, families, early educators, child care providers, and the organizations dedicated to this critically important work,” Cartwright, who previously served in the Education Department’s Division of Early Childhood Education, said in a statement. “Together, I hope to cultivate a collaborative early childhood community focused on building a high-quality, accessible, and sustainable early childhood education system — one that gives every child a strong start and a brighter future.”

The City Hall office, which was created more than two years ago, sought to help coordinate strategy and planning between city agencies that touched early childhood education, officials said at the time.

But its top post has remained without a permanent successor since October 2023, when former Executive Director Michelle Field left the administration to work as the chief program officer for Harlem Children’s Zone, a nonprofit that combats poverty through early childhood, education, and other support programs. (Deputy Executive Director Tovah Gottesman took over as interim executive director after her departure, according to city officials.)

Cartwright will oversee a staff of four, reporting to Deputy Mayor Ana Almanzar, city officials said. Her office will work closely with the Education Department, Administration for Children’s Services, Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Department of Social Services, and other city agencies, officials added.

In his preliminary budget earlier this year, Adams renewed city funding for several programs that were once propped up by federal COVID relief money, like the city’s popular Summer Rising program. But the mayor’s proposal did not include renewals for $112 million for 3-K, the city’s free preschool program for 3-year-olds, $55 million to ensure preschoolers with disabilities find spots in specialized programs, or $25 million for extended-day preschool seats.

Rebecca Bailin, executive director of New Yorkers United for Child Care, said she welcomed additional leadership for the city’s early childhood system, but added she remains skeptical of the Adams administration’s willingness to invest in child care.

“Ultimately, as does everything in the city, the success of this office and her role really depends on whether Mayor Adams is prioritizing child care, and prioritizing pre-K, 3-K, and expansion,” she said. “If he doesn’t put the funding in, and if he makes it clear to his staff and his executives that this isn’t a priority for him, there’s not much they can do.”

During budget negotiations last year, funding for the early childhood system became a focal point in discussions between the Adams administration and City Council. The same could occur in the coming weeks, with council members set to hold budget hearings later this month.

Adams has repeatedly sought to scale back the city’s 3-K program, which expanded significantly under former Mayor Bill de Blasio through the use of one-time federal relief funds. The Adams administration has justified such efforts by pointing to unfilled seats in parts of the city, arguing there’s a mismatch between seats and demand.

Advocates and many members of City Council have pushed back on that assertion, contending the city needs to invest further in outreach and enrollment to ensure seats are filled — with applicants outpacing seats in many parts of the city.

Tuesday, shortly after Cartwright’s appointment, Council Speaker Adrienne Adams called for further investments in the early childhood education system during her annual State of the City Address.

Speaker Adams, who is considering a run for mayor, called for additional state funding for child care vouchers, as well as city funding to expand child care subsidies for families.

“A robust and affordable system is essential to children’s development, our economy, and New Yorkers' ability to remain right here in our city,” she said. “We’ve been consistent in fighting for a comprehensive approach to fix the system that denies access to too many families.”

Though Bailin noted expanded subsidies and vouchers can help families, she added many will still slip through the cracks — particularly low-income families who may not learn about the programs, or may struggle to navigate time-consuming paperwork and other administrative hurdles.

As part of the effort to push for universal child care in the city, a coalition of grassroots advocacy groups, parents, and local officials — including New Yorkers United for Child Care — launched a campaign earlier this year urging the city to expand free child care to include all New York City 2-year-olds.

That effort, dubbed “2-Care,” would serve about 60,000 children, requiring about $1.3 billion to operate at full-scale, advocates said.

“This is a time when we must be expanding, not making cuts,” Bailin said. “The demand and interest in expansion is huge.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Interested in NYC’s free Summer Rising program? Here’s how to apply.

2025-03-03T22:50:54+00:00

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New York City families: Applications open on Tuesday for the city’s free youth summer program for children in kindergarten through eighth grade.

The Summer Rising program, which blends academic instruction with enrichment activities, has been popular among families since it first emerged in 2021 as a means of re-engaging kids during the COVID pandemic.

The city program will once again offer free summer programming to about 115,000 children — with any New York City child enrolled in grades K-8 eligible to apply, including those who attend charter and private schools.

Though Summer Rising has continued to see high demand, the program has faced some scrutiny in recent months, after a Chalkbeat report showed attendance during the academic portion of the day averaged roughly 60% in 2022 and 2023 — a marked drop from the nearly 90% attendance seen during the school year. (For most students, attendance in the free summer program is optional.)

Once propped up by federal COVID relief money, the program, which cost roughly $230 million last year, relies on city dollars to sustain operations.

Still, for some families the program has meant free child care over the summer months, as well as an opportunity to help bridge the gap between academic years, particularly amid concerns that students can regress academically while out of school for the summer. Families have largely reported positive experiences on city surveys, according to Education Department officials.

Jenna Lyle, a spokesperson for the Education Department, said the program would evolve this year based on feedback from school communities.

“We are so excited to welcome back our students for another fun summer of academics and enrichment,” she said in a statement. “This year, we’re enhancing the program by weaving in more enrichment activities during the academic day.”

Here’s how families can apply for Summer Rising this year:

How can I apply for Summer Rising this year?

Families can apply through their MySchools account.

Applications open Tuesday and will remain open until March 28, with results and waitlists available in MySchools on April 24, according to the city’s Education Department. Admissions are not determined on a first-come, first-served basis, and families can apply any time before the 11:59 p.m. March 28 deadline.

Families can search for Summer Rising sites through MySchools.

Will all students receive a seat?

In past years, demand for Summer Rising has outpaced the available seats. Last summer, about 160,000 students applied for about 115,000 spots, meaning tens of thousands ended up on waitlists.

Due to the limited number of seats, Education Department officials said families should only apply if their child is planning to attend most of the summer programming.

And in a change from prior years, families will not be automatically enrolled in the program. Instead, families must accept their offer by May 8 — a move officials said will help ensure enrolled students plan to actively attend and allow the city to move more applicants off waitlists.

Some applicants will receive priority for seats, including certain children with disabilities, students living in temporary housing or foster care, students who are behind academically, and those applying for seats at sites housed within their school.

When does Summer Rising start? How long does it run?

Summer Rising begins on July 2, running Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. until Aug. 8 for middle school students and Aug. 15 for elementary school children.

Meanwhile, some students with disabilities who are entitled to year-round instruction attend programs that operate during different dates and hours. Students with 12-month individualized education programs, or IEPs, enrolled in schools in Districts 1-32 will typically attend summer classes Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. between July 2 and Aug. 12. Students in District 75 schools for children with more significant disabilities will generally attend programs from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. between July 3 and Aug. 13.

Those enrolled in programs for students with autism will attend from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. Monday through Thursday between July 2 and Aug. 7.

Students with 12-month IEPs also have the option to participate in extended enrichment hours that run until 6 p.m. and for additional days, with programming led by the city’s Department of Youth and Community Development, though doing so could complicate travel home for those who rely on yellow school buses. Families interested in the extended enrichment hours can apply through the application portal.

Summer Rising programs will be closed on July 4 for Independence Day.

Will the city provide bus services to and from Summer Rising sites?

Students who are already eligible to receive yellow school bus service during the school year should generally receive bus transportation for Summer Rising, but bus services will not run past 3 p.m. Those who remain in the program until 6 p.m. for the extended enrichment portion will be able request a MetroCard or pre-paid rideshare service.

The latter option would require a caregiver to accompany their child in the rideshare — a requirement that advocates have argued makes it an inaccessible option for many working families.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

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Nearly 1 in 5 NYC students are Asian American. Just 8% of teachers are.

2025-02-27T22:06:49+00:00

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For her first few years in New York City’s public school system, Kai Kraft thought she was “the only Asian kid in the Bronx.”

Through elementary and middle school, she had teachers from diverse backgrounds — but none who identified as Asian American or Pacific Islander.

And as a result, Kraft, who is Filipino American, often didn’t feel comfortable confiding in her teachers when she experienced discrimination from her peers.

“I let a lot of casual racism slide, even until middle school, because I didn’t have anyone to look up to or tell me that it was wrong,” she said. “I just had to endure it.”

Today, Kraft is a high school senior at the Manhattan Center for Science and Mathematics. Since transitioning to high school in Manhattan and joining the Asian American Student Advocacy Project, a program run by the Coalition for Asian American Children and Families, she has found other Filipino and Asian American students among her peers.

But Kraft has encountered relatively few Asian American or Pacific Islander teachers — and none who identify as Filipino American.

“I still struggle to find teachers that I can relate to,” she said.

There’s evidence that employing teachers of color can result in improved test scores and graduation rates among students of color, while also being associated with lower rates of chronic absenteeism and suspension, according to a 2019 report from the state’s Education Department. Staffers who share the specific racial or ethnic background of their students may be better able to forge connections that benefit kids academically and emotionally, educators, researchers, and students said.

But as the Asian American share of New York City’s student population has continued to grow, the percentage of Asian American educators has lagged far behind. (City data does not provide specific numbers for students who identify as Pacific Islander.)

Nearly 1 in 5 students in New York City identified as Asian American during the last school year, while roughly 8% of the city’s teachers did. The gap is even wider for school administrators: Just 5% of principals in New York City are Asian American. Those numbers are up modestly from a decade ago, when 6% of city teachers and 3% of principals identified as Asian American, according to the Education Department.

Fewer than 1% of teachers identified as Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander last school year, Education Department officials said.

Just a quarter of the city’s nearly 1,600 public schools had five or more Asian American teachers during the 2022-2023 school year — by far the lowest percentage for any of the four largest racial groups. Fifty-five percent of schools had at least five Black teachers, 60% had at least five Hispanic teachers, and 91% had five or more white teachers, a Chalkbeat analysis found.

New York City’s gulf reflects national trends, with about 5% of the country’s students and 2% of its teachers identifying as Asian American or Pacific Islander in the 2020-21 school year.

May Hara, a professor of teacher education at Framingham State University in Massachusetts and former New York City teacher who taught in the South Bronx, said the demographic gap can hold “serious implications for students.”

“The research is very clear,” she said. “There are a wide range of benefits to having a racially and ethnically diverse teaching staff.”

Those benefits extend to both students and teachers, Hara added.

The city Education Department is pushing to give all students “access to teachers who reflect their background and community experiences” and “equip our schools with resources that support inclusive recruitment and hiring practices,” said spokesperson Onika Richards.

She pointed to several programs including NYC Men Teach and NYC Teaching Fellows that offer alternative pathways into the teaching profession and additional support, and have been successful at recruiting teachers of color.

The city’s ongoing efforts come at a moment when teacher diversity initiatives are under attack at the federal level. President Donald Trump’s administration has warned districts that efforts to recruit teachers of specific racial backgrounds could face civil rights investigations, though experts have challenged the legality of the guidance.

In high school, Kraft said she’s been able to connect with Asian American educators for the first time. She noted her health teacher, who is Chinese, sometimes speaks Tagalog with her at school, helping to make her feel more welcome.

“Even though they aren’t Filipino … I just feel more comfortable,” she said. “I don’t feel as alone as before.”

Asian American educators bust, and confront, harmful stereotypes

Asian American educators can play a critical role in breaking through harmful stereotypes and relating to Asian American families and students in ways other adults may not, teachers and students said.

Jakoub Chen, an 11th grader at Curtis High School in Staten Island, still has yet to have an Asian American teacher in the public school system.

Chen, who is Chinese and Taiwanese American, said he’s at times felt impacted by the “model minority myth” — a harmful stereotype that depicts Asian Americans as inherently successful, often in comparison to other minority groups.

Over the years, Chen said he’s encountered peers who assume they can turn to him to get answers on their assignments in math or science classes.

“I didn’t really have someone that I can talk to about what I’ve been going through and what I’ve been affected by,” he said. “I don’t have a teacher or an adult I can share my experiences with.”

Bobson Wong, a math teacher at Bayside High School in Queens, said he has encountered harmful assumptions based on the model minority myth during his time as an educator. Some people, for example, have assumed that when Asian American students struggle in class, it stems from laziness.

“When you say that an Asian kid is lazy, the subtext is they know it, they just choose not to do it,” he said. “Maybe they just don’t know how to do it because no one taught them.”

Wong, who is Chinese American, noted his school has a significant number of Asian American students, with nearly half of the student body identifying as Asian American. Still, in his time as a public school teacher, he’s seen relatively few other Asian American teachers.

“I do find that they are able to identify with me more easily,” he said.

Students attend a weekly meeting for the Asian American Student Advocacy Project, a program run by the Coalition for Asian American Children and Families.

Yeou-Jey Vasconcelos, a long-time former teacher and administrator in the city Education Department who now leads a charter school, began her career as a teacher and assistant principal at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Manhattan — where she worked on new ways to engage the school’s many Chinese-speaking families.

Vasconcelos found that many of her colleagues assumed that Asian families were not getting involved with school because they were too busy, uninterested, or only wanted to hear about academic issues rather than behavioral or emotional ones.

But as Vasconcelos, whose family is from Taiwan and Japan, began communicating with families in Chinese and building relationships, she discovered that they were eager to get more involved in all aspects of their kids’ school experiences.

“The Chinese-speaking families would just say, ‘I want what’s best for my kid, and I just want them to be happy. I don’t need them to get the perfect grade,’” Vasconcelos recalled. It was “a very different outcome than what was culturally expected.”

That special connection persisted when Vasconcelos became principal of Manhattan’s LaGuardia High School, the city’s highest-profile performing arts school, where 21% of students are Asian American.

On her first day in the school, a line of Asian American students formed outside her office, eager to meet her, talk about their family backgrounds, and discover commonalities, she said.

Despite her efforts to break through stereotypes about her Asian American students and families, Vasconcelos herself faced some of those same stereotypes from colleagues and families — particularly as a principal.

There were “all different layers of microaggression,” ranging from people assuming that she was not the person in charge or didn’t speak fluent English, to colleagues who attempted to compliment her by calling her “Tiger principal,” a reference to the strict version of parenting popularized in a 2014 book by an Asian American law professor, Vasconcelos said.

Pipeline challenges contribute to representation gaps

When it comes to recruiting and retaining more Asian American and Pacific Islander teachers, Hara noted, it’s critically important to consider the “huge heterogeneity in Asian American populations” and tailor efforts to recruit and retain Asian American educators to those specific backgrounds.

“That, I think, is something that is often overlooked in conversations about this,” she said. “In popular culture, there is not a lot that points to the socioeconomic, educational, and wealth gaps that exist within Asian American groups in this country.”

“The unsatisfying answer” to recruiting and keeping more Asian American educators “is that we really need to begin by asking people about their experiences and not assuming that we know, or that they all share the same experiences,” Hara said.

Several Asian American educators in New York City said the challenge often begins with not seeing or hearing about education as a viable career path growing up.

“No one that I grew up with who were Filipino or any other type of Asian went into the field,” said Nico Victorino, a former New York City teacher and current principal of P.S. 150 in Manhattan, who is the son of Filipino immigrants. “The expectations at home at the time were you were going to go into a field that was going to make money, because you have to support your family back in the Philippines and care for your parents when they get older.”

The pipeline narrowed even further when Victorino began considering the switch from classroom teacher to administrator. He had “no role models” of other Asian American school administrators, “no one to support you in that way.”

When he eventually landed his job as principal, Victorino developed a close relationship with the other Asian American administrators in his district, and they still share a group text thread. He even went on to write his doctoral dissertation at New York University about the lack of Asian American school administrators.

For Wong, it’s been a challenge at times to work in a field with so few Asian American colleagues. He said he’s found community by connecting with Asian American educators online and through Math for America, a fellowship for math and science teachers.

“When you look at why teachers are leaving, they feel overwhelmed or they feel unsupported — it all boils down to a lack of community,” he said. “To not just to attract more Asian American teachers, but also to retain them, we need better communities to support them.”

To Hara, developing systems and policies that allow more Asian American and Pacific Islander teachers to flourish can also have compounding benefits for the teacher pipeline — with students who see themselves reflected in their educators potentially being more inclined to enter the field in the future.

“That’s just a hypothesis,” Hara said. “But it’s not as though Asian American teachers appear out of nowhere. They were once Asian American students.”

Thomas Wilburn contributed.

Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

After pressure from families, NYC schools chancellor reaffirms support for LGBTQ+ students

2025-02-25T00:43:58+00:00

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New York City schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos reaffirmed the public school system’s support for LGBTQ+ students in a letter to families on Monday, stating the Education Department’s policies and guidelines remain in effect, despite a flurry of recent executive orders from President Donald Trump.

“We are committed to maintaining a safe and supportive environment for all students — one that is free from discrimination, harassment, intimidation, and bullying,” Aviles-Ramos said in the letter. “As I recently shared with over 1,000 students and staff attending our seventh annual Gender and Sexuality Alliance Summit, at New York City Public Schools, we see you, we support you, and we value you.”

The statement — which did not directly refer to Trump or his executive orders — comes weeks after parents criticized the Education Department for failing to issue a systemwide response to efforts by the federal government to restrict how schools support gender nonconforming students and teach issues of race in the classroom.

In the letter, the schools chancellor directed families to the city’s guidelines on gender — which include policies instructing staff to address students by their preferred pronouns at school, offering schools some discretion to not inform parents when a student is socially transitioning in cases where a family doesn’t accept their gender identity, and allowing students to join sports teams and use bathrooms consistent with their gender identities.

A spokesperson for the Education Department confirmed no policies had changed in light of Trump’s executive orders.

Last week, the Education Department also republished a series of videos focused on LGBTQ+ history that had been developed with WNET, the local PBS affiliate, after the broadcasting network deleted the videos from its site. Those videos drew on material from part of the city’s “Hidden Voices” curriculum that focused on uplifting the stories of prominent LGBTQ+ people.

Still, some parents were concerned over the lack of specificity in the chancellor’s letter.

Gavin Healy, a Manhattan parent and member of District 2’s Community Education Council, or CEC, said he was disappointed that the letter did not specifically express support for transgender students at a time when their rights have been under attack by the Trump administration.

In recent weeks, Trump has sought to withhold federal funding from schools that allow trans girls to join sports teams consistent with their gender identities. He has also issued executive orders seeking to prevent schools from teaching “gender ideology,” a phrase Trump and his supporters have used to broadly refer to discussions of gender identity or the existence of transgender people.

In other executive orders, Trump has looked to restrict access to gender-affirming care for transgender children and teenagers, and to define gender as a male-female binary that cannot be changed.

Efforts to erode protections for trans students have also occurred locally. Last year, District 2’s CEC passed a resolution calling on the city to reconsider its sports policy for transgender students. At the time, then-Chancellor David Banks condemned the proposal as “despicable.”

Healy felt that Aviles-Ramos should have explicitly mentioned transgender students and recent attacks on their rights to participate in sports at school, given the rhetoric of the Trump administration, as well as his own community education council.

“People are trying to question the existence and the rights of students to be their authentic selves through this red herring of an issue,” he said, ”and by not taking a stand, I think she just kind of lets them do that.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Some NYC families can get $120 per child in summer food benefits. Here’s how to apply.

2025-02-21T21:30:08+00:00

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New York City families: You may be eligible for $120 per child in summer food benefits this year.

The Summer EBT program, which rolled out for the first time last year, is intended to help low-income families cover costs for meals usually provided at school.

The federal benefits followed a similar program that began during the COVID pandemic and operated for several years. But though advocates described that program as a critical lifeline for families in need, some New Yorkers never redeemed their benefits, and millions of dollars in potential aid were routinely left on the table. Some critics blamed the unused funds on insufficient state outreach.

For families who have been able to take advantage of the funds, the federal programs have offered some reprieve amid rising costs. Across the state, 79% of New Yorkers reported it had become harder to afford groceries last year, with more than half of public school families experiencing signs of food insecurity, according to a poll from No Kid Hungry, a campaign from the non-profit Share Our Strength that seeks to end childhood hunger and poverty.

Still, there are key differences between the two programs. All New York City public school families received the pandemic-era benefits, but a smaller number of families are eligible for Summer EBT. And among those eligible, some New York City families will have to apply in order to receive them — a potential barrier for those who may be unaware of the requirement.

Although hundreds of thousands of New York families were eligible to receive the benefits if they applied last year, just 17,158 applications were submitted across the state, according to data obtained by David Rubel, an education consultant who has raised the alarm over unused federal benefits.

Families who had to apply represented just a fraction of those receiving the roughly $250 million in food benefits, with the funds issued automatically to more than 2.1 million eligible children last year, according to the state’s Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, which oversees the summer meal programs. In New York City, more than 1.1 million children received the money, officials said.

And this year, families have a longer timeline to apply for the benefits.

“Last summer, families only had two months, which is a very small window,” Rubel said. “The good news is that New York State kept the application on their website. It’s there right now, and any family can go on their website, fill it out, and submit it for summer 2025.”

Rachel Sabella, director of No Kid Hungry New York, praised the benefits, adding “we have a chance this year to reach more families who weren’t automatically enrolled or pulled in through last year’s outreach.

“This money makes a real difference when parents get to the register at a grocery store,” she said in a statement. “It’s on all of us to keep pushing and to find new ways to get families the benefits they’re entitled to.”

Here’s what New York City families need to know:

Who is eligible for Summer EBT benefits?

Under federal guidelines, a child is only eligible for the program if they attend a school with free lunch and meet household income requirements for free- or reduced-price school meals. (The income requirement varies based on household size, and families can check whether they are eligible here. A family of four, for example, would qualify with an annual income at or below $57,720.)

How can you apply for the benefits?

Most eligible families, including recipients of SNAP, Temporary Assistance, or Medicaid, will automatically receive the funds. Those who will automatically receive them should be notified via a letter in the summer, according to state officials.

Others will need to apply. Families can access the online application here.

When is the deadline to apply?

Families have until Sept. 3 to apply for this year’s summer food benefits. The benefits will be retroactive for those applying after the summer. All benefits expire 122 days after being issued.

Could Summer EBT be impacted by cuts to federal funding?

As a federal program, some observers wonder whether Summer EBT’s continuity could be at risk as President Donald Trump’s administration dramatically slashes government funding for many agencies and federal programs.

Stefan Lallinger, a senior fellow at The Century Foundation, noted Republicans have proposed large, “fairly indiscriminate” cuts to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which operates the Summer EBT program.

“It’s hard to say exactly how those are going to be implemented, but I think the bigger point here is that all of this is causing unnecessary confusion and chaos for low-income families,” he said.

Though Lallinger hasn’t yet seen a direct proposal to cut funding from Summer EBT, he said he was concerned that Republicans in the Senate rejected a proposed amendment that sought to protect against cuts to the federal school meals program — a move that signaled to Lallinger that programs like Summer EBT could be impacted in the future.

“It’s not hyperbole to say that this program is potentially in jeopardy,” he said.

Darren O’Sullivan, a spokesperson for OTDA, emphasized that Gov. Kathy Hochul remains committed to combating food insecurity among the state’s families and children.

“Programs like Summer EBT and SNAP are vital to helping families and individuals in New York, and across the country, that are struggling to make ends meet and New York State is prepared to fight back to protect these programs,” he said in a statement.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Justice Dept.’s move to drop Adams’ charges amplifies worries over Trump’s influence on NYC schools

2025-02-11T21:59:42+00:00

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After the U.S. Department of Justice ordered prosecutors in Manhattan to drop corruption charges against Mayor Eric Adams on Monday, education observers raised fresh concerns about the influence of the Trump administration on city schools.

Under mayoral control the city’s chief executive is responsible for overseeing its 1,600 schools, along with appointing the schools chancellor.

With federal officials dangling the possibility of revisiting the prosecution after the mayoral election, Adams could face pressure to bend to the Trump administration’s will. That dynamic may affect the city’s willingness to aid federal immigration officials, observers said, reverberating among schools and families.

On Tuesday, Adams insisted that he had not broken any laws and vowed to “put this cruel episode behind us and focus entirely on the future of our city.”

He added: “I would never put any personal benefit above my solemn responsibility as your mayor.”

The Department of Justice indicated officials want to drop the charges because they were issued too close to this year’s mayoral election and interfered with the mayor’s ability to support Trump’s immigration crackdown. It is up to acting U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon to file a motion to dismiss the case, though her office had not said as of Tuesday afternoon whether she will follow through on the order.

The corruption charges against Adams, which included wire fraud, bribery, and receiving contributions from foreign nationals that he knew to be illegal, were brought at the end of September — nine months before the mayoral primary. Adams has fiercely maintained his innocence.

In recent weeks, Adams appeared to be angling for leniency from President Donald Trump, meeting with him near his Mar-a-Lago estate, and driving through the night to accept a last-minute invitation to his inauguration.

To Jonathan Collins, a professor of politics and education at Columbia University’s Teachers College, Trump’s intervention in Adams’ case may signal that the mayor is willing to “open the curtain for immigration enforcement” in the nation’s largest school system.

“President Trump has displayed a clear pattern of expecting very clear loyalty from people who receive any sort of political favor from him,” he said. “There is absolutely no reason to expect for that to not occur with Eric Adams.”

After Trump rescinded a longstanding federal policy that limited immigration enforcement at “sensitive” locations, including schools, Adams refrained from taking a clear stance. On Monday, just hours before news broke of the Justice Department’s order to drop the prosecution, Adams ordered senior officials — including the schools chancellor — to avoid criticizing Trump, THE CITY reported.

With the spectre of a criminal trial gone for now, some observers expect the mayor will be even more willing to cooperate.

“We might have the mayor now in a position of permanent blackmail,” said Naveed Hasan, an elected parent representative on the Panel for Educational Policy, which signs off on Education Department contracts and other policy decisions. (Of the panel’s 24 members, 13 are appointed by the mayor.)

“How does that give confidence to parents that the school system is able to operate in a way that benefits the kids’ education, their welfare, their safety?” he asked.

Hasan is particularly concerned that Adams’ cooperation with the Trump administration could amplify fear in immigrant communities at a time when some families are already worried about sending their children to school.

“This is a direct impact on our school attendance, school enrollment — all of the things that we’ve been working so hard to stabilize,” Hasan said. Over the past two years, the city’s public schools have welcomed more than 48,0000 migrant children, helping stop some of the deep declines in student enrollment.

Mixed messages on immigration enforcement sow confusion

Some observers noted that the city still has strong policies in place that limit local officials from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement. Schools have been forbidden to cooperate with non-local law enforcement without a valid judicial warrant that has been reviewed by city lawyers.

But confusion has mounted in recent days about a city directive that appeared to weaken that guidance, allowing city employees to step aside if they feel threatened by federal agents.

The city’s teachers union indicated on Friday the directive was not sent to the Education Department. On Sunday, schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos posted a statement on social media reiterating that “non-local law enforcement is NOT permitted in any of our school buildings without a judicial warrant or unless there are exigent circumstances.”

The next day, Adams issued a directive to senior officials to refrain from antagonizing Trump, an order that will likely continue to put Aviles-Ramos in a difficult position. Adams tapped her to take over from David Banks, who resigned after he was swept up in a broader federal investigation of Adams’ inner circle, and Aviles-Ramos has hewed closely to the mayor’s education priorities. (Banks has admitted no wrongdoing.)

Johanna Miller, director of the education policy center at the New York Civil Liberties Union, said she appreciated the chancellor’s message but worries about mixed signals from the mayor.

“We’re in a really confusing situation because New York City’s written policy is quite good, but the mayor’s actions are speaking louder than his policies right now,” she said.

Some families have been frustrated that Aviles-Ramos has not more forcefully denounced Trump administration orders that seek to limit how schools support transgender and nonbinary children. But some advocates saw her statement over the weekend supporting immigrant students as a positive sign.

“I think it was incredibly brave of her,” said Murad Awawdeh, president and CEO of the New York Immigration Coalition. “We wish that other commissioners and other folks within government do the same to reassure our communities that the city of New York is not going to turn its back on our residents.”

Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy at azimmer@chalkbeat.org.

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

Civics in action: How NYC high schoolers can serve on community boards

2025-02-11T19:56:56+00:00

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Twyla Ware remembers the moment she realized her voice could make a difference in local government.

Residents feared a developer’s proposal for a 34-story complex would cut off sunlight to plants in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Then a middle schooler, Ware gathered some of her friends to sign petitions against the project and meet with local officials.

Spurred in part by local community action, city officials ultimately rejected the developer’s rezoning proposal.

Now a high school senior, Ware is one of the youngest community board members in the city, serving on Brooklyn’s Community Board 9, which includes Crown Heights and Prospect Lefferts Gardens.

Several of the city’s borough presidents — who are responsible for appointing community board members — are trying to expand the representation of young people on community boards, which weigh in on such issues as neighborhood rezonings and budget items. City residents are eligible to serve on their district’s boards starting at age 16.

Twyla Ware, a high school senior at Saint Ann’s School, serves on Community Board 9 in Brooklyn.

These efforts come as civics education has also been growing. In recent years, state and city education officials and advocates have sought to expand opportunities for civics education, including the launch of a youth-led “Youth Civics Hub” and the creation of a “seal of civic readiness” option for high school diplomas. More than 4,500 students across New York City schools earned the seal last year, according to city education officials. That was up from roughly 2,300 the year before.

Since joining her community board, Ware has served on the youth and education committee, as well as the environmental committee. She’s helped to plan Black History Month events for students, organize community cleanups along Nostrand Avenue, and conduct outreach about new trash pickup rules in the neighborhood.

Ware added the work has allowed her to grow closer to her own community.

“It’s been a really rewarding experience,” said Ware, who attends Saint Ann’s School in Brooklyn. “I can walk down the streets and I actually know people. I can stop and wave and say hi, and I’m very grateful for that.”

Borough presidents seek to elevate youth voices

Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso has been one voice leading the effort to get teens on community boards, asking the office’s youth council what would attract them to the work and spreading the word about the application process over social media and the city’s LinkNYC kiosks.

For Reynoso, expanding the diversity of voices on local community boards has been an important goal of his tenure.

Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso speaks during Martin Luther King Jr. tribute at Brooklyn Academy of Music.

“It can be a frustrating experience having to navigate institutions in our city — like libraries, schools, roads, hospitals, parks — and feeling like you have no say in what things look like, how things progress, and how things change,” he said. “We want to hear directly from young people, not through surrogacy.”

Last year, his office appointed six high schoolers across the 18 local community boards in Brooklyn.

In Manhattan, 15 of the members on the borough’s 12 community boards were 16- or 17-years-old, with an additional six 18-year-old members, a spokesperson for Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine said.

To garner more interest, the office has conducted outreach at schools, parent association meetings, and education councils.

This year, the Manhattan Borough President’s office also outfitted LinkNYC kiosks with a youth-oriented campaign to get more community board applicants. One sign, for example, featured a bright green album with the text, “from brat summer to cb spring” — tapping into the viral trend inspired by British singer Charli XCX’s “Brat” album last year.

Will this ad encourage more teens to join Manhattan community boards? Borough President Mark Levine hopes so.

The office also operates a Manhattan Future Leaders Fellowship, allowing 29 high school juniors and seniors to gain experience in city government this year.

“Youth voices play a key role in our communities, and they should play a key role in shaping our future,” Levine said in a statement.

Meanwhile, in Queens, two members across the borough’s 14 community boards were younger than 20-years-old.

Queens Borough President Donovan Richards has “made a concerted effort overall to diversify community board membership, including by making it younger,” said Michael Scholl, a spokesperson for the borough president. The office has conducted outreach over social media and at local high schools, encouraging young people to get involved.

Applications for community board seats are due Feb. 14 in Brooklyn and Queens, and Feb. 28 in Manhattan. Bronx applicants must apply by March 9, while the Staten Island application page did not list a due date.

Spokespeople for the Bronx and Staten Island borough presidents’ offices did not respond to a request for comment.

Other NYC opportunities for youth civic engagement

Community boards aren’t the only local governing bodies that high school students can join.

The city’s 32 school districts each have their own Community Education Council, or CEC, representing local prekindergarten through eighth grade students at Education Department-run schools. There are also four citywide councils: for high schoolers, students learning English as a new language, students with disabilities, and District 75 schools, which serve students with the most complex disabilities.

Though the majority of seats on those councils are determined through parent elections, each CEC also has one or two non-voting seats reserved for high school seniors, though many boards are out of compliance with that mandate. (Those spots are determined by the district superintendents.)

Currently, 18 students are serving across 12 education councils, according to city officials.

Being a teen on these governing boards can come with challenges. Ware, the Community Board 9 member, said it hasn’t always been easy being the lone student voice on the board. Still, Ware encouraged fellow students to apply for seats on their local boards.

“Trust yourself and your voice,” she said.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

NYC schools could lose nearly $350 million under Hochul’s funding proposal, chancellor says

2025-01-29T23:33:14+00:00

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New York City schools stand to lose nearly $350 million under Gov. Kathy Hochul’s proposed update to the state’s school funding formula, schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos said Wednesday at a budget hearing in Albany.

“There is no question that the Foundation Aid formula needs a revamp,” Aviles-Ramos said. “But the governor’s proposed changes to the formula would actually result in nearly $350 million fewer dollars to New York City public schools than we’d be entitled to under the current formula, disproportionately impacting our system compared to many other districts.”

In her executive budget earlier this month, Hochul proposed several changes to the states’ school funding formula, which if enacted would result in New York City losing out on potential funding. The governor’s proposed spending plan marked the start of budget negotiations with lawmakers, with a finalized budget due by the start of the next fiscal year, which begins in April.

First developed in 2007, the Foundation Aid formula, in some cases, relies on decades-old data to calculate student need in determining how much money to send school districts.

Though advocates and policymakers agree the formula is in dire need of updates, some remain divided over what changes the state should make.

For one change, Hochul called for replacing the 2000 Census poverty rate with the most recent Census Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. She also proposed the formula stop using federal free- and reduced-price lunch eligibility as a basis for measuring student need, instead switching to broader “economically disadvantaged” student counts.

Though the latter of these changes could benefit the city, the former would result in a sizable hit to funding for local schools.

In her testimony, Aviles-Ramos urged lawmakers to update how the formula accounts for differing costs across regions and add a weight for students in temporary housing, among other potential changes that could offset the loss of potential funding for New York City’s schools.

“We need that additional money,” she said. “And most importantly, we cannot sustain a cut.”

NYC asks for more money to implement school cellphone ban

Aviles-Ramos also called on lawmakers to push for additional funding to support a proposed statewide school cellphone ban.

Implementation costs were among the sticking points that held up a citywide ban anticipated earlier this school year, and the chancellor argued that the $13.5 million Hochul earmarked in her proposed ban was insufficient to support schools across the state. Aviles-Ramos did not specify how much city schools might need.

Currently, schools across the five boroughs can make their own determinations over whether and how to restrict student cellphone use. Some schools opt to collect phones each morning, while others use cubbies or locking pouches to store devices throughout the school day.

On Wednesday, Aviles-Ramos told lawmakers that the last of these options was the most effective — allowing students to retain their devices throughout the day with options to access them if an emergency situation occurs. But she added that purchasing those pouches can be expensive for schools.

Yondr, one company that develops the locking pouches, previously told Chalkbeat that the pouches (along with additional equipment, training, and support) cost about $30 per student, though company officials noted they offered “volume discounts.”

“I didn’t have that kind of money,” Aviles-Ramos said of her time as a school principal. Instead, the schools chancellor said her school collected cellphones each day from roughly 400 students. “So when I had an emergency and I needed to evacuate, I needed to get 400 cellphones back into the hands of high school students. That was very, very challenging.”

Aviles-Ramos added schools that have already implemented cellphone bans should benefit from the state funding.

“Roughly 800 of our schools have already signed up to do this work,” she said. “What we don’t want to tell them is, ‘Continue to self-fund while we pay for other schools to get on the bus,’ particularly if the Foundation Aid formula does not adjust and there’s going to be a decrease in the funding that they get.”

State lawmakers voice concerns over compliance with class size law, Trump administration

During the hearing, state lawmakers also voiced concerns over a range of issues impacting the city’s public school system, including its efforts to comply with a state law mandating smaller class sizes and the safety of immigrant communities amid President Donald Trump’s escalating deportation efforts.

State Sen. John Liu, a Queens Democrat who chairs the Senate’s New York City education committee, argued the city has not taken sufficient steps to shrink class sizes in the city. Though the city has thus far remained in compliance with the law without requiring dramatic measures, the first significant test comes in September when 60% of classrooms across the city must fall below the caps.

“The reality is that the department has done virtually nothing to achieve that,” Liu said.

Aviles-Ramos and other city officials pushed back on Liu’s statement, arguing that the city has given schools a chance to propose their own plans for meeting the class size mandate. The Education Department offered new funding to campuses that submitted concrete plans last month to shrink classes.

“That is incredibly important, Senator, because we know that when we give principals the autonomy to make the program shifts and the space shifts necessary to comply, it’s better than us swooping in and doing those mandates,” she said.

Several lawmakers also expressed concerns over the safety of immigrant students in New York City, as the Trump administration has rolled back long-standing protections that treated schools and child care centers as “sensitive locations” largely shielded from immigration enforcement.

Aviles-Ramos told lawmakers that school attendance after Trump’s inauguration was between 84-89%, compared to 89-92% for the same week in 2024 — a downward trend that may have been spurred in part by fears from immigrant families. She added that city policy prevents law enforcement from entering school buildings without a warrant, and that the Education Department had hosted training sessions for school officials and families.

“What if they have a judicial warrant?” asked Assemblymember Marcela Mitaynes, who added that constituents in her south Brooklyn district have expressed deep concerns over the possibility of federal immigration agents entering the community.

“Then, unfortunately, they are permitted to enter,” Aviles-Ramos said.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Nation’s report card: Math scores rebound for NYC fourth graders, but disparities remain

2025-01-29T05:02:00+00:00

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New York City’s fourth graders are showing signs of academic recovery in math, according to new data released Wednesday from a long-running exam known as the “nation’s report card.”

The latest results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, or NAEP, offer some relief after the city’s fourth graders experienced a crushing drop in math scores just two years prior — raising serious concerns about lingering effects from the pandemic.

Drilling down into the data of the 2024 scores, however, reveals that not all fourth graders in the five boroughs are recovering at the same rate and that little progress has been made to bridge stubborn performance gaps between student groups.

Overall, just 33% of the city’s fourth graders scored proficient in math last year, compared with 23% in 2022 and 32% in 2019. (NAEP exams do not always align with state learning standards, and the exam’s standard for proficiency exceeds most states’ expectations for grade-level achievement, according to researchers.)

As a whole, New York was one of 15 states to see their fourth grade math scores rise last year. One state saw scores fall and 37 saw no significant change, according to the NAEP data.

Still, New York City’s fourth graders scored below state and national averages. National proficiency rates hit 39% and the state’s rate was 37%.

Education observers have been eagerly anticipating results from last year’s test, hoping for some signs of how well academic recovery has been going since the city devoted hundreds of millions of dollars toward a slew of programs in recent years — an effort propped up by billions in federal aid that have since dried up.

The city’s scores on the other exams — fourth and eighth grade reading, and eighth grade math — remained fairly steady from 2022, which in turn did not change in statistically significant ways from 2019.

Of the city’s eighth graders, 23% scored proficient in math and 29% scored proficient in reading — compared to 25% and 27% in 2022, respectively. Meanwhile, 28% of the city’s fourth graders scored proficient in reading, up from 26% on the prior exam.

“It’s absolutely cause for encouragement,” said Ray Hart, executive director of the Council of the Great City Schools, a coalition of 78 of the nation’s largest urban public school systems. “When you compare New York City to not only the state, but to other districts around the country, the fact that they’ve been able to hold steady is quite remarkable, given the challenges that were faced during the pandemic.”

Chyann Tull, a spokesperson for the city’s Education Department, said the latest NAEP results showing a return to pre-pandemic levels “underscore the resilience of New York City’s students and educators.”

“This stability reflects the extraordinary efforts of our schools to support learning recovery,” she said in a statement. “While there is still so much to be done, we remain committed to building on this foundation and fostering continued growth citywide.”

Still, Aaron Pallas, a professor at Columbia University’s Teachers College and an expert in testing, cautioned against drawing immediate conclusions from the NAEP data. With years between exams and distinct cohorts of students, many factors can contribute to fluctuations in results, he said.

Pallas, who spoke to Chalkbeat generally about NAEP before results were released, noted that the exams offer one piece of evidence that can help illustrate a more holistic picture of student performance when combined with other metrics, like annual state reading and math assessments.

“NAEP is a broad, general purpose indicator,” he said. “Inevitably, I think, there’s a tendency to want to look at changes over time and use that as a referendum on policies and practices — but lots of things are changing at the same time.”

Fourth grade math breakdown: Top scorers made largest gains

Though on its surface the shift in fourth grade math scores signaled a return to pre-pandemic numbers, the score improvements varied among students. While top performers improved their scores by roughly 11 points on average since 2022, the lowest performers saw an improvement of just five points on the exam, indicating that academic recovery might be uneven.

The big jump for the top performers was a departure from what happened two years ago, when both the high- and low-performers saw their scores fall at about the same rate, roughly 10 points. Meanwhile, for low performers, the score improvement in 2024 was not statistically significant, according to researchers.

Experts noted that a widening gap between high- and low-performing students suggests a need for targeted support, aimed at providing resources to students who are struggling the most.

“It’s tricky in a city like New York City, when so many students are already classified as disadvantaged by conventional criteria,” Pallas added. “So many schools in the city have high concentrations of kids in poverty.”

Hart said some large school districts were able to make significant strides among both low- and high-performing students — like Los Angeles and Washington D.C. in fourth grade math.

“That is possible in New York City as well,” he said. “Targeting our resources to ensure that they are supporting our kids who are from our most traditionally marginalized communities will be critically important.”

Still, across the nation as a whole, Peggy Carr, commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, noted that the widening achievement gap between high- and low-performing students had existed before the pandemic — growing worse in recent years.

“The lowest performers are struggling,” she said. “This is not just a pandemic story.”

Significant disparities remain in latest NYC testing data

The 2024 testing data also revealed persistent score disparities between student groups in New York City.

In fourth grade math, for example, just 16% of the city’s Black and Hispanic students scored proficient last year. Meanwhile, 53% of white students and 58% of Asian American students scored proficient on the exam.

Since 2003, the gap in average exam score between Black and Hispanic students and their white peers has grown slightly — up to more than 30 points from about 25 at the time, though researchers noted this shift was not statistically significant. (NAEP exams are scored on a scale from 0 to 500).

Performance gaps also surfaced between economically disadvantaged students and their peers — with just 24% of the former scoring proficient in fourth grade math compared to 60% of those who were not economically disadvantaged.

Hart noted that significant gaps between student groups largely correspond with income. When comparing, for example, Black and white students of similar economic need, the disparities in academic performance were far less significant, he said.

“There are much greater challenges for educating those students than there are for the general population,” Hart said. “Making sure that we continue to bring to bear federal and state and local dollars to support our students who are in greatest need — that is what’s most important.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Hochul wants to ban cellphones (and smartwatches) from schools. Here’s what families should know.

2025-01-23T22:09:50+00:00

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Gov. Kathy Hochul’s proposal to limit student access to cellphones during the school day would require all New York City public schools to implement a ban on devices by the start of the next school year.

It’s part of a broader effort by Hochul to establish a “distraction-free” learning environment, and to encourage students to spend less time online amid concerns over the impact of social media on student mental health.

The proposed legislation was unveiled by the governor during a budget presentation earlier this week.

Though the city’s Education Department seemed poised to implement a systemwide ban last summer, Mayor Eric Adams pumped the brakes on that plan — spurred in part by concerns over the costs of implementation. Parents also expressed fears about losing their ability to contact students directly in emergency situations.

Instead, the Education Department partnered with the city’s Health Department to conduct a study on school cellphone restriction policies.

Currently, the city allows principals to make their own decisions about whether and how schools will limit access to cellphones during the school day. About 850 city schools had implemented or were planning to implement cellphone restrictions, city officials said last year. Some schools collect devices each morning, while others provide students with locking pouches.

Hochul’s sweeping proposal would leave the specifics of the policies in the hands of school districts, giving local officials some degree of control over how the policy might operate in practice in New York City.

Still, new details released by the governor on Wednesday offer a closer look at the potential policy. Here’s what families should know:

How would a school cellphone ban work?

Under the proposed legislation, school districts would be required to adopt a written policy prohibiting the use of “internet-enabled devices” by students on school grounds from “bell to bell,” including during class time, lunch, and in the hallways.

Each school district can determine the specifics of its policy, including how schools will store student devices and ensure compliance. But the district policies must identify at least one method through which students can store their devices during the school day, with the bill noting that student lockers could be included as an option.

School districts would also be required to report annually on discipline as a result of the policy, with action required if that report reveals inequities in enforcement. Some advocates previously expressed concerns about equity issues related to enforcement.

When would the proposed legislation go into effect?

School districts must adopt a cellphone policy and publish it on their websites by Aug. 1, 2025, according to the bill.

What student devices are prohibited under the proposed legislation?

The cellphone restrictions would apply to all “internet-enabled devices,” including smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, and any other device able to connect to the internet.

The proposal would not apply to phones that are unable to connect to the internet, or internet-enabled devices supplied by the school district for educational purposes.

Would some students receive exemptions?

Students with disabilities, as well as others who rely on digital devices for medical reasons or translation purposes, would be allowed exemptions from the policy.

The legislation also allows districts to include exceptions for when teachers direct students to use devices for educational purposes, or in case of emergencies.

How would parents get in touch with their kids during the school day?

Each school district’s cellphone policy would be required to include one or more ways for parents and guardians to get in touch with their students during the school day.

The proposed legislation also requires schools to send parents written notice of these methods at the start of each school year.

State officials also recommended districts update or establish emergency notification protocols so parent expectations remained clear.

Will schools receive funding to implement cellphone restrictions?

Hochul’s proposed state budget allocates $13.5 million to help schools cover costs associated with cellphone restrictions, like paying for storage or digital locking pouches developed by companies like Yondr.

If approved, schools would access the funds by requesting reimbursement when purchasing phone storage items, according to Hochul’s office.

Does the policy apply to charter and private schools?

The proposed legislation would apply to charter schools. It would not apply to private schools.

How should districts approach developing a cellphone policy?

Hochul’s office released a set of guidance to help school districts approach developing their cellphone policies.

The suggestions include involving students, parents, teachers, and administrators in conversations about the policy, clearly defining its scope and expectations, communicating with parents regularly, and monitoring and adjusting the policy as necessary to ensure it is effective and equitable.

State officials also advised school districts to develop a clear plan for discipline, ensuring students understand the consequences of failing to comply with the policy.

How can schools support device-free students?

The guidance also included advice for schools seeking to build student engagement as students lose access to devices at school. Among the suggestions: promoting school clubs, sports, and the arts, allowing teachers to offer lessons outside the classroom, and providing games when kids are out of class.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

For statewide school cellphone ban, Hochul proposes $13.5 million to cover costs

2025-01-21T23:02:04+00:00

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It’s official: After months of voicing concerns about the effects of cellphones on student mental health and learning, Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed a $13.5 million plan to help districts implement a ban.

Hochul said her plan would help create a “distraction-free” learning environment during the school day. The money aims to help cover associated costs that districts might incur, such as paying for digital pouches that lock devices or additional staff to collect phones each day. Covering the potential costs was one of the issues that forced New York City to put the brakes on its own ban, and it remains to be seen how far the governor’s proposed allocation will go.

On Tuesday, Hochul included the proposal in her $252 billion state 2026 budget, which would send $37.4 billion to schools across the state — a nearly $1.7 billion increase, or 4.7%, from the prior year’s budget. It builds on a broader agenda focused on affordability outlined by Hochul during her State of the State address last week.

The governor’s budget proposal marks the start of negotiations with lawmakers over how the state should allocate its funding for the next fiscal year, which begins in April.

Under Hochul’s cellphone proposal, students would be required to disconnect from devices from “bell to bell,” including during class time, lunch, and in the hallways. The policy would go into effect at the start of the next school year, with districts able to decide the specifics of how they would store phones and ensure compliance, according to Hochul’s office.

“Our kids will finally be free from the endless disruptions of social media and all the mental health pressures that come from it,” she said during her speech at the State Capitol.

Students with disabilities, as well as others who rely on digital devices for medical reasons or translation purposes, would be allowed exemptions from the policy.

In New York City, the Education Department appeared poised to implement a citywide ban on student cellphone use in schools last summer but later reversed course after intervention by Mayor Eric Adams.

Jenna Lyle, a spokesperson for the Education Department, said Tuesday that the department was “looking forward to partnering with the Governor” on the issue.

“The feedback we have heard from our school communities has been clear: access to cell phones in the classroom distracts from learning, divides attention, and significantly impacts our students’ mental health,” she said in a statement. “Following our engagement with parent leadership groups last spring, in partnership with the Health Department, we’ve been working on an evaluation to better understand both how schools are implementing policies to restrict cell phones, and lessons learned from those implementations.”

Currently, the city’s schools can make their own determinations over whether and how to restrict student cellphone use. At the end of last school year, about 350 schools already had bans in place, with an additional 500 planning to implement them this year, city officials previously said. Some schools provide students with locking Yondr pouches, while others collect phones or employ alternative strategies.

Those pouches (along with additional equipment, training, and support), though, can cost schools $30 per student in the first year, according to the company. Yondr CEO Graham Dugoni noted the company offered “volume discounts” in a statement and praised Hochul’s proposed cellphone ban.

“We look forward to supporting more school communities across New York in creating successful phone-free learning environments,” he said.

Adams, who has expressed some concerns about adopting a citywide policy on the issue, previously told reporters that the city would comply with any state mandate.

NYC could lose out under school funding formula proposal

Hochul’s proposed budget also called for updates to the state’s school funding formula, an issue expected to take center stage in education budget discussions this year. Known as Foundation Aid, the formula was originally created in 2007, and in some cases relies on decades-old data to determine how much funding is sent to school districts.

For years, advocates, lawmakers, and other education officials have called for updates to the formula, with some arguing it requires a complete overhaul. But the governor’s proposed updates — which were among the suggestions put forward by the state’s Board of Regents and a recent report issued by the Rockefeller Institute — could potentially result in New York City receiving a smaller funding increase, advocates warned Tuesday.

For one change, Hochul called for replacing the 2000 Census poverty rate with the most recent Census Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, or SAIPE, data. The formula should also stop using federal free- and reduced-price lunch eligibility as a basis for measuring student need, the governor said, instead switching to broader “economically disadvantaged” student counts.

“This will ensure that state dollars go to students who need them the most,” Hochul said.

But according to the more than 300-page report issued by the Rockefeller Institute last month, switching from the 2000 Census Bureau poverty count to three-year average SAIPE data would decrease New York City’s Foundation Aid funding by a projected $392 million. (The city’s schools would still see an overall increase to Foundation Aid funding.)

Kim Sweet, executive director of the nonprofit group Advocates for Children of New York, said even when combined with the swap to using economically disadvantaged student counts, the proposed changes would result in less overall funding for New York City schools.

“The current federal poverty threshold for a family of four is just $32,150,” she said in a statement. “Trying to make ends meet on $30,000 means something very different for a family in New York City than elsewhere in the State.”

Hochul’s proposal did not include several changes to the formula sought by city advocates and officials, such as additional funding for students in temporary housing, or extra dollars to implement the state’s class size mandate for New York City schools.

The city’s Education Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on how the proposed changes were expected to impact local schools.

The governor’s budget proposal would also modify the formula to send additional aid to low-wealth school districts, as well as ensure that every district receives an annual increase of at least 2%, state officials said. The proposed modifications would result in an increase to Foundation Aid of roughly $1.5 billion, or 5.9%, according to officials.

Early college funding, free school meals, and other proposals

Hochul’s other proposals included establishing a $64.6 million “College in High School Opportunity Fund,” allocating $340 million for universal free school meals, increases in funding for child care programs, and more.

The proposed “College in High School Opportunity Fund” would seek to build institutional support for the model, which provides high school students with a chance to take college courses and receive additional mentorship opportunities while earning their diplomas. Across the country and the state, the model has seen success at improving college matriculation rates and other measures of academic achievement among high school students.

As she unveiled her budget proposal, Hochul also addressed concerns about the “cloud of uncertainty” posed by President Donald Trump’s administration, as the president vowed to slash federal funding during his campaign.

“Changes at the federal level will create new challenges for our state,” Hochul said, warning Republicans could cut “critical funding streams for Medicaid, education, child care, utility assistance,” and more.

“Those who are hurt need to raise their voices, and direct that anger at Washington, and push their members of Congress to fight for them,” she said. “Because New York and other states will simply not be able to shoulder these costs on our own.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

School cellphone ban, early college, AI guardrails: Hochul’s 2025 education agenda

2025-01-14T20:38:34+00:00

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Gov. Kathy Hochul will move to limit cellphone use in New York schools this year as part of a broader education agenda focused on improving student mental health, expanding opportunities for early college, and more.

The inclusion of a school cellphone policy in the governor’s 2025 agenda — outlined ahead of Hochul’s annual State of the State address on Tuesday — comes as no surprise. For months, Hochul has expressed concerns over student cell phone use, citing its potentially harmful effects on learning and mental health.

But the governor did not reveal further details about what a statewide cellphone ban in schools might look like in practice — or mention her cellphone proposal at all during her State of the State speech. However, her office released nearly 140 pages of proposed initiatives ahead of the address — with one proposal noting the specifics of her cellphone policy would be included in her executive budget later this month.

Much of the focus in Hochul’s proposals and State of the State address centered on affordability — a major theme in Mayor Eric Adams’ State of the City address last week.

“Many New Yorkers are struggling,” she said. “Inflation. Sky-high rents. Wages that just don’t feel like they can’t keep up. A changing economy. An influx of unexpected arrivals with great needs.”

But the fine print of Hochul’s proposed cellphone policy wasn’t the only thing absent in the governor’s education proposals. Her initiatives did not directly address a few key education issues, including ongoing efforts to update the state’s school funding formula and concerns from local and state officials over the threat of federal funding cuts from President-elect Donald Trump’s administration.

And though education was not the focal point of her 2025 agenda, Hochul’s proposals included expanding opportunities for high school students to take college-level classes, imposing guardrails on artificial intelligence-powered chatbots, rolling out mental health first aid training for teens, and more.

Specifics of state cellphone policy still unclear

New York is one of many states and school districts across the country that has considered adopting or taken steps to limit student cellphone use in schools.

Some state lawmakers previously told Chalkbeat that there’s general support in Albany to take action on student cellphone use, but any statewide policy should leave decisions in the hands of school districts.

In New York City, former schools Chancellor David Banks seemed poised to implement a citywide ban last year before Adams intervened. Instead, the Education Department has been working with the Health Department to conduct a study on best practices for cellphone use in schools.

Though Adams has expressed hesitancy over adopting a systemwide policy, he said last month that the city would comply with any state mandate.

State funding for early college programs

This year, Hochul wants to establish a “College in High School Opportunity Fund,” seeking to build institutional support for the model, which provides high school students with a chance to take college courses and receive additional mentorship opportunities while earning their diplomas.

Across the country and the state, the model has seen success at improving college matriculation rates and other measures of academic achievement among high school students. For example, participants in the City University of New York’s Early College program — which partners with 19 public middle and high schools across the five boroughs — graduated on time from the network’s colleges at higher rates than their peers.

Meanwhile, more than three-quarters of students in the early college program graduated high school with college credits and enrolled in higher education, according to CUNY. At one local school — Kingsborough Early College Secondary School in Brooklyn — more than 65% of graduates in 2023 left high school with an associate degree.

Hochul’s proposal seeks to create a consistent source of funding for early college programs. The program will be free for all students and focus on helping those with high economic need earn college credits, according to state officials.

In New York City, some schools are already using the model to help students prepare for higher education. And developing more opportunities for students to earn early college credits has been part of the city’s broader effort in recent years to bolster career and college readiness among young people.

Hochul also proposed other changes to expand college access, including making community college free for students between the ages of 25 and 55 who go on to work in high-demand fields after graduation — including education.

Protections against AI-powered chatbots, misinformation

During her State of the State address, Hochul raised concerns over the dangers posed by “harmful AI bots posing as friends.”

She warned warned that models that simulate human companionship could push users to form unhealthy relationships with the technology — potentially exacerbating mental health issues and pervasive loneliness among young people

Hochul will propose legislation requiring AI companies to implement safety features, including protections against self-harm and built-in reminders that users are interacting with machines, according to state officials.

And in a bid to foster media literacy skills in young people and defend against misinformation, she will direct the state’s Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services to develop a guide for teachers — equipping educators with age-specific examples — as well as resources for parents and a public education campaign.

Expanded youth mental health programs, child care, and more

Hochul’s proposals also included new initiatives to improve youth mental health, a major focus of her education agenda last year.

Among her proposals are a teen mental health first aid program to train high school students in supporting themselves and their peers, an effort to connect licensed health care facilities with after-school programs to expand resources for students, and the development of “safe spaces for youth” where young people can access behavioral health support.

During her speech, Hochul vowed to dedicate $110 million to building and renovating child care centers, as well as to establish “a corps of substitute child care professionals so someone’s always on call.”

Hochul also proposed constructing new playgrounds and developing further opportunities for students to participate in extracurricular, recreational, and volunteer activities.

“To truly free our kids from social media we must give them safe places to simply be kids,” she said. “It’s just common sense.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Universal child care for 2-year-olds? It’s what some NYC advocates and elected officials want.

2025-01-10T18:33:17+00:00

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A coalition of child care advocates, families, and elected officials will march with strollers on City Hall on Sunday to launch their campaign for free child care for all New York City 2-year-olds.

The campaign will kick off just three days after Mayor Eric Adams delivered his annual State of the City speech — which focused heavily on affordability for families but was criticized by advocates over a lack of concrete child care policy proposals. During the last budget cycle, Adams clashed with advocates and City Council members over funding for the city’s early childhood system.

The campaign pushes for the inclusion of “2-Care” in the next city budget and calls for a significant expansion of the child care system that currently offers free preschool programs for the city’s 3- and 4-year-olds. Advocates estimate it would serve about 60,000 children and require about $1.3 billion to operate at full-scale.

“Families cannot afford to wait until their kids are three to access free child care: the steep cost of child care is pushing parents to their breaking point, and out of New York all together,” said Rebecca Bailin, executive director of New Yorkers United for Child Care, in a statement. “Universal 2-Care is an important step towards reversing these devastating trends and bringing universal, public child care to all of New York State.”

Organized by New Yorkers United for Child Care (a grassroots parent group) and United Neighborhood Houses (a policy organization representing many child care providers), the 2-Care campaign has gained support from a range of grassroots advocacy groups, child care providers, and local and state officials, according to a Friday press release.

Among those supporting the campaign: city Comptroller Brad Lander and state Sen. Jessica Ramos — two officials who plan to run against Adams in the mayoral race this year.

Chyann Tull, a spokesperson for the city’s Education Department, said proposals like 2-Care “highlight the urgent need to invest in our youngest learners, supporting their development and easing financial burdens on families.”

“New York City Public Schools understands the profound impact that accessible, high-quality child care has on our families and communities,” she said in a statement. “We must support the sustainability of the current system while we remain committed to working alongside our partners in government to create a seamless, equitable system that sets every child on a path to success from their earliest years.”

Child care advocates argue that child care for 2-year-olds is critically important, noting 80% of brain growth occurs before the age of 3. Meanwhile, child care costs can be a significant financial burden for families, forcing parents to choose between leaving their jobs or paying thousands of dollars for private child care services. Full-time child care for a 2-year-old in New York City can cost families roughly $23,400 annually, according to advocates.

A universal 2-Care program, advocates say, would offer free child care services to every 2-year-old in the city — operating from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at locations close to home.

Building up the city’s free prekindergarten system was a signature initiative of former Mayor Bill de Blasio, who leaned heavily on federal COVID relief dollars to expand preschool for 3-year-olds with a goal of making the program universal.

But that effort stalled under Adams, whose administration contended that thousands of seats were sitting empty due to mismatches of supply and demand in some neighborhoods. But advocates argue that Adams had not invested enough in promoting preschool options to families.

During his State of the City address, Adams said the city had extended a 3-K offer to every family that applied on time last year, enrolling 150,000 children across the early childhood system.

A lack of access to affordable child care can have a significant impact on parents’ ability to work, according to prior reports from city government. In 2021, more than half a million people did not seek employment due to child care needs, with about 375,000 parents choosing to leave or considering leaving their jobs due to the combined impact of the pandemic and a lack of affordable child care.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Banking in schools, free swim lessons: education proposals in Adams’ ‘State of the City’ speech

2025-01-09T22:37:04+00:00

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Some New York City students could soon have access to banking services at school, under an initiative announced by Mayor Eric Adams on Thursday.

City officials plan to open 15 bank branches directly in public schools, offering students “real world experience opening accounts, saving, and investing,” Adams said during his State of the City address at Harlem’s Apollo Theater. It’s an idea that’s been explored in other parts of the country and the state.

“Interest, credit, and debt will determine our students’ success in the 21st century,” he said. “But too many young people still don’t know what they mean.”

Adams did not provide further details about the specifics or timeline for the program during his speech. Officials from the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, which oversees the initiative, said the agency was currently working with the city’s Education Department to identify schools that would participate in “the In-School Banking pilot program,” with more details to be announced in the coming months.

The promise was one part of a larger focus on affordability during his annual address, which adopted the theme of making New York City “the best place to raise a family.” The speech, which also saw the mayor lean heavily on issues of public safety and housing, comes at a pivotal moment for Adams as he faces federal corruption charges and a re-election campaign later this year. Adams has pleaded not guilty to the federal charges.

Still, Adams struck a triumphant tone at the outset of his speech, touting investments in public safety, housing, and other city programs. He warned New Yorkers not to “let anyone fool you.”

“Don’t listen to the noise, don’t listen to the rhetoric,” he said. “The state of our city is strong.”

Education was not a centerpiece of his speech, but he tied its importance to the broader themes of his address: He pointed to investments in early childhood education as a means of removing financial burdens from families and to programs that support at-risk youth as a benefit to public safety.

“If we do not educate, we will incarcerate,” Adams said. “The choice is ours to make.”

Adams briefly touted some of the major education initiatives from his administration — like curriculum overhauls for math and literacy — and emphasized the importance of financial education in schools.

He vowed that the city would launch a new program to teach students financial skills at school and place a “financial educator” in each of the city’s 32 school districts. That educator would offer financial workshops, counseling, and curriculum, Adams said.

“We will make sure that every single New York City student can learn how to save and spend money by 2030,” he said. “Today, I’m calling on everyone — our banks, our credit unions, our private sector partners and more — to join us in this course and help set our children up for a lifetime of financial freedom.”

In the fall, the city’s Education Department called on public school families and educators to provide feedback on its K-12 financial literacy curriculum.

Other youth and education-related promises outlined by the mayor during his speech included more free swim lessons for the city’s children, as well as an expansion to the “Fatherhood Initiative,” a program that seeks to help fathers reconnect with their children and develop essential parenting skills.

The speech marked the start of Adams’ fourth year in office and came on the heels of multiple high-profile departures from his administration, including that of former schools Chancellor David Banks, as well as the mayor’s own federal indictment.

“Challenging year, difficult year, and many thought we couldn’t get through it,” Adams said at the close of his State of the City address. “There were some who said, ‘Step down.’ I said, ‘No, I must step up.’”

Despite Adams’ triumphant tone, some critics — and mayoral challengers — were quick to note what was left out of his speech, pointing to a lack of new policy proposals to improve child care access in the city. The issue was a point of tension between advocates and the mayor during budget negotiations last year.

“At the height of an affordability crisis, the Mayor failed to present any concrete plans for child care affordability,” said Rebecca Bailin, executive director of New Yorkers United for Child Care, in a statement. “To make New York City the best place to raise a family, we need bold action — not just words.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Want to serve on your local education council? Here’s how NYC parents can get involved

2025-01-08T19:37:46+00:00

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This story was updated to reflect the new deadline, Feb. 27.

New York City parents: Do you want to get involved in local and citywide education policy?

Applications to serve on the city’s Community and City Education Councils, or CECs, opened in January, giving parents until Feb. 27 to submit their names for consideration. (This month, the city’s Education Department extended the deadline by 11 days from an initial deadline of Feb. 16.)

Each of the city’s 32 school districts has its own council representing local prekindergarten through eighth grade students at Education Department-run schools. There are also four citywide councils: for high schoolers, students learning English as a new language, students with disabilities, and District 75 schools, which serve students with the most complex disabilities.

During a press conference, schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos encouraged parents — particularly those who speak languages other than English — to apply for seats on the parent-led boards.

“If you’ve never held a parent leadership role before, now is always a great time to start,” she said. “At the same time, we recognize that not everyone can dedicate time to serving on these councils, and in that case, we encourage you to get involved in other ways — whether by voting in the elections this spring, or contacting your CEC members to share your thoughts and experiences.”

Here’s a look at what CECs do, who is eligible to serve on them, and how you can get involved:

What are Community and City Education Councils?

The city’s parent-led boards serve as largely advisory bodies, with the local councils holding direct power only to shape school zone boundaries.

Still, CECs give parents an opportunity to weigh in on a variety of education issues at their monthly meetings, from academics to school budgets and more. The parent councils help determine education policies and priorities across local districts and the city, collaborating with district superintendents and issuing resolutions and other recommendations for the school system at large.

In recent years, some local councils have waded into political discussions, issuing statements on the Israel-Hamas war, congestion pricing tolls, and other issues.

City Council member Rita Joseph, a former teacher who chairs the committee on education, called the councils “a vital space, where parents don’t only have a voice, but actively shape policies and decisions that impact their children’s school every day.”

“I encourage parents across the city to step forward,” she said. “Your voice matters, and now is the time to use it.”

Who can serve on a CEC?

All candidates must be the parent or legal guardian of a New York City public school student, with some additional eligibility requirements (and exceptions) for specific councils.

To serve on one of the 32 district CECs, you must have a child that is currently attending pre-K through eighth grade at a public school or program within that district. You can also apply for a reserved District 75 seat on the council if your child attends a District 75 program physically located within the district.

For the Citywide Council on High Schools, you’ll be campaigning for a seat in the borough where your child’s public, non-charter high school is located.

Candidates for the Citywide Council for District 75 must have a child in a District 75, while those seeking a seat on the Citywide Council on Special Education must have a child with an individualized education program, or IEP, whether in a city-run, charter, or private school, according to the Education Department.

To qualify for a spot on the Citywide Council on English Language Learners, you must have a child who is classified as an English language learner and who is currently enrolled (or was enrolled within the previous two years) in a dual language, transitional bilingual education, or English as a new language program.

Parents can also run for multiple councils, but will only be able to serve on one. Education Department employees are not eligible to serve on councils while employed by the agency.

Individuals can also be appointed to a CEC by a borough president, or join as a non-voting high school senior.

How can you run for a CEC seat?

Parents can apply through their New York City Schools Account. Applications will remain open until Feb. 27. Candidates will campaign from February through April.

There are more than 350 seats up for grabs. Elected parents and guardians will serve a two-year term on the boards, beginning July 1 and ending June 30, 2027.

How can you vote in CEC elections?

Parents and guardians are able to vote for each council that serves their children — meaning many families are eligible to vote in more than one council race. (Each parent gets one vote per child, and each vote allows you to select up to three seats on the council.)

Parents can vote online using their New York City Schools Account. In 2023, Education Department officials told Chalkbeat that many parents never activated their accounts — with roughly a third of the city’s students not linked to a New York City Schools Account at the time.

Voting will take place from April 25 through May 13, with run-off elections, if needed, from May 14 - June 2, according to Education Department officials.

Election results will be announced in June.

Why are some calling for changes to CEC elections?

CEC elections, which occur every two years, have faced criticism over insufficient outreach and dismal turnout figures. During the 2023 election cycle, roughly 19,000 votes were cast across the five boroughs — representing just 2% of the city’s public school families.

In November, city Comptroller Brad Lander called on the Education Department to implement a series of changes to the CEC election process, after an investigation by his office raised concerns over the department’s handling of the 2023 elections.

Among those proposed changes: An outreach plan for every district, a clear set of criteria for what constitutes a “political endorsement,” and an improved process for handling complaints during elections.

The comptroller’s investigation followed concerns from two citywide parent groups over the fairness of the election, as well as a Chalkbeat investigation that highlighted numerous concerns over how a city agency conducted the election process.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

As congestion pricing begins, some Manhattan school communities worry over long-term impact

2025-01-06T23:34:32+00:00

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For the first time on Monday, some New York City families and educators commuting to school by car faced a $9 toll upon entering a swath of Manhattan.

The toll — a result of the congestion pricing program — charges drivers who enter Manhattan at or below 60th Street in order to help finance public transit improvements. (Most drivers must pay the $9 toll during “peak” hours — between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekdays, as well as between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekends — and a reduced $2.25 during all other hours).

That program, which has been in the works for years, went into effect on Sunday.

For decades, environmental and transit advocates have sought to enact a congestion pricing program, looking to it as a means of reducing gridlock and pollution while raising revenue for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

But the program has also sparked concerns from some, including the city’s teachers union.

Last year, the union filed a lawsuit against the plan in partnership with the Staten Island borough president, seeking to halt its implementation. Some pro-congestion pricing teachers bristled at the legal action, but on Monday, union officials noted the lawsuit remained ongoing.

“Our lawsuit continues because the congestion pricing plan that is now in effect puts the financial and environmental burden on communities least able to pay, and the last to see improved air quality or less congestion,” said Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, in a statement.

Josh Millis, a parent at The Neighborhood School in Manhattan, said he supports public transportation and the broader aims of the congestion pricing plan, but takes issue with the lack of exemption for public school parents. Millis, who lives in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, about a mile from the nearest subway station, said it’s not always feasible to take his three kids to school on public transit.

“I don’t mind walking a mile,” he said. “But my kindergartner is not going to do that in December, at 6:30 in the morning, when it’s 13 degrees out. That’s just an impossibility.”

Some school districts fear long-term effects of congestion pricing

Robert Murtfeld, a member of the Community Education Council for District 1 in Manhattan, said about 25% of families in his district commute from upper Manhattan or another borough. He worries that congestion pricing could threaten the district’s ability to retain teachers, with educators who currently drive to school potentially looking to transfer. Meanwhile, families who live in public transportation “deserts” outside of the district could be burdened by the high cost of the tolls, he said.

Families and educators who choose to drive into Manhattan would pay more than $1,600 in tolls across the 180 school days in each academic year, Murtfeld said.

The District 1 CEC has called on state officials to carve out exemptions or reduced tolls for students traveling to and from schools within the congestion pricing zone, as well as teachers and other school staff commuting into the district.

“We don’t make a commentary on whether congestion pricing is good or bad,” Murtfeld said. “We’re just saying, if this thing gets implemented — which is a fact, as of midnight [on Sunday] — we will be affected.”

Millis, the parent at The Neighborhood School, said his family has been looking into other options to cut down on costs, like carpooling with others at the school, as well as reconsidering at what age his children can start taking public transit on their own. But in the meantime, he’ll keep driving them to school, he said.

“That $9 a day is a big hit,” Millis said. “To make an exemption for our families for the purpose of public school education is not even pennies in the couch of the MTA. It would not even be missed. But it makes all the difference to us. All the difference.”

Toll’s impact on Manhattan school commutes remains unclear

MTA officials estimate the toll will result in at least 80,000 fewer vehicles entering the zone every day. And though fewer drivers on the road could in theory help some school buses — which are exempt from the toll — arrive earlier, the broader effects of congestion pricing on school commutes for now remain unclear.

Sara Catalinotto, founder of Parents to Improve School Transportation, said the possibility of shorter bus routes “would be a welcome positive side effect,” but added that the Monday snowfall made it difficult to gauge the immediate impact of congestion pricing on school commutes.

To Catalinotto, the longer-term impacts on students with disabilities could be complicated. Though many students with disabilities rely on school bus services, parents and advocates have for years issued complaints about delayed, overcrowded, or missing buses.

Individuals with disabilities can qualify for an exemption from the congestion pricing toll, but Catalinotto worries families could still face financial hardships.

“When the school bus or paraprofessional is out for the day or longer, and families of students with specialized busing have to use the so-called ‘rideshare alternative’ to get the student to school in a car which is not exempt, tolls will be charged,” she said.

In some cases, the city offers families prepaid rideshare vouchers when school buses aren’t available — including when specialized staff aren’t available to accompany a student with a disability who requires them. But Catalinotto noted not all families are registered for such services, and others will be “compelled to pay for a cab out of pocket or use their own vehicle, at higher cost if in the congestion relief zone.”

And though parents can seek reimbursement for transportation costs when school buses fail to arrive, those payments can sometimes take years, leaving families shouldering the cost in the meantime.

“There are varying views in the disability community on the Congestion Relief issue but I think everyone agrees that the MTA has to become fully accessible by some means,” Catalinotto said. “Perhaps taxing the billionaires or Wall Street transactions to achieve that would have been less stressful than this.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

School funding, cellphone ban, class size, Trump: Education issues Albany could tackle in 2025

2025-01-02T19:48:21+00:00

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Albany’s next legislative session kicks off this month with several key question marks for education policy.

On the state level, there’s an ongoing debate over how to update the school funding formula, which sends roughly $24.9 billion to school districts — including more than $9.5 billion to New York City schools. Meanwhile, as Donald Trump prepares for his second term as president, his education stance has some New Yorkers worried about the future of federal aid and other school-related policies.

And while both of these issues could hold major repercussions for New York City, many students and families might be paying closer attention to something else that could affect their day-to-day experiences: Gov. Kathy Hochul is eyeing statewide legislative action to restrict students’ cellphone access in schools.

Also on the horizon: Expect discussion about the city’s efforts to meet a state mandate capping class sizes, the continued fight over admissions to specialized high schools, and more.

Here’s a look at some of the biggest education issues lawmakers could tackle in 2025:

Albany considers restricting cellphone use in schools

For months, Hochul has remained deeply concerned over the impact of student cellphone use in schools. The governor has previously stated the devices should not be available to students during school hours, citing the harmful mental health effects of social media and other online platforms.

Hochul has signaled that she will look to implement a statewide policy during the next legislative session.

Though the city’s Education Department seemed poised to implement a citywide ban of its own over the summer, Mayor Eric Adams later pumped the brakes on that plan. At a press conference last month, Adams indicated the city would comply with a statewide mandate.

In Albany, lawmakers are awaiting the details of the governor’s proposal.

State Sen. Shelley Mayer, a Democrat who chairs the Senate’s general education committee, said there’s conceptual support in Albany for limiting student cell phone use. But she added, “We want these things to be determined at a local level, or at least to have input at a local level.”

David Bloomfield, a professor of education, law, and public policy at Brooklyn College and the CUNY Graduate Center, expects any statewide policy to leave decisions in the hands of school districts — potentially requiring that all school districts develop plans to address cellphone use, but stopping short of dictating how those plans work.

“I fully expect the Adams administration to do what it has been doing, which is to say, in turn, schools should come up with their own plans,” he said.

Debate over how to update NY’s school funding formula continues

Lawmakers and observers expect discussions over how to revise the Foundation Aid formula to play a major role in the state budget process.

That formula, first implemented in 2007, relies on decades-old data to calculate district needs, such as using poverty figures from the 2000 census. Though most agree the formula is in dire need of updates, a recent report offering 20 recommendations spurred mixed reactions among advocates and lawmakers.

State Sen. John Liu, a Queens Democrat who chairs the Senate’s New York City education committee, said the report included helpful suggestions. Still, it didn’t address several key issues that impact New York City, like the growing population of students in temporary housing, he said.

“The report gives us good ideas and some of the logic behind possible changes,” Liu said. “But it doesn’t constrain us in any way in terms of determining what the new state budget is going to be and how much will be invested in education.”

Mayer said discussions over the formula will begin with the release of the governor’s budget proposal later this month. She added that lawmakers will want to see the district-level impacts of any proposed changes to the formula.

Trump’s return sparks fears about funding cuts

In New York City and in Albany, Trump’s return to the White House has set lawmakers and education advocates on edge — as his policies could potentially weaken federal support for schools and harm local immigrant communities.

The president-elect has vowed to get rid of the U.S. Department of Education, enact mass deportations, and slash federal funding.

Bloomfield believes the biggest threat to New York City schools lies in potential federal funding cuts — whether directly related to education or not.

“Education funding directly could be cut,” he said. “But if transportation funding is cut, or other areas of massive federal aid, the budget may have to adjust away from education to fill other gaps.”

NeQuan McLean, president of the city’s District 16 Community Education Council, has been working to raise alarm over potential cuts to Title I funding, which provide city schools with millions in federal dollars meant to support students from low-income backgrounds.

Part of the issue, McLean added, is a lack of accounting of what city schools use the federal funding for — meaning the full extent of potential cuts remains unclear.

“What does that mean for New York State?” he said. “What does that look like for districts that really rely on this money?”

Mayer is concerned about the conservative Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 — widely seen as a blueprint for the Trump administration — that calls for Title I funding to be turned into vouchers and then phased out over time, among other changes.

“We have Republicans from New York, and we have to impress upon them that to carry through with the Project 2025 agenda would be absolutely devastating for the kids of New York City,” she said.

Mayer added she’s concerned about the Trump administration’s plans to ramp up deportations. It’s a fear shared among local families and educators, as New York City’s schools are home to thousands of asylum-seeking and other migrant students.

“In the first Trump presidency, some of these parents just said, ‘I’m not willing to take the chance of ICE coming and pulling my kid at school,’” Mayer said. “We as a community need to assure parents that school is a safe place.”

NYC must construct more school buildings, lawmaker says

New York City is approaching its first major test in meeting a state law mandating smaller class sizes, with 60% of classrooms required to be in compliance by September 2025.

That law — which caps class sizes at 20 for kindergarten to third grade, 23 for fourth to eighth grade, and 25 for high school — will require a historic reduction in class sizes across the school system. Around 40% of the city’s classes were below the caps as of last year.

Liu said he’s open to conversations with the city about providing further resources. But he wants to see a more substantial effort by the city in 2025 toward meeting the mandate — including retrofitting additional school building spaces into classrooms, constructing additional classrooms where space exists on school campuses, and developing new school buildings.

Mayoral control, SHSAT, and other issues could resurface

Other issues that have previously taken center stage could also reemerge in 2025.

Though the current mayoral control deal will last until 2026, the city’s polarizing school governance structure could spark some conversations this year.

Liu said that legislative action about the issue was “always a possibility.”

To Bloomfield, recent federal charges against Adams and the departure of many top city officials may offer further fuel to critics of the current system.

Meanwhile, he anticipates debates over the Specialized High School Admissions Test — a standardized exam that acts as the sole metric of admission to the city’s prestigious specialized high schools, like Stuyvesant and Bronx Science — could resurface this year.

It’s a polarizing issue that has remained dormant in recent years. But as the city’s Panel for Educational Policy considered a new contract for a computer-based version of the exam last month, some members signaled they want to see reforms to the admissions system.

“It resurrects a previously dead issue,” Bloomfield said. “It’s unlikely to change things, but there’s an opening that didn’t exist a month ago.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

‘Tools to traverse the world’: A Manhattan International Baccalaureate program adds a high school

2024-12-12T20:07:12+00:00

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A few weeks ago, Kyla Harrison, a Manhattan eighth grader, attended math class in an unusual setting: Hamilton Fish Park.

During the excursion, Kyla and her classmates calculated the slopes of staircases in the park — an activity that was a natural extension of the teaching philosophy at the School for Global Leaders, an International Baccalaureate middle school on the Lower East Side.

The International Baccalaureate program, often referred to as IB, centers student learning in self-directed, project-based work, aiming to help students take greater ownership over their academic work and establish connections between the knowledge they gain in the classroom and its real-world applications.

Some New York City schools have embraced the model as a way to offer families rigorous academic options outside of “gifted and talented” programs, which often sort and separate students within campuses. Offered across the globe, the IB program — which requires schools to undergo a multi-year accreditation process— may see increased interest among city schools seeking to distinguish themselves as the state changes diploma requirements. Regents exams are expected to be optional by fall 2027. Meanwhile, the IB program already offers state-approved alternative exams to the Regents.

For Kyla, trading worksheets for a concrete example made the lesson more memorable.

“I’m definitely going to remember how to calculate slopes,” she said. “It’s more fun when you get to interact with the work, instead of just sitting in a boring classroom all day.”

And though she’s nearing the end of her time in the middle school program, Kyla isn’t quite ready to leave the unique academic environment she’s found at the School for Global Leaders. She plans to stay at the school as part of its first ninth grade class next year, as the school looks to expand to a 6-12th grade program.

Principal Keri Ricks hopes the expansion will give local families a wider menu of academic options when considering where to attend high school. And for students like Kyla, Ricks said the high school will offer a chance to stick with the IB curriculum over a longer period, facilitating further growth.

Statewide, there are 121 accredited IB schools in New York, including about 106 public schools, according to the IB website. As of last year, at least 17 public schools across the five boroughs offered the IB curriculum, and more appear to be in the works. Brooklyn’s District 13 has added eight IB elementary schools and four IB middle schools in recent years, in part to offer families an alternative to more exclusive gifted programs. (Only four of the district’s schools were represented in the data.)

“The IB program definitely cultivates a deeper understanding of the curriculum,” Ricks said. “It’s not teaching math in a step-by-step format. It’s teaching math in the global context of how we’re going to use it in the real world.”

She pointed to a recent seventh grade outing to tourist hotspots like the Empire State Building around midtown Manhattan. Students had to devise their own visitor guides to the various locations — calculating distances between them and optimizing walkable routes, while also learning about the history behind the city locations.

The school serves about 150 students across its middle school grades. Expanding to a high school program over the next few years, the School Global Leaders hopes to welcome about 100 students per grade, Ricks added. The school already has classrooms allocated within the building for its incoming ninth graders, with sufficient space available to build out additional high school grades, Ricks said.

From left, John Dorrier, Kyla Harrison, Principal Keri Ricks, Jonathan Monteleone, and Jaielle Alejandro Welch pose for a portrait at School for Global Leaders, an International Baccalaureate middle school on the Lower East Side in Manhattan, on Wednesday, Dec. 4.

The school is also planning to offer a career-focused track that specializes in computer science — giving students a chance to earn skills and experience that will translate into careers in the field. Through the IB program’s partnership with Arizona State University, Ricks hopes students will be able to take virtual computer science classes at the university, potentially earning certification in different computer science programs while still in high school.

Starting up a high school program isn’t without its challenges, particularly as state education officials are engaged in a multi-year process to update New York’s high school graduation requirements. That effort seeks in part to expand options for students, introducing more project-based assessments and other means of demonstrating proficiency in core subjects.

Though that effort appears to pair well with the philosophy of the IB program, it also introduces some uncertainty, Ricks said.

“We are building it out using the state requirements,” she said. “But we are also thinking about how we need to be able to change on a dime.”

Parents, educators say IB program has bolstered student engagement

Parents and educators at the school said the creative freedom offered by the IB curriculum had allowed their students to excel.

For eighth grader Jaielle Alejandro Welch, an English unit on mystery novels let her own creativity thrive. She had the opportunity to write her own mystery story inspired by her love of Agatha Christie and other mystery writers. Then, she turned her story into a pitch for a Netflix T.V. show.

“I enjoyed it so much,” Jaielle said. “To learn about different kinds of writing techniques, and to compare perspectives, and to learn about how people might react.”

Jaielle’s mother, Jenay Alejandro, attributes her daughter’s recent academic strides to her heightened engagement with her work.

“She talks about it all the time,” she said of the mystery story assignment. “We’ve been beyond happy with her growth. I don’t believe in the test, the test, the test, but all her scores have just skyrocketed over the past couple years.”

As part of his class, Anthony Sanchez, a Spanish teacher at the school, tasks his students with completing “neighborhood reviews.” Students are encouraged to spend time in Latino communities in New York City with their families, using their Spanish skills to order food from restaurants, and listening to everyday conversations in the neighborhoods.

“That’s what really differentiates IB,” he said. “You’re not trying to just fill in a check box, you’re trying to equip this human being with tools to traverse the world.”

And as the school expands to serve high school students in the coming years, Ricks said she hopes to attract individuals who are eager to shape their own academic experience.

“I think the beauty of it is that we’re at a place right now where we’re building the program,” she said. “That’ll give us amazing opportunities to actually sit with the kids that are going into this program and figure out: What are their interests? What are their wants? What do they want to study?”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

From school funding to grad requirements: What NY education officials want in the next state budget

2024-12-09T22:30:56+00:00

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Updates to New York’s main school funding formula. Seed money to start making changes to high school graduation requirements. A study on gaps in arts education across the state.

Those were some of the priorities outlined Monday by the Board of Regents in its annual budget proposal. The blueprint called for a roughly $2 billion increase in state aid for the 2025-26 school year, among other investments. That proposal would see the state provide New York schools with about $37.6 billion.

The proposal comes just a month before lawmakers return to Albany for the next legislative session, offering a set of budget recommendations to Gov. Kathy Hochul and the state legislature.

Hochul is expected to issue her own budget proposal in January, and will ask lawmakers to approve a 2025-26 fiscal budget later in the spring.

For years, state education officials have sought to revamp New York’s high school graduation requirements. For example, students will no longer be required to pass Regents exams to earn a diploma beginning in the 2027-28 school year, according to a proposed timeline from state officials.

This effort to overhaul graduation requirements would receive $2.3 million under the Regents’ proposal, state officials said Monday.

Meanwhile, the state formula that sends roughly $24.9 billion to school districts — including more than $9.5 billion to New York City schools — relies on decades-old data to calculate district needs. Known as Foundation Aid and first implemented in 2007, it’s been repeatedly criticized by education advocates, state officials, and others.

The Regents’ suggestions for updating the formula come just one week after the Rockefeller Institute of Government, a public policy think tank based at SUNY, issued a more than 300-page report on Foundation Aid. That report, which was commissioned as part of a budget agreement between state lawmakers and Hochul earlier this year, included a set of 20 recommendations for how to update the formula.

State education officials noted Monday they were still assessing the implications of the report’s recommendations, noting the Rockefeller Institute did not produce models to demonstrate the potential impacts of its suggestions.

“Recommendations are just that: recommendations,” said State Education Department Commissioner Betty Rosa. “It stops short of the modeling, and we’ve got to be crystal clear on this: The devil’s in the details of the modeling.”

Here’s a look at some of the Regents’ top education priorities for the 2025-26 school year.

State education officials want several Foundation Aid updates

The Regents called for policymakers to implement a set of initial updates to the Foundation Aid formula, which together would result in an additional more than $200 million for the state’s schools — with Foundation Aid overall increasing by about $1.6 billion from the prior year.

Those proposed updates include modernizing the data used to account for different regional costs and to calculate student poverty. (The former comes from 2006, while the latter is sourced from the 2000 census.)

Other tweaks proposed by the Regents would see the formula stop using federal free- and reduced-price lunch eligibility as a basis for measuring student need, instead switching to broader “economically disadvantaged” student counts. The Regents also suggested eliminating a limit on how much additional aid can be allocated to districts based on the formula’s Income Wealth Index.

Still, state education officials acknowledged further research is needed to develop more significant overhauls to the formula — as well as to understand the possible ramifications of the Rockefeller Institute’s recommendations. Officials from the state’s Education Department noted they would work to develop models demonstrating the impacts of those recommendations, adding they could do so without additional resources.

Money sought to implement new graduation mandates

State education officials also requested $2.3 million to support Education Department staff members who could begin the process of implementing a commission’s recommendations for updating high school graduation requirements.

Rosa described the budget item as “seed money” to support a “planning year,” adding further funding would be required later in the implementation process.

“We hope to come back to our legislators and our governor to say, ‘This is a huge initiative that will make a difference in the lives of our children, but we need investments and commitment,’” she said.

Last month, state officials said the Education Department plans to spend about $11.5 million for staff and other support within the department over the next five years to develop and roll out the new graduation measures.

Budget plan includes arts study, data infrastructure boost

At the Monday meeting, Regents and state education officials also discussed a proposal to commit $300,000 toward studying gaps in arts education.

Regent Roger Tilles of Nassau County said the study was “absolutely needed.”

“We’ve been derelict in not doing it for about 20 years,” he said. “There’s such a disparity in what districts and what students can get in terms of arts education.”

Other requests included $4.8 million to continue updating the state’s data infrastructure; $65.4 million to provide Free and Appropriate Education to students with disabilities until age 22; $16.9 million for programs that promote equity in access to higher education; and the development of a “growth aid” formula that would send additional support to districts experiencing rapid enrollment growth.

See a full description of the Regents’ legislative and budget priorities here.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Long-awaited report on updating NY school funding formula calls for ‘significant change’

2024-12-03T23:27:00+00:00

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New York’s school funding formula relies on outdated information and “reflects an antiquated concept of what public school districts are expected to do.”

That’s according to a more than 300-page report released this week by the Rockefeller Institute of Government, a public policy think tank based at SUNY. As part of the April budget agreement between Albany lawmakers and Gov. Kathy Hochul, the state charged the organization with issuing a set of recommendations to revise Foundation Aid, the formula that sends roughly $24.9 billion to school districts — including more than $9.5 billion to New York City schools.

First implemented in 2007, Foundation Aid uses decades-old data to calculate district needs, like relying on figures from the 2000 Census to measure student poverty. Other factors that impact district spending, including the number of students living in temporary housing, don’t weigh into the current formula at all. (Foundation Aid only received full funding from the state in recent years — following a lengthy fight from education advocates.)

Though the institute’s recommendations are not binding, its proposals could influence debates over how to update the formula when lawmakers return to Albany in January.

State Sen. Shelley Mayer, a Democrat who chairs the senate’s education committee, stressed that “any determinations about how to change the formula will rest with the Legislature and Governor.”

“The Rockefeller Institute’s report offers a set of recommendations –– some good, some concerning –– to begin a robust conversation about how to fix the Foundation Aid Formula,” Mayer said in a Tuesday statement. “Further, we are not limited by what is proposed in the Rockefeller Institute’s report.”

Read the Rockefeller Institute’s report here.

Recommendations: School funding formula needs ‘significant change’

In its report, the Rockefeller Institute called for “significant change” to the formula. Schools today provide far more services than when the formula was initially created, the organization noted, pointing to mental health support at school, language instruction for English learners, and a growing reliance on schools as a “community hub.”

The recommendations include modifying how the formula accounts for inflation, changing and updating the data used to determine student poverty, and establishing more nuanced calculations for funding based on students with disabilities, among other changes.

One of its suggestions is already getting pushback from some lawmakers and the governor: phasing out 50% of “save harmless,” or “hold harmless,” a policy that shields districts with declining enrollment from losing funding.

During the last budget cycle, Hochul sought to effectively end that provision, but the proposal was rebuffed by state lawmakers.

In a statement on Tuesday, a spokesperson for Hochul’s office distanced the governor from the Institute’s proposal to phase out the policy.

“As we craft the upcoming Executive Budget, the Governor believes we should avoid proposals that would negatively impact school budgets, such as eliminating the hold-harmless provision of the Foundation Aid formula,” the spokesperson said.

Reactions: Formula needs overhaul, not tweaks, some argue

Some observers worry that the institute’s proposals don’t go far enough to overhaul the formula, and fail to account for major issues impacting New York City schools.

Michael Rebell, executive director of the Center for Educational Equity at Columbia University’s Teachers College and the lawyer who led the landmark case against the state that paved the way for Foundation Aid, argues it isn’t enough to change aspects of the formula. He believes the state’s current approach falls short of its constitutional mandate to provide a “sound basic education.”

“We need a process that takes a totally new look at what students need in 2024 and 2025, not tweaking and patching up something that was written in 2006,” he said. “If you’re not looking at the overall impact of whether kids in every district are getting a fair shot — are getting the opportunity for sound basic education — what have you accomplished?”

Some advocates expressed mixed feelings about the report, noting it did not address several key concerns in New York City, including schools’ needs to help students in temporary housing. In New York City the number of students experiencing homelessness grew to more than 146,000 last school year.

“We are disappointed that there are no recommendations to add weights for students experiencing homelessness and students in foster care so that schools can better meet their needs; to provide per pupil funding for 3-K and pre-K students; or to help NYC meet the new class size limits required by state law,” said Kim Sweet, executive director of Advocates for Children, in a statement.

State Sen. John Liu, a Queens Democrat who chairs the Senate’s New York City education committee, echoed concerns about the report’s exclusion of the city’s class size reduction mandate.

“This absolutely must be considered to provide our school kids a constitutionally required, sound, basic education,” he said in a statement.

Impacts: How proposals could affect NYC schools remains unclear

It’s difficult to determine how the report’s proposals might impact students in a particular school district, because they cannot be considered in isolation from one another, Rebell said.

For example, a recommendation that the formula stop using federal free- and reduced-price lunch eligibility as a basis for measuring student poverty might result in less funding for New York City schools, he said. At the same time, a proposal to update how the formula accounts for differing costs between regions could mean more state funding for the city’s students.

And with the state under no obligation to adopt any or all of the Rockefeller Institute’s recommendations, it remains unclear what the report might mean for students.

“I can look at aspects of this formula and say, ‘This would help New York City. That would hurt New York City,’ but that’s not the way to do it,” Rebell said. “The way to do it is: What do kids in New York City need? What do kids in these rural districts need? How can we put together a package that’s responsive to all of it?”

The city’s Education Department and teachers union were both reviewing the report.

“We are continuing to review the report and the impacts of its proposals, and look forward to working with the Governor and the legislature moving forward,” Education Department spokesperson Jenna Lyle said in a statement.

Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, said, “Some ideas sound promising. Others are cause for concern.”

He was focused, he said, “on what changes need to take place if we are to better support our city’s students, educators, and school communities.”

Looking ahead: Formula need regular updates, report says

Regardless of how state officials choose to update Foundation Aid, the Rockefeller Institute noted more regular revisions to the school funding formula are critical. The report noted student populations and needs, state learning standards, and other measures of academic achievement are all subject to change each year.

“Assuming state policymakers enact some of the recommendations quickly, they should not wait another 17 years to examine the Foundation Aid formula for additional needed revision,” the report said. “An essential part of this reform effort should be a commitment to revisit the Foundation Aid formula every three to five years.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC expands career education program, offering students experience in HVAC industry and more

2024-12-02T19:55:32+00:00

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New York City is expanding a career education program to serve a total of 135 schools, city officials said Monday. The program will also add two new career pathways for students, offering experience in the professions of heating ventilation and air-conditioning, as well as human and social services.

FutureReadyNYC, a signature initiative of Mayor Eric Adams’ administration, provides schools with resources to launch new career tracks, along with paid work experience, in the education, technology, business, and health care sectors. The roughly $53 million initiative, which partners with CUNY, SUNY, Northwell Health, and Google, among other companies, invests $30 million directly to public high schools, with funds allocated based on the number of students enrolling in the career pathways at schools, according to city officials.

Under the expansion, the program added 36 new schools, serving roughly 15,000 students.

At a press conference at the Boys and Girls High School in Brooklyn on Monday, Adams said the program had taken on a renewed urgency in light of the recent presidential election, in which concerns over the state of the economy and the job market had been a defining issue. In recent years, some efforts to expand access to career and technical education at school have seen bipartisan support across the country.

“There’s a gap for far too many, particularly in communities like Brownsville, Bedford Stuyvesant, South Jamaica, and the South Bronx, where there’s not an automatic transition into college,” Adams said. “Through FutureReadyNYC, we’re building a pipeline to employment, a pipeline to jobs, a pipeline to possibilities.”

Through the initiative, students have a chance to secure college credits, credentials, and work-based learning experiences before they graduate. In the past year, public school students earned roughly $8.2 million through work-based learning experiences, said schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos.

“This is a true testament to the difference career connected learning is already making in the lives of our students, putting them on a trajectory that will not only impact them, but their entire families,” she said.

The program’s HVAC pathway will provide students with instruction in construction safety, electrical and mechanical applications, installation and maintenance, and building decarbonization, city officials said. Meanwhile, the human and social services pathway will offer courses in human growth and development, counseling and mental health, and psychology.

Grecian Harrison, principal of the Boys and Girls High School, said the HVAC program would provide her students with valuable experience in a growing field.

“This is a high demand industry, and our scholars are learning about energy efficient systems and the integral ways that this knowledge can open doors for them,” she said.

The new pathways, and the 36 schools joining the program, have already begun running this year, city officials said.

Adams, who shared his own experience working as an auto mechanic prior to enrolling in higher education, said concerns over affordability are particularly high across the five boroughs. The FutureReadyNYC expansion kicks off an “affordability week” that will see Adams announce further investments in economic programs, according to city officials.

“Our young people are really afraid,” Adams said. “It’s almost like a cliff once they graduate. The system basically says, ‘Okay, we’re done with you. Figure it out on your own.’”

“By doing this, we are taking some of that fear out,” he added.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

No midyear budget cuts for NYC schools, a return to pandemic-era policy

2024-11-27T19:11:51+00:00

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In a surprise move, New York City public schools that enrolled fewer students than projected will not see their budgets slashed midyear, the city’s Education Department announced Wednesday.

School funding is typically allocated to schools during the summer based on the city’s projections of how many students are expected to fill their seats. That funding is then adjusted during the school year as a clearer enrollment picture emerges.

Now, though, the decision to hold all schools harmless from midyear cuts means that those with lower-than-projected enrollment will be spared from potentially painful choices about where to allocate their more limited resources.

Meanwhile, schools that enrolled a higher number of students than anticipated will still see their budgets adjusted and receive additional funding, city officials said.

Enrollment was lower than projected at about half of the city’s more than 1,600 schools and higher than anticipated in the other half, Education Department officials said. The schools with lower enrollment will no longer lose out on $157 million dollars that would have otherwise been clawed back. The schools with expanded rosters are expected to receive about $146 million in additional funds.

Principals learned of the news in a Wednesday email from schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos, offering a breath of relief as schools finished class on the day before Thanksgiving break.

In a statement, Aviles-Ramos said ensuring school leaders had sufficient resources to support their students was her “top priority.”

“I am proud that in direct response to feedback from our school communities, schools will not only receive funding, but also personalized supports designed to help them make the most of this funding,” she said.

That support will range from one-on-one meetings to school budget reviews with budget directors from district offices, according to the Education Department.

The Wednesday announcement represents a return to a pandemic-era policy, when city officials were reluctant to cut budgets even as many schools lost students. Last year, schools faced midyear cuts for the first time in four years.

At the time, the policy change prompted some backlash from advocates, as schools continued to grapple with the lingering effects of the pandemic. But city officials argued the cuts were necessary amid the city’s bleaker financial picture and dwindling federal relief funds.

Though the city’s public schools saw overall enrollment remain steady this year, falling by just 0.1%, student populations still fluctuate from school to school.

And in recent years, the city has seen a growing number of small schools, as citywide enrollment has fallen by about 14%, or 130,000 students, since 2016. The number of schools with fewer than 200 students doubled in that same period, reaching 190 last year, according to a Chalkbeat analysis.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Can peer support address student mental health? New York City Council members hope so.

2024-11-25T22:29:57+00:00

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To combat mental health challenges in schools, New York City Council members want to expand support for student wellness clubs and other peer-to-peer programs.

Under one proposal, the city would develop a pilot program to bring mental health professionals into middle and high school wellness clubs, council members discussed at a Monday hearing.

Other proposed bills in a legislative package focused on student mental health would require the city to expand informational materials for students seeking to start their own wellness clubs, as well as training for students interested in peer-to-peer mental health programs. Wellness clubs and other support programs that bring students together to discuss mental health concerns can raise awareness about the challenges students face at school, while reducing the stigma associated with seeking help, according to advocates and experts.

The proposals come as schools in the city and across the nation have seen a worrying rise in mental health challenges. For many students, the COVID-19 pandemic upended day-to-day life — isolating them from their peers, while in some cases causing financial or personal losses within their families. In recent years, educators have continued to report lingering behavioral concerns, even years after students returned to the classroom.

In New York City, the share of students who reported suicidal ideation jumped to nearly 16% in 2021, with about 9% of high school students reporting they had attempted suicide that year.

The legislative proposals are the latest step in a continued push from council members to expand peer support programs to address mental health concerns.

As council members discussed the proposed legislation and the need for more peer-to-peer programs, they added it’s critical the programs serve as one element of a robust mental health support system.

“What we keep hearing over and over again — from not just the providers, but also the students — is how important it is to have wellness clubs,” said Council member Linda Lee, who chairs the Committee on Mental Health, Disabilities, and Addiction. “These programs hopefully are meant to complement what’s already there. … It’s another way to catch the folks from slipping through the cracks.”

High school students who testified at the hearing spoke about their own experiences facing mental health challenges at school — sharing stories of friends who struggled with suicidal ideation or who had attempted suicide. Students called for more mental health support at school.

“We are the generation that spent important years of our lives in the COVID-19 lockdown, then released back into the world without the tools to cope,” said Adonte DaCosta, a senior at the Manhattan Early College School for Advertising. “Many of us hold all of our emotions back until we can’t deal with the stress anymore and have to release it.”

City officials told council members during the hearing that the city’s schools had roughly 5,200 counselors and social workers. As of February, that meant an average of one counselor or social worker per 162 students, according to city data. (Excluding social workers, the city’s schools on average had one counselor per 262 students.)

And at 548 schools, Health Department staff work with external mental health providers and community-based organizations on school campuses, said Erica Lynne Smith, director of school mental health for the city’s Health Department.

“Every student has access to a school counselor, a social worker, a mental health clinic through an external partner or clinics that are within their building,” said Beverly Logan, executive director of counseling supports for the city’s Education Department.

City officials said further conversations would be required to work out the logistics of a pilot program and a path to broader implementation, adding they were concerned that relying on volunteer mental health professionals could raise issues around safety and compensation.

Still, officials noted students have shown enthusiasm for peer-to-peer programming and for having more mental health professionals at school.

Amallia Orman, student voice manager at the city’s Education Department, told council members that students have frequently taken the initiative to start wellness clubs at school, particularly in the years since the pandemic.

“Anecdotally, I think that young people gravitate towards supportive adults in their school that may or may not have a clinical association,” she added. “It might be a staff member as a counselor, it might be a guidance counselor.

“But I would say that young people also advocate for more mental health professionals in their school,” Orman added.

Council members, advocates concerned over student data privacy

In response to escalating youth mental health concerns, NYC last year launched Teenspace — a free online therapy service for teenagers that saw roughly 16,000 students sign up within the first year. But council members had concerns about privacy on the platform.

Last month, advocates and attorneys from the New York Civil Liberties Union raised alarm over concerns that the online platform may violate state and federal laws protecting student data privacy.

Advocates fear that Teenspace — a $26 million partnership between the city Health Department and teletherapy giant Talkspace — may be improperly tracking and sharing student information with outside parties and social media companies.

During the Monday hearing, Council member Rita Joseph, who chairs the council’s education committee, pressed city officials on how data was being tracked by the platform, as well as how the city would ensure student student information was secure.

“We are looking into this right now,” said Marnie Davidoff, assistant commissioner for the Bureau of Children, Youth, and Families at the city’s Health Department. “Our contract explicitly requires student information to be maintained privately, not to be shared, and we have been working extensively with our provider partner to ensure that that is being enforced and implemented as we’d expect it to be.”

When city officials were unable to provide a precise timeline, Joseph floated the possibility of holding an additional council hearing focused on the issue.

“What are we doing to protect the privacies of young people?” she said. “I don’t want to hear excuses. I want to hear a plan.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Open the books: City Council calls for more data to help address lack of NYC school librarians

2024-11-21T23:35:09+00:00

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A new bill introduced to City Council on Thursday would require the city’s Education Department to report annual figures on the number of school librarians across the public school system.

It’s a step that council members and advocates hope will aid efforts to broaden student access to library services at school. It comes more than a year after Chalkbeat’s reporting found nearly a third of local schools that were required under state law to hire a full-time librarian did not have one listed in their recent budget.

The nation’s largest school system — home to more than 1,600 schools — had just 260 certified school librarians last year, Education Department officials said at the time.

As of this fall, roughly 550 schools are staffed with a combination of certified school librarians or teachers assigned to the library, according to Education Department officials.

Brooklyn Council members Lincoln Restler and Rita Joseph, who chairs the council’s Education Committee, introduced the new legislation on Thursday.

If passed, the Education Department would be required to issue an annual report on the number of certified and non-certified librarians in the school system — as well as tracking an array of statistics that could help paint a clearer picture of which school communities are missing out on library services.

“With that data, we can develop better policy solutions to ensure that more librarians are present where they’re needed most,” Restler said. “I hope that the Department of Education will embrace a deeper investment in librarians in the places where we are most focused on improving our literacy outcomes.”

Other data points that would be required in the yearly reports include the number of students with weekly scheduled class time with school librarians, the average amount of weekly class time students spend with librarians, and the number of school libraries overall. That data would need to be disaggregated by grade level, ZIP code, school district, and borough — offering a more detailed understanding of the state of school librarians across different communities.

Jenny Fox, a Brooklyn parent who began advocating for more school librarians after discovering her son’s elementary school had lost its part-time librarian, said publicly available data is critical for securing more investments in school library services.

“If the city keeps the numbers in the shadows, then they keep the problem in the shadows,” said Fox, who co-founded the Librarians = Literacy campaign to push for certified librarians and libraries in all of the city’s public schools. “If they report on the actual numbers, I think it would be shocking to people, and the true extent of the problem would be laid bare.”

Nicole Brownstein, a spokesperson for the city’s Education Department, said the department was still reviewing the legislation, but highlighted the city’s efforts to expand the school librarian pipeline — like the “Teacher2Librarian” program, which partners with universities to help licensed teachers earn a master’s degree in library and information science and become state certified to work as a school librarian.

“Libraries don’t just support a student’s literacy development — they’re also critical resources in helping young people learn about who they are and discover new people, places, and events outside of their communities,” she said in a statement.

School librarians needed amid literacy push, council members say

Restler, who credits his own childhood librarian with instilling in him a lifelong love of reading, said the need for more library services is particularly significant for elementary schools in low-income communities.

In recent years, Mayor Eric Adams and former schools Chancellor David Banks focused on overhauling reading curriculums in the city’s elementary schools, hoping to boost literacy rates by mandating schools use one of three approved curriculums. But library advocates argue that efforts to improve literacy rates are undercut by the city’s low number of librarians.

“If we’re committed to advancing literacy — and that has been the number one priority of the Adams administration and DOE — then we need to invest in librarians,” Restler said.

Under current state requirements, certified librarians are only required at middle and high schools — with a full-time librarian mandated at schools with more than 700 students, and a part-time librarian required at those that fall below that threshold. But as of May last year, a Chalkbeat analysis found many schools in the city didn’t appear to be meeting that requirement.

Studies have shown students at schools with certified librarians on staff tend to perform better on measures of academic achievement, and advocates stress they help students develop skills in research, media, and digital literacy, and other areas important for post-secondary success.

But despite these benefits, library advocates say many schools have opted to cut school librarians when faced with difficult budgetary decisions.

“Our schools are underfunded, and principals have to make painful decisions about where to make cuts,” Restler said. “Arts and librarian staff members have unfortunately been too often on the chopping block, and we’ve seen a steady decline in the number of librarians in our schools over many years.”

Kyra Wolfe, secretary of the New York City School Librarians’ Association, said her organization has been working to raise public awareness about the critical role that librarians play in a school community.

Certified librarians help ensure that book collections are updated, culturally responsive to students, and age-appropriate, she said. In addition to helping students learn digital and media literacy skills, school librarians coordinate with teachers, hold events, and provide kids with a needed “third space” at school, Wolfe added.

“In many schools, it’s a place where students have freedom to explore,” she said. “There’s computers, and there’s books that no one’s telling them to read, but that they can choose to read.”

And with an increase in book challenges nationwide, Wolfe added school librarians can act as a line of defense against efforts to restrict student access to books that deal with topics of race, gender, and sexuality.

Still, as many schools go without, advocates say some communities have seen their school libraries devolve into spaces for staff meetings or even storage — rarely being used by students.

“There’s nothing sadder than a library that’s closed,” Restler said. “Every kid deserves to have that same opportunity to fall in love with reading.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Concerns over NYC’s student data privacy proposal heightened by Trump win

2024-11-19T22:07:10+00:00

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New York City’s school board is delaying a vote on a controversial proposal regulating how the Education Department collects, stores, and shares private student data, including names, emails, phone numbers, home addresses, and birth dates.

For weeks, parents and advocates have expressed concerns over whether proposed revisions to a 15-year-old Education Department policy would adequately safeguard student data. Some worried the revised policy could weaken protections for students, in some cases allowing the Education Department to share student data with outside parties without parental consent.

The United Federation of Teachers echoed parent concerns over the proposed revisions in a letter sent earlier this month to the Education Department, according to a copy obtained by Chalkbeat.

Fears about student data privacy have increased in the weeks since President-elect Donald Trump won his reelection bid. During his campaign, Trump repeatedly vowed to enact aggressive mass deportations, a promise that is already spreading worry in New York City, which is home to thousands of asylum-seeking and other migrant students.

In light of Trump’s rhetoric, some parents, advocates, and city officials want to see even stronger protections for student data, ensuring information like a student’s home address won’t aid federal agents in identifying undocumented students.

The revised regulations were initially slated for an October vote by the city’s Panel for Educational Policy, or PEP, which votes on major policy proposals and contracts. It was moved to the panel’s Wednesday meeting, then pushed back again at least until December, PEP Chair Gregory Faulkner said last week.

With more time before the vote, Faulkner said the PEP plans to hold a town hall during the first week of December to solicit public feedback on the regulations. (The date has not yet been set.) It’s one of two controversial proposals that will be discussed during the town hall, with families also asked to weigh in on a proposed nearly $17 million contract for the Specialized High School Admissions Test.

Education Department spokesperson Chyann Tull said moving the vote would allow for further community engagement.

“The proposed revisions to the regulation make necessary updates to conform with state and federal law, and bring the regulation up to date with current policies and practices related to safeguarding student information, which go beyond legal requirements,” she said in a statement. “We listen and are responsive to the voices of our families and communities, and we have revised the regulation twice in response to public comment.”

But critics of the revisions argue that the proposed regulations aren’t fully aligned with state law, which they say outlines more overt protections and oversight when it comes to how outside parties use student data collected by education agencies.

Members of the public can view the proposed revisions online, and share feedback to PEP by email or phone or by attending a meeting, city officials said.

Advocates argue opt out measures are insufficient

The proposed regulations update 2009 privacy protections and include details on parental and students’ rights when it comes to education records, the responsibilities of school officials handling those records, procedures that must be followed after data breaches, and more.

Advocates have expressed concerns over a stipulation through which student data can become classified as “directory information,” allowing the Education Department to release it to third-party vendors without parental consent.

Under the proposed regulation, schools would be required to give families at least a 30-day notice before such data is cleared for release, during which families could choose to opt out, according to city documents. Those notices would be required to include both the types of student data that would become directory information, as well as the parties to whom that data would be released. The notices must also be “written and distributed in a manner reasonably likely to be seen” by families.

But once classified as directory information, that data could be shared with the designated parties without parental consent.

Leonie Haimson, executive director of the advocacy group Class Size Matters and co-chair of the Parent Coalition for Student Privacy, took issue with the broad array of student data that could be classified as directory information under the proposed regulations. She added that opt-out measures are insufficient to protect student privacy.

“We know that parent opt out is inadequate, as many parents will never see these notifications,” she said in an email. “Identity theft of minors can occur with only names and birth dates, and these crimes can go undetected for years, seriously damaging their future prospects.”

For many, concerns about student data being shared center on how outside parties might use the information — and whether the proposed regulations sufficiently guard against potential redisclosure or abuse of student data. Hearing that feedback motivated Faulkner to seek out more public input on the regulations, he said.

“It leaves our hands at some point, and that’s where there have been complaints,” he said of student data. “For me, I want to see that that directory information is really protected.”

Naveed Hasan, a Manhattan parent and PEP member, is awaiting input from the public before he decides on the proposed revisions. He’s concerned about how vendors might be using student data, particularly when much of the Education Department’s tech infrastructure is outsourced to other companies.

“My position has always been that none of our students’ private data should ever be on a non-DOE operated network under any circumstance,” he said.

Education Department officials said that students’ personally identifiable information cannot be used for commercial or marketing purposes and that vendors can only access, use, or share private data as necessary for the services they are contracted to provide.

Student privacy concerns heightened by second Trump term

Haimson has voiced a litany of other concerns about the privacy regulations, including that the language could exempt some student health records from the protections of state law, as well as the possible implications of the revisions for migrant students once Trump assumes office.

“Disclosing a child’s personal data, including their photos, could also further encourage predatory marketing, sexual harassment, deepfake porn or abduction, and help the Trump administration deport migrant students based on their addresses,” Haimson said.

Faulkner said he’s asked the city for more information about what the Trump administration’s focus on mass deportations could mean for the city’s students, particularly as it relates to student data privacy.

“Are we making this easy? Are there protections in place?” he said. “Some of the kids, if their addresses become easily accessible, all you need to know is where the shelters are. Would that target our kids who are undocumented?”

Beyond the issue of data privacy, Hasan said he hopes to see the city more firmly commit to protecting undocumented students from the Trump administration.

“We want the city to not cooperate if and when they approach them, no matter what,” he said. “We need to set up safeguards for our students and our families that are enrolled in schools — that have a federal right to be in those schools, no matter what their documentation status is — even if they’re approached by a hostile federal administration.”

Jessamyn Lee, a Brooklyn parent and member of the PEP, is hopeful that public pressure will push the Education Department to further strengthen protections for student data.

“These regulations only come up like once a decade,” she said. “So if we don’t get it right now, the students who are currently in our schools are just going to be screwed.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

1 in 8 NYC students experienced homelessness last year, a record high

2024-11-18T11:00:00+00:00

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The number of New York City students experiencing homelessness grew to more than 146,000 last school year, an increase of 26,000 students, according to a new analysis.

That meant roughly one in eight students in the nation’s largest public school system were living in temporary housing during the 2023-24 school year, a record high, according to a Monday report by Advocates for Children, which has been tracking the number for more than a decade.

New York City has long struggled to address its housing crisis, with the number of students in shelters, living “doubled up” with friends or relatives, or otherwise without permanent housing eclipsing 100,000 for each of the past nine years. The current high comes in part due to the thousands of asylum-seeking and other migrant families that have come to the city in recent years.

Students experiencing homelessness can face significant challenges at school. Just showing up can be a hurdle: Students in shelters are disproportionately impacted by transportation issues, with 40% of students attending school in a different borough from their shelter placement, according to Jennifer Pringle, director of the Learners in Temporary Housing Project at Advocates for Children.

In the 2022-23 school year, half of all students living in temporary housing — including 67% of students living in shelters — were chronically absent, meaning they missed at least 18 days of school, according to the Advocates for Children analysis. For students in permanent housing, just 34% were chronically absent that year.

The share of students in temporary housing scoring proficient on state English and math exams was more than 20 percentage points lower than their peers. Students in temporary housing were also more likely to face suspensions or transfer schools. And students in shelters dropped out of high school at a rate three times higher than those in permanent housing.

The compounding obstacles can place additional strain on students and schools, Pringle said.

“Schools that have a large number of students in temporary housing have a lot of churn within their student population, and that means it takes that much more operational work and personnel to adjust,” she said. “You think about getting to know your students, getting to know what their needs are, and adapting your classroom practice to meet those needs — but what if your classroom composition is constantly changing? It takes time and effort to have a nimble response.”

Schools need additional staff and resources to adequately support students who are experiencing homelessness, from academic intervention and tutoring, to family outreach and engagement, to partnering with community organizations to provide wraparound support at school, Pringle said.

She suggested other ways the city can better support its students in temporary housing, including ending a requirement that families in some shelters exit the system every 60 days and either find alternative housing or re-apply for shelter, as well as hiring more staff to support students in shelters.

The city currently employs 107 school-based community coordinators who work with students in temporary housing, as well as 160 shelter-based community coordinators, according to Education Department officials.

Education Department spokesperson Chyann Tull said the city remained committed to supporting students in temporary housing through field and enrollment support, transportation services, counseling, immunization assistance, and academic support.

“Our students who are experiencing homelessness are among our most vulnerable,” she said in a statement. “We are also proud to provide attendance supports strategies that allow districts and schools to provide families with access to food, clothing, hygiene supplies, and health services.”

Tull added the city had updated its school funding formula last year to send additional funds to schools serving students in temporary housing.

Advocates call for more support for homeless students

Among the students living in temporary housing, 54% were doubled up, or temporarily sharing the housing of others, while 41% spent time in the city’s shelters. The number of students experiencing homelessness rose in every school district across the five boroughs.

Students experiencing homelessness were especially concentrated in upper Manhattan, southwest Bronx, and parts of northeast and central Brooklyn, a trend in line with prior school years, according to Advocate for Children’s analysis.

In the Bronx and Manhattan, nearly one in six students did not have a permanent home.

Advocates have called for further support for students living in temporary housing, particularly as the state reworks its nearly two-decades-old school funding formula.

That formula, known as Foundation Aid, was implemented in 2007, and sends roughly $24.9 billion to school districts — including more than $9.5 billion to New York City schools. As part of a state budget agreement earlier this year, the Rockefeller Institute is currently conducting a study on how to revise the formula and will issue recommendations by Dec. 1.

Many education experts, politicians, and advocates agree that the formula is no longer a sufficient measure of student need. In September, a coalition of more than 100 New York organizations, including Advocates for Children, urged the state to overhaul Foundation Aid.

“Student homelessness has skyrocketed over the past decade, but right now, districts receive no additional per-pupil funding from the State to help meet the educational needs of students in temporary housing,” said Kim Sweet, executive director of Advocates for Children, in a statement.

And as the number of New York City students experiencing homelessness could continue to grow, Pringle said it’s critical that education remains a focus.

“Education needs to be part of the conversation about solving family homelessness,” she said. “Young adults who don’t have a high school diploma are four and a half times more likely to experience homelessness.”

Tackling the education challenges students currently living in shelters face is crucial in breaking the cycle to help prevent them from experiencing homelessness as adults, Pringle said.

“We need to make sure that they are getting educational support and services now,” she said. “So that they can thrive in school, get their high school diploma and more, and be successful, independent adults.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC ed panel delays SHSAT vote, teeing up public debate over admission to specialized high schools

2024-11-15T22:42:03+00:00

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New York City’s education panel is once again pumping the brakes on a roughly $17 million contract for a computer-based version of the admissions test for the city’s specialized high schools as its members seek additional input from the public on the proposal.

The proposed contract was initially slated for an October vote by the city’s Panel for Educational Policy, or PEP, which votes on major policy proposals and contracts. It was moved to the panel’s Nov. 20 meeting, before being pushed back again at least until December, PEP Chair Gregory Faulkner said this week.

The delay will enable the panel to hold a town hall and gauge public opinion, Faulkner said. The date for the town hall has not yet been set.

The Specialized High School Admissions Test, or SHSAT, stands as the sole metric of admission to the city’s eight specialized high schools, which include Stuyvesant and Bronx Science. Last year, roughly 26,000 eighth graders took the SHSAT, and 4,072 were offered a seat. Of those, just 4.5% of offers went to Black students and 7.6% to Latino students, fueling continued concerns over the schools’ deeply segregated student populations.

Holding a town hall to solicit feedback on the contract is likely to reignite longstanding debates over whether the test should determine entry to the city’s specialized high schools. For years, that question has pitted integration advocates against fervent supporters of the current system.

Under the proposed nearly six-year contract, the test-making company Pearson would be tasked with making a computerized version of the SHSAT, and administering it over five testing cycles beginning in the fall of 2025. The contract includes an optional two additional test cycles, which if enacted would bring the total cost to more than $23.5 million.

Reigniting a longstanding fight over the SHSAT

Some advocates worry that the move to a computerized model for the SHSAT could worsen inequities in an admissions process that already produces highly segregated outcomes. The specialized high schools, which are considered some of the most prestigious public high schools in the nation, have long faced criticism for admitting staggeringly low numbers of Black and Latino students.

Education Department officials previously noted that many exams are now offered on computers — pointing to MAP tests administered twice a year for students in grades 2-8, as well as ongoing efforts to transition to digital SAT and Advanced Placement tests for high school students. The proposed contract also follows a statewide effort to phase in computer-based testing for New York’s 3-8 reading and math exams.

And supporters of the current system are urging PEP members to approve the contract. Parent Leaders for Accelerated Curriculum and Education, or PLACE, a polarizing group that advocates for screened school admissions, has issued an open letter calling on the panel to approve the contract.

“Failure to approve the Pearson contract will leave no other means to administer the test,” the group wrote. “As such, eight NYC high schools will be without a freshman class starting in the fall of 2026.”

But critics have also questioned whether the city should award another contract to Pearson, which has developed the paper version of the exams for years. The national test-making company has faced controversy over high-profile missteps in New York and other states, and in 2015, the state’s Education Department stopped using Pearson for its standardized exams.

Pearson was one of just two vendors that submitted a proposal for the contract, and an evaluation and advisory committee made up of Education Department officials determined Pearson offered “the lowest price while proposing superior services,” according to city documents.

Though the current specialized high school admissions system has its share of critics across the five boroughs, efforts to overhaul it in past years have also faced fierce opposition and court challenges — signaling that the city’s families remain divided over the issue. The exam is mandated under state law, and though some, including former Mayor Bill de Blasio, have sought to overturn that law, such efforts have failed to gain traction in Albany.

Despite his own questions over whether the exam is a fair metric of admission, Faulkner acknowledged that the contract may still have to be approved, given the lack of clear alternatives.

“We have to really look at what it would mean if this were to be voted down,” he said.

Jessamyn Lee, a Brooklyn parent and PEP member who opposes the contract, expected it to be approved by PEP members when the vote is eventually held.

“There’s going to be some effort to listen to the public on this, but I don’t think that there’s really going to be any effort to modify state education law regarding the paths of entry to these schools,” she said.

Mayor Eric Adams has not expressed interest in trying to change the specialized high school admissions process and has instead focused on opening additional schools that screen students. Under the city’s mayoral control system, Adams appoints a majority of members to the panel. That system has faced criticism from some parents and educators, who argue the PEP functions as a “rubber stamp” for the mayor’s policies.

When the city’s Education Department met with PEP members earlier this week to discuss the SHSAT contract, not a single mayoral appointee attended, Lee said.

PEP to form legislative committee with eyes on state laws

With state law governing admissions to the city’s specialized high schools and other key education issues, Faulkner wants the PEP to play a more active role in advocating for legislative changes.

He plans to form a Committee on Legislation and Public Policy to engage with community members and advocates, the city’s Education Department, and lawmakers in Albany, as it monitors local, state, and federal education policies.

And regardless of whether panel members ultimately approve a new SHSAT contract, he hopes the PEP can spark discussions in Albany over potential reforms to the state law.

“We’re going to put together a legislative agenda, and this is going to be one of the items at the top of the agenda,” Faulkner said. “Ultimately, this has to go to Albany, and Albany has to give the city other options.”

Lee questioned whether the PEP might be able to exert more influence through direct action — pushing the city’s Education Department to further address concerns over inequities in the current system.

“If we were able to whip the votes and not approve this SHSAT contract whenever it’s going to happen, then we’ve created a problem for a $40 billion city agency,” she said. “To me, that seems like a potentially much more powerful tool.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Rita Joseph, NYC Council’s ed committee chair, talks school budgets, curriculum mandates, and more

2024-11-11T20:55:08+00:00

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City Council member Rita Joseph, a former teacher who chairs the committee on education, hasn’t forgotten her roots in the city’s public school system.

Since taking office in 2022, the Brooklyn council member has visited nearly 100 schools across the five boroughs, Joseph recently told Chalkbeat. She holds monthly meetings with a coalition of advocates, as she’s sought to help the city’s schools navigate a contentious budget cycle in City Hall, an influx of asylum-seeking and other migrant students, and other major education challenges.

Her time as chair of the council’s education committee has also coincided with a period of major overhaul in the city’s public school curriculums. Former schools Chancellor David Banks mandated elementary schools adopt one of three approved literacy curriculums — the signature policy of his tenure — while also introducing curriculum overhauls for middle and high school math.

With another budget cycle on the horizon and a change in leadership at the city’s Education Department, Joseph has her eyes set on a number of key priorities, including securing more permanent funding for programs that previously relied on federal relief dollars, expanding the city’s early childhood education system, and improving transportation options for students.

Chalkbeat sat down with Joseph last month to talk about a range of issues facing the city’s public schools.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

The City Council held a hearing in September on school bus services. What were your takeaways from that hearing? What stood out to you?

Two years later, we’re still in the very same spot: Kids not having routes, kids are not being picked up on time, students that are medically fragile still don’t have traveling nurses.

And also, the students with IEPs [individualized education programs] who are medically fragile have to be on the bus for a certain amount of time, and we’re finding they’re still on the bus for two hours, when they’re supposed to be on the bus for an hour.

On the budget, last year was a big year — expiring stimulus funding and budget cuts. Obviously, a lot of that was restored, but looking back on it, how do you assess how much of your priorities you got?

I got everything. But I could never do this work by myself. I meet with advocates once a month. We even created a group called the Emergency Coalition to Save Education Programs, and that included advocates, parents, not-for-profit organizations, and labor. We got together, and we went on a five borough tour to listen to the parents, the families: If this was to be cut, what is the impact?

I remember going to the Bronx and Learning to Work, [a paid work program for students at alternative high schools,] resonated with me because I was meeting these young people. They came to testify. They came to say, ‘Let me tell you what this LTW has done for me. I’m not on the corner, Council member Joseph. I can help my mother. I can buy my own pair of sneakers.’

It’s giving a child that second chance at education.

Fairly late in the year, Mayor Adams noted he’d recently learned how many programs were funded by stimulus money. How were you able to get him on board with this?

We met with him in October 2023.

We sat down. I laid it out for him. I said, ‘This is what’s on the line.’

I called him out on every cut, from lunch to community schools, [which partner with nonprofits to provide wraparound support for students].

Hold harmless, [a policy to preserve school budgets despite enrollment drops,] was also very important for me. I told him, ‘That’s one way to stabilize, versus them bleeding out. We know we’re losing students, but we have to hold schools harmless.’

In the next budget, is hold harmless something you will continue to fight for?

I would have to look at the lay of the land first. I don’t think I would rush to that. I would assess what I have first, before I would make such a big decision.

Are there other big priorities that you have for the upcoming budget cycle?

I would like to baseline quite a few things. I would love to baseline the mental health continuum, LTW, student success centers [a peer-led program to promote college-readiness], and STH [students in temporary housing] coordinators — they play such an integral role for our students living in temporary housing.

Last year, the city’s Education Department and the United Federation of Teachers agreed to allow qualified teachers to switch to a bilingual license without losing their tenure. What do you make of this change?

I had to give up my tenure in order to switch over to an ESL license.

Now, UFT allows you to change your license and still retain your tenure. I wish they had that when I was there.

I gave it up because I knew there was a need. We were getting a lot of students from Chile at the time when I was at P.S. 6 [in Brooklyn]. We got a lot of students from Yemen as well. And when they were coming in, there was a shortage of ESL teachers in the building. So I went and took the course and got an extension to my license.

That is one piece of advice I gave to Chancellor Banks. You don’t need a new degree. Get an extension from your common branch license. It’s 15 credits, take the test, and you have an ESL extension that can be used across the city. That was one way to create the pipeline and make it easier for folks to become ESL coordinators and ESL teachers.

What are your general thoughts about the curriculum mandates?

[We need] more support for educators. No drive-thru professional development. There should be ongoing support, all year round.

New York City Reads — I like the concept that all students should be able to be on reading level by third grade, because that’s when you take your first city exam. So even by the end of second grade, you should already be meeting proficient.

When the reading scores came out, no one highlighted it — and I really want to sit with those superintendents — Districts 5, 7, and 16 [Harlem, South Bronx, and Bedford-Stuyvesant, respectively] did really well. I want to know, what were they doing over there? What were they doing differently? Those are Black and brown communities. What were the principals and the superintendent doing to support the educators and the students?

Same thing with math. We’ve got to make sure kids know their domain-specific vocabulary when it comes to math. There’s languages that go with these specific subjects. Teachers should master them. Principals should master them. And I think principals should also be part of that, because they evaluate teachers, right? So you’ve got to know what you’re evaluating your teachers on.

And reading should not be punishment. Reading should be joy.

I’m a big fan of Diary of a Wimpy Kid. I have every collection, every single book that came out. I even have one signed by Jeff Kinney. So you know, I was like the coolest teacher in the building for having one signed by the author.

Find what the kids like. If it’s fashion, or cooking, or whatever it is, make sure they’re reading for something they enjoy.

What are your impressions of the new schools chancellor, Melissa Aviles-Ramos?

I’m a fan. I like her. I like her work. Because we come from the same. Teacher, principal, assistant principal, acting superintendent. She knows the lay of the land. She knows how to navigate this space. And she’s like me, she’s a worker.

We’re here to support her. She has an ally.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org.

NYC families can earn up to $875 for evaluating financial literacy curriculum

2024-11-01T15:57:58+00:00

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New York City public schools families and educators: The city’s Education Department wants your help to review its K-12 financial literacy curriculum and will pay participants.

The effort, announced in an email sent this week to some school communities, comes at a time when city and state leaders have called for more robust financial education in schools, and the city is eyeing a move to implement a systemwide financial literacy program. A growing number of students and educators have highlighted the importance of gaining skills in budgeting and money management before graduation.

The city’s goal is to “engage all students in financial literacy by 2030,” according to E.M. Eisen-Markowitz, a school research, design, and learning partner from Eskolta School Research & Design, which is working with the Education Department to conduct the curriculum review.

“Superintendents will have the opportunity to select from a number of vetted curriculum options for all of the schools in their district,” Eisen-Markowitz said in an email to Chalkbeat.

Educators selected to review the curriculums will be paid hourly per session, while students and families will receive an up to $175 stipend for up to five hours of work per curriculum. Participants can review as many as five curriculums for a maximum possible stipend of $875.

Interested students, parents, and educators must fill out a form by Nov. 15 to participate.

Evaluators will be asked to read through the lessons, fill out a scorecard, have a call with a research facilitator, and attend a Zoom session on a Tuesday or Thursday evening between the months of December and March, according to the email Eisen-Markowitz sent to schools.

The calls, which will take place between 4-6 p.m., will be discussions on the curriculum with other participating educators, students, and parents.

The Education Department had already begun to support school districts implementing financial literacy instruction as the city plans to scale that instruction up to cover the entire public school system, spokesperson Chyann Tull said.

“Financial literacy is critical to the New York City Public Schools mission of ensuring that students graduate with a strong plan and a clear path to economic security,” she said in a statement. “As always, we want our students, families, and educators to have a voice in curricula that will best serve them.”

Across the state, officials have highlighted the importance of financial literacy.

In a joint op-ed earlier this year, state Education Commissioner Betty Rosa and Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli argued financial literacy should be taught in all New York schools. And as the state considers how to update New York’s high school graduation requirements, one proposal includes adding credit requirements for financial literacy.

“Just as teens are required to take a driver’s education course before getting behind the wheel of a vehicle, we have a responsibility to empower students with the skills to effectively manage their finances before applying for a credit card, student loan or mortgage,” Rosa and DiNapoli said. “It’s time for New York to catch up to states who for decades have taught a financial literacy course and required it for high school graduation.”

New York City education leaders have struck a similar tone.

During a community conversation hosted by Mayor Eric Adams at a Brooklyn middle school last week, schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos stressed the importance of financial literacy for the city’s youth.

“What do you do with your money?” she said. “We need to stop building generational trauma in our Black and brown families and wrap our arms around them and build some generational wealth.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

New York is redefining graduation requirements. Here’s what educators want to know.

2024-10-31T16:24:08+00:00

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New York City educators are eagerly awaiting new details on the state’s efforts to reimagine high school graduation requirements, which officials are expected to unveil on Monday.

Many have praised the proposed removal of Regents exams from diploma requirements, but questions remain over what a new system will look like in practice, sparking some fears over potential inequities across the state’s schools and uneven academic standards.

“Everybody has the question of, ‘What are these things going to look like?’” said Kiri Soares, principal of the Urban Assembly Institute of Math and Science for Young Women in Brooklyn. “The one thing I’ll say about the Regents standard is that there is an equity element to them, which is that there’s an expectation that all kids have to meet this bar. And so I get worried sometimes about, ‘What is the replacement of the bar?’”

New York is one of just a handful of states that requires exit exams, though research has found little evidence to show such exams improve student achievement. And the Regents exams, a more than a century-old rite of passage for New York’s high schoolers, have long faced criticism from students and educators who feel it is an insufficient measure of student learning.

Under a looming overhaul outlined in June, students would no longer be required to pass the state’s Regents exams to earn a high school diploma. Instead, the exams would be among a slew of options for demonstrating proficiency in key areas, including project-based assessments, work-based learning experiences, and more.

Though many support giving students more options, questions remain on what the overhaul could mean for individual schools.

“We have consistently said, from the beginning, that this endeavor is about raising the bar for all, not lowering rigor for some,” said JP O’Hare, a spokesperson for the state Education Department. “The plan we will set forth on Monday will be a thoughtful approach with a timeline that allows educators the opportunity to take stock of their programs in order to prepare our students for a lifetime of continuous learning, fulfilling careers, and informed civic engagement.”

Educators worry about unequal rigor and resources

The state’s full plan — which will include the regulatory and fiscal implications of the proposed changes — comes as the latest step in a multi-year process to overhaul graduation requirements.

Last year, a 64-member Blue Ribbon Commission put forward 12 recommendations for updating the state’s high school graduation requirements — including the adoption of a “portrait of a graduate,” comprised of seven key areas for students to demonstrate proficiency: critical thinking, effective communication, cultural and social-emotional competences, innovative problem solving, literacy across content areas, and status as a “global citizen.”

Those recommendations were later synthesized into four proposed actions by state education officials, one of which was to end the requirement that students pass Regents exams.

In many ways, Soares welcomes the state’s efforts to redefine graduation requirements.

“The Regents exams are over 100 years old, and they measure one kind of learning,” she said. “The idea of moving from testing to doing — like having an internship or these other experiences — is so much more powerful.”

Still, she worried that some students could be pushed into pathways perceived as less rigorous, a concern she said was particularly relevant for students who are already underserved. Soares wondered what measures will be put in place to ensure that all students are held to the same expectations and given the support to meet them.

Bobson Wong, a math teacher at Bayside High School who served on the Blue Ribbon Commission, said he’s been pleased to see the state officials be “genuinely receptive” to input from educators and students, noting they’ve spent months soliciting feedback in public forums. But it will be critical that the state develop policies that are “practical enough to work,” he added.

“One issue that has come up over and over in the discussions that we had on the commission, and also in the public forums, is who is going to pay for all of this?” Wong said. “Regents exams are easy to implement. That’s a big reason why we still have them.

“If you all of a sudden say, ‘Okay, we’ll do project-based learning assessments instead,’ then, who’s managing that, and who’s keeping track of all of that, and who’s going to make sure that all students have equitable access?” he asked.

The proposed changes could spark concerns “that schools and districts will be left to their own devices, and will open the floodgates without students having adequate preparation for postsecondary opportunities,” said David Bloomfield, a professor of education, law, and public policy at Brooklyn College and the CUNY Graduate Center.

“I think the Regents long ago lost its value as a guarantor of graduate quality,” he said. “But the challenge all along really has been: How do you fill that vacuum?”

Some NYC schools already use alternative assessments

Some schools in New York already use alternative models for testing student proficiency. For more than two decades, a coalition known as the “performance standards consortium” has received waivers from the state to forgo Regents exams except for English.

The consortium model has attracted fierce support from educators and families. Proponents argue that performance-based assessments can be just as or even more rigorous than exams, while offering a deeper learning experience that better prepares students for higher education and employment.

But the model can take additional resources and buy-in from school communities to implement, requiring more staff and training than a traditional exam, Bloomfield said.

“The consortium model is a very exacting standard, and it’s not clear how districts across the state will be able to implement that particular pathway,” he said. “You have to have a lot of people involved in grading the PBAs [project-based assessments], as well as helping students develop their PBAs.”

Soares, who was excited by the prospect of bringing in aspects of the consortium to her school, said she hopes that the state will provide schools with resources based on existing models.

“I don’t want the onus to be only on the schools to figure out how to do this,” she said. “I would like to be provided with sources and models of things that they have already vetted and approved.”

Steve Lazar, a high school teacher who previously helped found a consortium school in Manhattan, said the added flexibility would allow for meaningful discussions about how to best assess students in school districts across the state. But he wondered whether the same would apply in New York City, worrying the nation’s largest public school system might opt for a top-down approach.

Lazar doesn’t share in concerns that the changes could result in uneven levels of rigor across the state’s schools. He argued that the focus on Regents exams sometimes pushes teachers to emphasize rote memorization instead of challenging students to grapple with evidence and reason through difficult questions.

“I would not consider current graduation requirements rigorous by any stretch of the imagination,” he said.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

‘Backbone of New York City’: Arts groups showcase their work to schools, as funding concerns remain

2024-10-23T20:31:12+00:00

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Dozens of cultural arts organizations flocked to Lincoln Center on Tuesday, joining elected officials and educators for a celebration of arts education in the city’s schools — replete with a performance by dancers from the Juilliard School.

It was the second “Arts & Culture in the Schools Showcase,” held by Manhattan Council member Gale Brewer, aimed at promoting connections between local schools and cultural arts organizations.

The showcase comes at a time of heightened concern over the state of the city’s arts education.

In recent years, students, advocates, and elected officials have pushed for the city to provide more funding for arts programming in schools. Meanwhile, critics of a state law mandating smaller class sizes have argued it could push schools to convert dance, music, and art studios into classrooms — as the city works to bring tens of thousands of classrooms below the legal limit over the next few years.

And though City Council members reached a budget agreement with Mayor Eric Adams last year that restored more than $40 million in arts education funding that was previously propped up by expiring federal relief dollars — in addition to more than $50 million to cultural institutions — city data shows stubborn gaps persisting in student access to arts education.

“Nobody needs more money than schools and the arts,” Brewer said at the Tuesday event. “Those are the backbone of New York City.”

Middle school students are required by the state’s Education Department to complete two or more semesters of arts instruction across two different disciplines taught by certified teachers by the time they enter high school. But many schools in New York City are failing to meet that requirement, with just 36% of local students doing so in the 2022-23 school year, according to a city report.

That represented a slight uptick from the year before, but still fell well below the state mandate.

Though a majority of public schools offered instruction in visual arts and music in the 2022-23 school year, less than half of the city’s middle and high schools offered dance and theater instruction — with figures falling to as low as 21% for high schools that taught dance. As of the same year, there were roughly 2,400 full-time certified arts teachers, as well as about 800 part-time teachers, employed across the public school system, according to city surveys.

“We’re going to continue to fight and push for more funding,” said Laurie Cumbo, commissioner of the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs. “We want to see art teachers in every single school in New York City. That’s really the ultimate goal.”

More than 50 nonprofit arts organizations attended the Tuesday showcase, ranging from music to performing and visual arts to computer programming. Citywide, more than 600 cultural arts organizations partnered with public schools in the 2022-23 school year, with a majority of those partnerships occurring in elementary schools, according to a city report.

Jada Foster, the program manager of Lambda Literary’s LGBTQ Writers in Schools program, said her organization has facilitated local school visits from a range of LGBTQ authors, including Roya Marsh, Mark Oshiro, and Maulik Pancholy.

The program has partnered with roughly 180 schools across the five boroughs, running writing workshops for K-12 students and providing a safe space for students to discuss books that address issues of homophobia, racism, sexism, and more. It’s a program that’s become especially important in the wake of book challenges in schools and libraries across the country, which have largely targeted stories written by LGBTQ authors, she said.

“We always want to invite educators in, and encourage educators who want that inclusive curriculum to apply to our program,” Foster said. “With the rise of book bannings, this is a program that will provide students that necessary space.”

Lulu Fogarty, the director of education at Symphony Space, said the cultural education organization has partnered with schools for roughly 40 years, educating students from prekindergarten through high school on traditional cultural art forms.

“If a school is studying Latin America, for instance, we have a series where we’ll send in a group that does folk dances from Mexico, there’s going to be a samba music from Brazil class, there’s an Afro-Latin Jazz workshop, there’s a capoeira workshop,” she said. “Along with that series, there’s a field trip opportunity, so students can come to our theater at Symphony Space to see their teaching artists perform live on stage.”

Symphony Space partners with more than 50 schools in the city, serving about 15,000 students each year, Fogarty said.

Meanwhile, New York City Children’s Theater partners with both schools and shelters to help students adapt stories into theater performances, said Yvonne Roen, the organization’s director of development. The program invites students to participate in multiple languages, an aspect Roen said has been particularly helpful in recent years, as the city has seen an influx of asylum-seeking and other migrant students.

“When students are working together and building a play, they suddenly see something about a classmate that they’ve never seen before, because this person is speaking their own language — they’re having their own experience and that forms a bridging of the classroom,” she said. “It also gives students an opportunity to present themselves in a way that they don’t normally get to be in a classroom.”

Before the pandemic, NYCCT worked across more than 30 shelter sites in partnership with the city’s Education Department, said Frank Ruiz, the organization’s education program manager. But after losing funding in 2021, their work in shelters was limited to just two sites, Roen added.

Three years later, with funding cobbled together from City Council and various foundations, NYCCT has partnered with 11 shelters, in addition to more than 40 schools.

“As long as we get the funding, we’re going to keep expanding it, because it’s really important,” Roen said. “We really believe that everyone has a story to tell.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Some NYC teachers experiment with AI-powered tools, while Education Department develops guidelines

2024-10-18T20:08:26+00:00

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A year ago, James Randle, a high school social studies teacher in Queens, started exploring how artificial intelligence could help make his work more efficient.

He experimented with one AI-powered program that surprised him with its ability to render basic lesson plans. Then Randle discovered an essay grader that used artificial intelligence to determine how well student papers adhered to a rubric — a tool he found useful for conducting first passes on essays.

“I was blown away by what it could possibly do,” said Randle, who has taught at the Academy of American Studies for 24 years.

Randle isn’t alone in seeing potential for AI-powered tools to make waves in the education sector. In recent years, a rash of new AI technologies have cropped up, with a spate of companies marketing their tools toward school districts. And across the country, nearly 20% of K-12 teachers reported using AI in their instruction last school year, according to one report.

The explosion of school-oriented AI technology has sparked serious concerns among skeptics — with critics raising questions over how AI companies handle sensitive student data and whether such tools can be trusted in education settings after cases of bias and inaccuracy.

In New York City, the public school system has taken nascent steps toward embracing the new technology. Despite some early reservations, former schools Chancellor David Banks became an AI cheerleader by the end of his tenure at the helm of the nation’s largest school system, touting its ability to “revolutionize” schools in a speech last month and devoting his final day as chancellor to a convening of an AI advisory council.

Despite enthusiasm from some of the city’s top education leaders, teachers are still waiting for the Education Department to issue more concrete guidance or plans for how and when AI should be used in schools. And in the meantime, educators are taking matters into their own hands, with Randle and others wading through the barrage of new companies promising to streamline time-consuming aspects of their jobs.

Randle said he “fell into a rabbit hole” of different AI-powered tools last year — struck by just how many were geared toward educators.

“Every time I kept turning around, there were more and more opportunities for teachers,” he said. “It was like a train rush.”

In AI, some educators see potential. Others see danger.

Two years ago, generative AI exploded into the public eye with the release of ChatGPT, a chatbot developed by the tech company OpenAI that stunned users with its ability to generate cogent and lifelike writing.

ChatGPT sparked a wave of concerns in schools across the nation — earning a ban on school devices and networks in New York City — amid broad fears that students would use the tool to cheat on assignments.

But the city has since reversed that ban, and some educators have warmed to the notion that generative AI could be a valuable tool for students and teachers alike.

Jenna Lyle, a spokesperson for the city’s Education Department, said the DOE was “currently developing guidelines for educators that are in alignment with the city’s Office of Technology Innovation.”

“Generative AI is constantly evolving,” she said in a statement. “As we prepare our students to be on the cutting edge of this technology, we are encouraging safe and responsible experimentation in the classroom and continuing to gather feedback and insights from industry leaders through our AI Advisory Council.”

Edward Castro, the family leadership coordinator for the city’s Consortium, International, and Outward Bound schools, said his district has partnered with the PlayLab, a tech company that develops AI-powered tools for educators. He’s found their tools particularly helpful when it comes to translating materials for families whose first language isn’t English.

“We wanted to make sure that we explained to educators that this is not a toy or a cheating vessel,” he said. “It’s a tool to help streamline and automate routine tasks, and to support our kids, especially our kids for whom English is not their first language.”

Generative AI chatbots, like ChatGPT, operate by analyzing large swaths of data, then predicting what text would likely follow a user’s prompt. But critics are quick to note that those responses don’t necessarily adhere to logical reasoning and aren’t guaranteed to be accurate, with reported instances where the tools have produced incorrect and biased responses.

Because of these deficiencies, Benjamin Riley, the founder of Cognitive Resonance, an organization that provides consulting on generative AI systems, is concerned that some school districts have looked to generative AI as a way of providing students with personalized tutors, or for teachers to speed up the grading process.

“It takes me all of two minutes with any of the existing tools that are out there to demonstrate just how unreliable they are with what we humans would consider the truth,” Riley said.

His organization has raised alarm over the ways in which generative AI technologies fall short in classroom settings — noting that such tools may not correctly understand what sequence of lessons will effectively build knowledge in students, might propose content based on misconceptions about how students learn, and could potentially spread misinformation or perpetuate cultural biases.

Riley added he understands why educators might look to AI-powered tools to ease the burden of grading, but he noted such tools tend to focus primarily on grammar and structure.

“Since they’re not thinking devices, there’s no capability for them to imagine what was going on in the mind of the student,” he said. “What I’m really worried about is that it won’t be wrong, but it will just be steering students toward a norm that what really matters is getting the surface features of your essay right, rather than grappling with the ideas.”

Randle, who has been using the AI-powered CoGrader to help markup student papers based on a grading rubric, said at times the tool will grade students more harshly than he would. He always checks to ensure that papers are graded correctly and to adjust the AI’s scoring.

But the tool has saved him hours on grading and allowed him to spend more time giving personalized comments, he said. So far, Randle has been paying for access to CoGrader and other AI tools he’s using as an individual, with no schoolwide contract.

Cora Neville, the principal of Highbridge Middle School in the DREAM charter network, said schools in her charter network have also been using AI-powered tools to help with grading and lesson planning. Before, grading student constructive responses could take four or more hours.

Using AI-powered tools from PlayLab sped that process up to about an hour, Neville said.

Can AI companies be trusted with student data?

With the arrival of AI, some educators remain wary over whether tech companies can appropriately handle sensitive student data.

For example, in a set of “guardrails” released over the summer, the American Federation of Teachers emphasized that safety and privacy should be maximized any time such tools are used in school settings.

Those concerns boiled over in California earlier this year, after the Los Angeles Unified School District attempted to roll out its own custom-built chatbot. But the tool, which relied on a large pool of student data, was later paused after the company that produced it collapsed amid concerns that the chatbot mishandled sensitive student data.

Castro said that he’s taken concerns over how AI companies handle student data seriously.

“Making sure that things are fair, unbiased, and that privacy is protected is paramount,” he said of his district’s approach to using AI. “Anything I put in is public-facing.”

Neville said she’s seen AI-powered tools marketed toward certain aspects of the school system that involve confidential student data — like those that offer to generate individualized education programs, which outline mandated services and support for students with disabilities.

“That information, for one, is confidential. But you also want to know your students intimately and deeply,” she said. “I would hate for someone to say, ‘Alright, I’m going to use these prompts, I’m going to throw this information into it, and it’s going to write the IEP for me.’”

“I don’t want to lose sight of the intimacy of really getting to know your students,” Neville added.

Despite drawbacks, some hope AI can reduce teacher burnout

Though imperfect, Randle hopes that AI tools can help stem some of the losses of early career teachers, who have left the field in increasing numbers since the onset of the COVID pandemic in 2020. It’s a use he believes could be particularly meaningful, as teacher turnover hit unusual highs both nationally and in New York City during the pandemic.

“With any resource that teachers are using, someone may have things they don’t approve of,” Randle said. “But every teacher is going to look over everything that they are going to put in front of kids, and everything they’re going to ask kids to engage with.”

In addition to saving hours on grading, he sees generative AI as a useful tool for new teachers who are still learning to construct lesson plans.

Randle was initially stunned by the ability of Khanmigo, an AI-powered teaching assistant, to generate templates for different lesson plans. Though it didn’t create worksheets and other materials that a teacher might need, he noted it offered the building blocks of a comprehensive lesson.

More recently, he has been using MagicSchool, another AI-powered tool, that Randle said can create even more comprehensive lesson plans — replete with presentation slides, quizzes, worksheets, and even songs or jokes that educators can sprinkle into lessons.

“It’s a great place to get some good ideas and brainstorm,” he said, adding that for new teachers in particular, “it’s hugely helpful to have a system in place and not have to start from scratch.”

Neville, too, sees potential for AI to help younger teachers. But she added it isn’t all upside — as the streamlined process could make it more difficult to learn.

“It takes that learning experience away from the teacher,” she said. “When I came up, there was no AI generator. So not only did you have to be a skilled teacher, you also had to know the content well.

“You really have to be tactful with how much you rely on the system,” Neville said.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC eyes $17 million contract to create computer-based Specialized High School Admissions Test

2024-10-17T22:03:45+00:00

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This year’s eighth graders could be the last class that takes the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test with paper and pencil. A New York City education panel is slated to vote on a roughly $17 million contract later this month that would transition the test to a computer-based model.

Under the nearly six-year contract, the test-making company Pearson would create a computerized model of the Specialized High School Admissions Test, known as the SHSAT. The exam is the sole metric of admission to the city’s eight specialized high schools, including Stuyvesant and Bronx Science.

Though these schools represent just a fraction of the city’s students, they garner outsized attention given their status as some of the most prestigious public high schools in the nation. Last year, roughly 26,000 eighth graders took the SHSAT, and 4,072 were offered a seat.

If the contract is approved by the city’s Panel for Educational Policy, or PEP, later this month, Pearson would be tasked with developing and administering exams for five test cycles, beginning with the fall of 2025, according to city documents. The contract includes an optional two additional test cycles, which if enacted would bring the total cost to more than $23.5 million. (Pearson has developed paper versions of the exam for years.)

Jenna Lyle, a spokesperson for the city’s Education Department, said the proposal comes amid a broader shift toward digital education.

“Our students continue to live in a more digital world, both in and out of the classroom,” she said in a statement. “The transition to computer-based SHSAT testing is an extension of this shift. Our priority is always to ensure students have the resources and support they need, and the computer-based SHSAT will be no exception.”

Education Department officials noted many exams are now offered on computers — pointing to MAP tests administered twice a year for students in grades 2-8, as well as ongoing efforts to transition to digital SAT and Advanced Placement tests for high school students. The proposed contract also follows a statewide effort to phase in computer-based testing for New York’s 3-8 reading and math exams.

If passed, the shift would allow the SHSAT to adopt a computer-adaptive model, a form of computer-based testing that adapts the questions based on a student’s responses, according to the proposal.

But some worry that the move to a computerized model for the SHSAT could worsen inequities in an admissions process that already produces highly segregated outcomes. New York City’s specialized high schools have long faced criticism for admitting staggeringly low numbers of Black and Latino students.

During the last high school admissions cycle, offers to Black and Latino students at specialized high schools ticked up slightly, with 4.5% of offers going to Black students and 7.6% to Latino students, according to city data. But those figures remain well below the 65% of public school students who are Black or Latino.

“While kids today are certainly 21st century citizens, we know that there are major gaps in digital literacy and tech accessibility that tend to fall along socioeconomic lines,” said Jessamyn Lee, a Brooklyn parent and member of the PEP. Some students, for example, might only have access to a phone at home, she said. “It’s a very different experience than kids living in a household where there are computers everywhere.”

Some studies have found students in general tend to do worse on exams taken on a computer or tablet, though experts previously told Chalkbeat that research isn’t definitive.

Lee also questioned whether a computer-based test could pose further challenges to some students with disabilities, including those with visual impairments. The city’s specialized high schools admit few students with disabilities, with just 2% of students at the schools mandated to receive special education support, according to city data. Citywide, about 20% of students have disabilities.

Education Department officials said paper exams will remain an option for students with disabilities who have approved testing accommodations requiring them.

Concerns over timeline for switch to computer-based SHSAT

Edward Antoine, who runs the Brooklyn-based test prep company Antoine Education that offers tutoring for the SHSAT, said he believes students are often comfortable with digital testing environments — pointing to how many high schoolers embraced the new version of the SAT, which shifted to a computer-based model earlier this year. But he wondered how the content of the SHSAT might change to better fit a computerized model, noting, for example, that the College Board shortened reading passages when transitioning the SAT to a digital exam.

“I’m very curious to see if there’s actual changes in the content of what’s being tested, and what the format is going to look like, and how the interface is going to work,” he said. “But I don’t expect it’ll be difficult for kids to get acclimated.”

Still, Antoine said it’s critical that the city offers students access to practice exams that mimic the digital interface of the test well in advance of the new exam rolling out. Students should be able to start practicing a year in advance, he said.

“I don’t know when they’re planning on making it available, but it’s already late,” Antoine said.

Lee also raised concerns over the city awarding another contract to Pearson, as the national test-making company has faced controversy over high-profile missteps in New York and other states. In 2015, the state’s Education Department moved away from using Pearson for its standardized exams.

Pearson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Though the city’s Education Department began seeking vendors last fall for the shift to a computerized SHSAT, it received proposals from only two assessment companies — Pearson, and Educational Testing Services. An evaluation and advisory committee made up of Education Department officials determined Pearson offered “the lowest price while proposing superior services,” according to city documents.

Education Department officials said the panel of reviewers evaluating the proposals held expertise in assessment, enrollment, operations, technology, and academic content.

Pearson contract expected to pass as debate over SHSAT continues

Though Lee opposes the contract, she expected it to be approved by PEP members at the Oct. 30 meeting. Under the city’s mayoral control system, Mayor Eric Adams appoints a majority of members to the panel.

Gregory Faulkner, a former Adams appointee to the panel who was tapped to serve as its independent chair earlier this year, said he’s leaning against supporting the proposed contract — though he said he’s holding off on forming a firm opinion until after he’s briefed by the Education Department next week. He added that if a vote took place today, he suspected a majority of the panel would approve it.

“This is going to put a spotlight on the issue of testing,” he said. “I don’t think this is only going to be about us computerizing and updating. This is going to quickly move into the idea of testing and diversity in these schools — and I think that’s a good conversation to have, because clearly, these schools are not diverse.”

For years, integration advocates have clashed with supporters of the SHSAT over whether the city’s specialized high schools should continue to admit students based solely on a standardized exam. The issue falls outside the purview of city officials, with the SHSAT mandated under state law.

Former Mayor Bill de Blasio frequently sought to overturn that law, but failed to garner support in Albany. Adams and former schools Chancellor David Banks, who retired on Wednesday, have not made integration in selective schools a focus of their education agenda.

“Some panel members will feel frustrated, but they’ll feel we’ve got to go with state law,” Faulkner said of the upcoming contract vote. “My feeling is, okay if we have to do that, let’s get the DOE to commit to doing some things that make this pill a little bit easier for us.”

He hopes to see the city’s Education Department commit to more aggressive, free test preparation for students who can’t afford to hire outside SHSAT tutoring. He also questioned whether the date could be moved to allow schools more time to offer test preparation in the fall.

“I know of schools that do test prep for their students for free, but they begin it in September,” he said. “Whereas kids who have money begin their test prep in March.”

This year’s SHSAT will be offered at school on Oct. 30 for students attending the city’s middle and K-8 schools.

Eighth grade students who attend charter or private schools, who are home-schooled, or who attend a city school with grades 6-12, can take the exam on Nov. 16 or Nov. 17, while all ninth grade students can take the test on Dec. 6 or Dec. 7. For both sets of students, the exams will be offered at a central location listed on their test ticket, according to the Education Department’s website.

Students who wish to take this year’s exam must register by Oct. 18.

Michael Elsen-Rooney contributed.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC preschool workers get pay increase, $18 minimum wage under new agreement

2024-10-16T22:05:48+00:00

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Early childhood workers across New York City will see their wages rise under a tentative agreement reached Wednesday between the city and organizations representing preschool employees and providers.

The agreement comes after an extended push for higher wages in the city’s early childhood system, which has at times struggled to retain staffers amid persistent pay disparities between teachers who work in community-run preschools and those in public school classrooms.

Though community-based organizations operate preschools that enroll the bulk of students in the city’s free, universal pre-K program for 4-year-olds and its program for 3-year-olds, teachers and support staff employed at these centers often earn less than their Education Department counterparts. In recent years, City Council leaders and early childhood advocates have called on Mayor Eric Adams to establish higher pay for workers in community-run programs.

The city negotiated the contract with DC 37, which represents thousands of early childhood workers, and the Day Care Council of New York, which represents providers.

The tentative agreement provides compounded wage increases of 16.21% over five years, with retroactive annual increases of 3% dating back to October 2022, according to City Hall officials. It also sets a minimum wage of $18 per hour and provides a $2,000 ratification bonus to early childhood workers.

Child care workers in community programs often work 12 months a year and for longer days than their public school counterparts. Under the agreement, child care workers in Extended Day and Year Programs will also see additional payments each summer, and longevity-based payments are set to resume, according to city officials.

Tara Gardner, executive director of the Day Care Council, called the contract “a step forward on the path to parity.”

“The reinstatement of longevity increases, the introduction of a summer differential for teachers and staff in 12-month Extended Day and Extended Year programs, and the funding of overdue base salary adjustments are critical steps in acknowledging the importance and impact of this workforce,” she said in a statement. “We look forward to ongoing collaboration with Mayor Adams and our partners in organized labor to strengthen the early childhood system and ensure that this workforce receives the recognition, compensation, and benefits they have long deserved.”

The city previously boosted teacher pay in community-based programs in 2019, though that agreement didn’t secure pay for teachers according to their years of experience. That meant that over a 25 year career, a child care teacher could lose out on roughly $700,000 by remaining at a community-based provider instead of moving to a public school with longevity bonuses, according to a report from the 5BORO Institute, which was compiled prior to the contract agreement.

In a statement, schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos called early childhood workers “a cornerstone of our school system.”

“The foundational work that they do sets the tone for our youngest children to develop a lifelong love of learning,” she said. “These are the bright starts that give way to bold futures, and we are pleased to see DC37 and DCCNY reach a fairer agreement for all.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC middle school admissions period delayed amid issues with MySchools platform, officials say

2024-10-09T21:21:06+00:00

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New York City middle school applications will open about a week later than anticipated, after technical issues with the city’s MySchools portal forced officials to push back the start date.

Thousands of fifth grade families were likely furiously checking their MySchools accounts on Wednesday afternoon, when applications were slated to open, only to be greeted by a message from the Education Department saying they were making updates to the platform and to check back soon. Eventually, officials updated the Education Department’s website and contacted applicants to announce that the admissions period will instead kick off next week.

Officials are expected to provide more details on the new timeline on Oct. 15, according to the Education Department’s website.

In a statement, Jenna Lyle, an Education Department spokesperson, said the “application close date will be adjusted accordingly.”

“Unfortunately, due to technical difficulties impacting the MySchools website, the opening of the Middle School Application Portal will be delayed until next week,” she said. “Families are reminded that applications are not first come, first served, and can be submitted at any time during the application window. Notifications have been sent to all prospective applicants via email, and we apologize to our families for the inconvenience.”

Education Department officials did not comment on what caused the technical difficulties.

The delay comes as this year’s batch of fifth graders will be able to apply widely to middle schools across the city for the first time, instead of largely being limited to their home zone or district. It also means families applying to middle school will likely have to wait another week before learning their randomly assigned number.

Often referred to as a “lottery” number, the string of 32 numbers and letters is used as a tiebreaker when there are more applicants in a particular priority group than seats available at a school. Families were expected to be able to view their random numbers after starting their applications in MySchools.

Many middle schools admit students based on their randomly assigned number, using it to allocate seats for students within similar priority groups, such as those who live within a specific zone or district.

Others, meanwhile, rank students based on specific criteria, like those that use auditions or academic screens. Academic screens were initially paused during the pandemic, then brought back in some districts at the discretion of each of the city’s 32 local school district superintendents.

The city kicked off its notoriously complex high school admissions process last week without a hitch. But in the past, the Education Department has experienced major technical difficulties, including a meltdown in February that shut students out of virtual classes during a remote snow day.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC schools Chancellor David Banks will retire months earlier than expected. He blames Mayor Adams.

2024-10-03T01:45:21+00:00

Chancellor David Banks will leave his position running the nation’s largest school system in two weeks – several months earlier than originally planned, city officials announced Wednesday night.

The change in plans means Melissa Aviles-Ramos will take over as New York City’s schools chief on Oct. 16 instead of Dec. 31.

In a stunning move Thursday morning, Banks blamed Mayor Eric Adams, his longtime friend, for moving up the date.

“Last week, I announced my planned retirement, and I was ready, willing and able to stay in my post until December 31st to conduct a responsible transition for our staff,” Banks said in a statement issued by a public relations firm, rather than the city Education Department. “The Mayor has decided to accelerate that timeline.”

In remarks to reporters Thursday morning, Adams said that having Banks and Aviles-Ramos overlap wasn’t bringing the “stability we wanted.”

Having her start closer to the beginning of the school year rather than the middle is a “good look” that will allow her to more quickly start implementing her plans, he added.

“One message, one leader there, and allowing her to get the job done correctly,” he said.

Those sentiments directly contradict the message that officials delivered just a week ago in a celebratory press conference announcing Aviles-Ramos’ appointment.

“This is the most responsible way that you can do this,” Banks said then of the plan to overlap with Aviles-Ramos for three months.

Despite Adams’ statement that Aviles-Ramos should get to work as soon as possible executing her vision, the incoming chancellor has made clear that her primary goal is continuing the work that Banks already started.

“My North Star is their North Star,” she told Chalkbeat, referring to Banks’ and Adams’ education priorities. “I share their vision … That’s why I agreed to be chancellor.”

The remarkable back-and-forth between Banks and Adams and the changing succession plans are the latest unprecedented developments involving city and education department leadership. They come as Adams faces federal charges of wire fraud, bribery, and receiving contributions from foreign nationals that he knew to be illegal. Adams has pleaded not guilty.

Banks and with his wife First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright have become tied up in the federal inquiries looming over City Hall. Both Banks and Wright had their phones seized by federal agents in September, just one day before the school year started, as part of a probe into Adams’ inner circle. Banks and Wright haven’t been accused of wrongdoing.

Just three weeks later, Banks announced his retirement effective Dec. 31, saying he was tired and “out of gas.” Adams tapped Aviles-Ramos as the schools chancellor the following day, just hours before news broke that he was indicted on federal corruption charges.

News of the expedited timetable for Banks’ departure comes amid reports that Gov. Kathy Hochul, who has the authority to remove the mayor from office, called on Adams to remove city officials who have been under investigation. Earlier this week, senior advisor Tim Pearson announced he is stepping down.

Asked if he had spoken to Hochul about removing Banks earlier, Adams told reporters he doesn’t reveal private conversations.

Though Hochul has not publicly called on Adams to resign, a growing number of local and state officials have done so — arguing Adams is incapable of leading the city while battling the federal charges. Adams, who is the first mayor to face federal charges while in office, has fiercely resisted those calls.

Adams also recently issued an executive order that would make it easier for Wright to step down from her role as first deputy mayor, fueling speculation she is also headed for the door, The New York Daily News reported.

Banks and Wright got married in a Martha’s Vineyard celebration last weekend.

The change in leadership comes at a critical time for many of the Adams administration’s signature education policies, with the rollout of multiple curriculum overhauls still underway.

Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org .

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

All NYC school buildings will have new door-locking systems by year’s end. Parents are conflicted.

2024-10-02T18:22:07+00:00

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A $92-million plan to equip all 1,600 New York City schools with cameras, intercoms, and buzzers so they can lock the front doors is more than halfway complete, with officials expecting the safety measures to be finished by June.

Chancellor David Banks has said that the Education Department’s Safer Access door-locking plan is an attempt to “harden” campuses, citing a need to control entry to buildings following violence near city schools as well as school shootings like the 2022 tragedy in Uvalde, Texas.

“We will have every school in New York City completed by the end of this school year,” Banks said at a recent town hall. “It’s a Herculean task, but what that is meant to do is to prevent intruders from getting into our schools, and it’s another layer of safety.”

The issue came up in the vice presidential debate on Tuesday night, when U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, the Republican running mate of former President Donald Trump, said that locking school doors and windows was among the most realistic solutions to gun violence. Tim Walz, the Minnesota governor and Democratic running mate of Vice President Kamala Harris, Walz, called for red flag laws and better background checks.

New York City school leaders, though, are facing mixed reactions about the safety measures. Some local parents support the nationwide trend toward locking or monitoring building access, including those at P.S. 28, a Queens school where an emotionally disturbed person entered the building in 2022 and was wrestled to the ground by the school’s jiu jitsu-trained principal.

But others are skeptical of this method’s effectiveness. A locked front door wouldn’t have prevented the recent school shooting in Georgia, where a 14-year-old student enrolled at the school allegedly shot and killed two students and two teachers, injuring another nine. And some parents question whether the need for safety is strong enough to justify the unwelcome atmosphere of a locked front school door.

“I don’t feel like it should be shut up like prison gates,” said Curtis France, the father of two children at Brooklyn’s P.S. 235, which has not yet been outfitted with the new system. “I don’t feel any more safe with the doors closed.”

Hank Sheinkopf, a spokesperson for Teamsters Local 237, the union representing school safety agents, expressed some doubt that the door-locking project would substantially improve safety.

“We have not been advised of the specifics but maintain that there are no substitutes for more school safety agents and more screening,” he wrote in a statement.

Most elementary schools have the new intercom systems

The city has focused on elementary schools in its first round of upgrades, installing the new system in 78% of them already, officials said.

Installing the tech upgrades got off to a bumpy start last spring, with malfunctioning locks, camera problems, and communications systems snafus, according to the New York Post. The city initially awarded a $43 million contract to Symbrant Technologies, Inc. last year, before the Education Department replaced the company with NTT DATA.

The capital cost of the program increased to at least $92 million from $78 million because additional buildings needed upgrades to accommodate the system or extra functionalities, Education Department officials said.

Schools that have gotten the upgrades don’t look much different from those that haven’t, except for signs instructing visitors which door to use and pointing them to a buzzer on the wall. Some signage instructs visitors to look into the camera on the buzzer panel and identify themselves. Inside, school safety agents monitor the camera and are supposed to determine whether the visitor has a legitimate reason to be there before buzzing them in.

A reporter was able to walk into two different Brooklyn school buildings that had already been outfitted with intercoms without ringing the buzzer. At one campus, the intercom worked, and the school safety agent was able to hear and see people who approached the building, but the front door was unlocked. The school safety agent at the front desk said she had not yet been instructed to lock the door.

Officials said schools can’t opt out of the program. Once the equipment is fully functioning, the main door should be locked as outlined in Education Department protocols.

School communities see the good and bad

At New Bridges Elementary in Brooklyn, Principal Kevyn Bowles said he was glad the city installed a door-locking system on his campus two summers ago. His school is off the busy thoroughfare of Eastern Parkway, and there have been a handful of incidents over the past decade where people facing mental illness or homelessness wandered into the building and had to be escorted out by the school safety agent.

That would not happen with the new system, he believes.

“That person would be stopped at the door, and [the safety agent would] actually be able to give them the direction that they couldn’t come in,” Bowles said. And in the event that an outsider tried to get in to commit harm, “this would at least create a moment of pause where that person is asked to identify themselves before they get buzzed.”

Bowles acknowledged that the system is not airtight, since it’s turned off during arrival and dismissal. And he noted that the safety agent has to manage a lot of parents buzzing in during pickup from the afterschool program, as the door is locked again after the regular school day ends. But he said there haven’t been any significant hiccups or pushback from parents.

“It has just become part of the normal procedure,” he said.

Rosa Diaz, a parent leader in Manhattan’s East Harlem, felt the door-locking systems left a “sweet” and “sour” taste. The buzzer systems could have helped in instances she has seen, she said. One time, for example, she saw a parent entering her youngest child’s school with a knife due to a conflict with a parent on the PTA. The school safety agent intervened, and no one was hurt, she said.

But she worries the locked doors will be unfriendly to families, especially in her neighborhood, where there are many asylum-seeking and undocumented families.

“There is a relief that, god forbid, someone who wants to come in and do harm won’t do so,” Diaz said of the system. “But then there are parents that want to come in and will not feel welcomed, not feel invited.”

Banks has said the intention of the door-locking system isn’t to make parents feel excluded.

“It’s not meant to keep parents out,” he said recently. “It is designed to ensure that no one is in the building who is not supposed to be in the building. And that’s the number one thing that parents care about, is the safety of their child.”

Robert Murtfeld, a parent at the Neighborhood School in Manhattan, said some parents at his children’s East Village school felt that the locked door disrupted community spirit. But he took a more neutral stance, seeing both sides.

Murtfeld, who has pushed for the city to reduce active shooter drills, hoped that the door-locking systems mean there’s even less need for multiple lockdown drills in a year.

He gained a new perspective after spending nearly every day in the school for nearly three weeks cleaning out the PTA room.

“[I] saw how the school runs all day, at lunchtime, at recess, and not just at dropoff and pickup,” he said. “So that was when I realized that it is quite deserted at certain hours, and if anybody can walk into a deserted place, maybe it’s not a bad idea to have these things.”

Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy at azimmer@chalkbeat.org.

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

Middle and high school admissions season is here. What does your ‘lottery’ number mean?

2024-10-01T18:48:23+00:00

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Please note the 2025 deadlines are different from the ones stated in this article. For families applying to high school in 2025, the application deadline is Dec. 3. And middle school applications will be open from Oct. 15 to Dec. 12.

As New York City’s notoriously complex high school admissions process officially gets underway on Tuesday, many families are refreshing their MySchools accounts to find their kids’ randomly assigned number, often called a “lottery” number. Families applying to middle school will be in the same situation on Oct. 9.

Many hope that having a “good” number will improve their students’ odds of getting into sought-after schools, but what do these numbers really mean?

The string of 32 numbers and letters is one component of the admissions process, but it can be difficult for parents to decode and often causes a huge amount of stress for families. Applicants will be able to view their random numbers, which were expected to be available on Tuesday, in their MySchools account after starting their application.

High school applications are due by Dec. 4, while middle school applications are due Dec. 13.

For high school, the process of narrowing the city’s more than 700 programs across over 400 schools can be especially daunting for the tens of thousands of eighth grade students applying each year. Many families often rely on their child’s lottery number to help them focus their search, trying to use it to gauge their odds at different programs. This year, for the first time, families applying to high school will also have access to a new tool in MySchools that gauges an applicant’s chances of admission to a particular program based on a student’s random number as well as their home borough, their course grades, and more.

Also new this year: High school applicants can apply to more than 12 schools — a change aimed at adding extra flexibility to the process, though some parents worry that it could inject further stress into an already taxing experience.

And for the first time, middle school applicants can apply to schools across the city instead of largely being limited to their home district. Applicants will continue to have priority at middle schools within their local zone and district, according to city officials.

Elissa Stein, an admissions consultant who runs the service High School 411, praised the city for working to make the admissions process more transparent in recent years. But she wished the city’s Education Department would make information available even earlier to parents, noting that many begin touring and researching schools well before October.

“Seeing a school and saying, ‘Oh my gosh, I love this so much,’ and then finding out that you really don’t have a chance of getting in is an extra heartbreak that could have been prevented,” she said. “So I think that having grades available, the screen groups available, the random lottery numbers available early would be really beneficial to families.”

Here’s how the random number factors into admissions and how to understand what your number means.

How do I read my random number?

There are 32 numbers and letters in each random number, and the first digit or two can help you broadly interpret them. You can read your random number from left to right, with priority moving from 0-9 and then from A-F.

A random number beginning with 0 means an applicant will have a relatively high priority when decisions are made based on the number, while the opposite is true for an applicant whose random number starts with an F.

How does the random number impact admissions?

The random number is used as a tiebreaker when there are more applicants in a particular priority group than seats available at a school.

Schools across the city take different approaches to evaluating applicants. Selective schools sort applicants into four different priority groups based on their seventh grade GPAs in core subjects (with seats doled out separately for general education students and for students with disabilities), while other schools might primarily admit students based on their random number.

And eight of the city’s specialized high schools that require a test for admission, including Stuyvesant and Bronx Science, along with LaGuardia High School of Music & Art Performing Arts, are separate from the rest of the admissions process.

At schools with open or educational option admissions, which primarily consider an applicant’s random number for admissions, the numbers can play an especially large role in determining admissions. Educational option programs set aside seats for students at different academic levels to promote academic diversity.

At screened schools that consider grades, and at those that require admissions essays or auditions, the random number only impacts admissions decisions between students who otherwise have equal priority.

In other words, at selective schools, a student with a lower priority random number could still receive a seat before another applicant, provided the student was in a higher priority group based on their grades or other admissions criteria.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC middle and high school admissions are changing. Here’s what families should know.

2024-09-27T19:15:07+00:00

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As New York City’s parents of fifth and eighth graders gear up for middle and high school admissions season, they can expect a few tweaks to the process — though some wonder how much impact the changes will have.

Among the changes city officials announced on Friday, high school applicants will, for the first time, be able to list as many schools as they want for their rankings. These applicants will also have access to a new tool in MySchools that will gauge a high school applicant’s chances of admission to a particular program.

And middle school applicants will be able to apply to any school across the city for the first time.

For high school, the monthslong admissions process — which opens on Oct. 1 — can be taxing for the tens of thousands of eighth grade students considering more than 700 programs at over 400 schools. Schools across the city employ different methods to determine admissions, further complicating the process.

Middle school applications open Oct. 9, with some variations in the process across different programs and districts.

Applications for high school are due Dec. 4. For middle school, they’re due Dec. 13.

Here’s what you should know about this year’s changes:

Middle school applicants can apply to schools outside their district

Previously, fifth grade applicants were largely limited to middle schools within their district, with only a subset of schools accepting boroughwide or citywide applicants.

That said, applicants will continue to have priority at middle schools within their home zone and district, according to city officials.

Though the change is unlikely to affect high-demand middle schools, which will continue to fill up with local applicants, it could still cause meaningful shifts in enrollment, as some students could opt to leave their district for empty seats in schools elsewhere.

City officials noted that about half of the 1,120 respondents to a 2023 middle school admissions survey would have applied to schools outside their district if the option had been available.

Potential enrollment shifts could pose high stakes for districts that already suffer from low enrollment, like District 16 in Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood, which filled just 885 of its nearly 2,300 middle school seats last school year — leaving roughly 1,400 unfilled — according to district data.

There are also variations in how middle schools admit students across different programs and districts. Many middle schools admit students based on their randomly assigned number, or “lottery number” — using it as a tiebreaker for students within a similar priority group, like those who live in a specific zone or district.

Some middle schools rank students based on specific factors, like those that use auditions or academic screens. Academic screens were initially paused during the pandemic, then brought back in some districts at the discretion of each of the city’s 32 local school district superintendents.

High school applicants can apply to more than 12 schools

Allowing eighth graders to apply to more than 12 schools could introduce even further flexibility to families considering the city’s vast array of high school programs, though some worry it will serve to make an already stressful process even more daunting.

The removal of the 12-school cap is unlikely to cause a major shakeup in the admissions process. Many families already struggle to find 12 choices to list in their applications, and the vast majority of applicants are admitted to one of their top choices.

During the last high school admissions cycle, roughly 77% of applicants received one of their top three choices, according to city data. In total, about 96% were matched to one of the schools they listed — leaving just over 3,000 of the nearly 71,000 applicants without an offer to a school to which they applied.

In recent years, approximately 38% of high school applicants listed a full 12 programs on their high school applications, according to the city’s Education Department.

The change might help some families automatically get spots on more waitlists at high-demand schools, said Elissa Stein, who runs High School 411, an admissions consulting service. But she added it could spur further confusion and stress among families — and isn’t likely to make a significant impact on the admissions process itself.

“It almost opens up the floodgates to more confusion, because it can be challenging to find 12 schools to put on your application,” she said. “To say, ‘Well, now the sky’s the limit,’ can add a level of confusion and pressure to need to find more.”

Officials emphasized the change is intended to offer families more flexibility, and they aren’t required to take advantage of it.

Alexandra Lange, a Brooklyn mom whose eighth grade son will be applying for high schools this year, said she doesn’t expect the change to impact her son’s application.

“I already think that 12 is more than enough,” she said. “It’s really hard for me to imagine what parents are asking for this change, because it feels like more work and more pressure, rather than paring back the process.”

Researching potential high schools for the application can be a time-consuming process, Lange said. For her family, it meant reading up on programs, taking tours, testing commutes, speaking with other parents about their experiences at different schools, and more.

Lange added she’s been dreading this admissions cycle, as it overlaps with her 12th grade son applying to colleges.

“There’s all this talk in the news now about how stressed kids are and how stressed parents are, and I just don’t understand why the application processes for both high school and college — and in New York, we also have a middle school application process — are just making more and more work for all those stressed people?” she said. “I don’t understand what parent or kid wants this.”

High school applicants have a new tool indicating their odds at particular schools

A new tool in MySchools that accounts for variables like a student’s home district or borough, their grades, their priority group, and more, aims to help families better understand their chances at particular schools.

The tool — developed in partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Blueprint Labs — will tell families whether they have a high, medium, or low chance of admission. A high chance means students have a 99% chance of receiving an offer, while a low chance corresponds to about a 1% chance, according to Education Department officials.

About 50% of students with a medium chance of admission are expected to receive an offer, officials added.

In general, the high school admissions process is not for the faint of heart. Evaluating the city’s many options can add significant stress to families, and the process has faced criticism for being inequitable — with families who have more time and resources to devote to the process having an upper hand.

There are selective schools that sort applicants into four different priority groups based on their seventh grade GPAs in core subjects, using a student’s randomly assigned number, or “lottery number,” as a tiebreaker. Other schools that use open or educational option admissions primarily consider an applicant’s random number for admissions, though some take into account additional criteria to create priority groups. (Educational option programs set aside seats for students at different academic levels to promote academic diversity.)

Some schools also require admissions essays or auditions, while others participate in a diversity initiative, setting aside a certain number of seats for students who are low-income, English language learners, or live in temporary housing. And eight of the city’s specialized high schools that require a test for admission, including Stuyvesant and Bronx Science, are separate from the rest of the admissions process.

Are you applying to high school this year? We want to hear from you.

If you are a NYC parent whose child is applying to high school this year, Chalkbeat wants to hear from you.

We’re interested in hearing about any concerns you may have as you embark on this process, and what kind of information would be helpful for your family in making decisions.

Please fill out the form below to let us know what’s on your mind as this year’s admissions season approaches.

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Michael Elsen-Rooney contributed.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Mayor Eric Adams faces federal indictment hours after naming new schools chancellor

2024-09-26T02:50:36+00:00

A federal grand jury has indicted Mayor Eric Adams, according to the New York Times, a destabilizing blow to the city just hours after he named its next schools chief.

The charges against Adams were unclear since the indictment was sealed, the Times reported. He is expected to surrender to authorities early next week, sources told the New York Post.

Adams’ indictment is both symbolically and practically significant for the nation’s largest school system. Under mayoral control — a governance model that Albany lawmakers extended twice under Adams’ watch — the city’s chief executive is responsible for overseeing its 1,600 schools, along with picking the schools chancellor.

Adams, the first New York City mayor to be charged while in office, can continue to serve as mayor even while facing charges. But he’s faced mounting pressure from local and state officials to step down, and news of the indictment was likely to fuel further critics.

“I always knew that if I stood my ground for New Yorkers that I would be a target — and a target I became,” Adams said in a statement Wednesday night to multiple news outlets. “If I am charged, I am innocent and I will fight this with every ounce of my strength and spirit.”

Wednesday night’s news raises questions about the leadership of the city as well as its schools. Schools Chancellor David Banks – whose phones were seized three weeks ago along with those of other top officials – announced Tuesday he plans to retire at the end of the calendar year.

It’s also unclear if the fallout from an indictment could impact Adams’ plan to have Melissa Aviles-Ramos replace Banks after his Dec. 31 retirement.

“It has the potential to really paralyze the DOE and really prevent it from doing anything novel and anything other than limping along,” Aaron Pallas, a professor at Columbia University’s Teachers College and longtime observer of the city’s school system, said of the indictment. “Many people feel like limping along is certainly not good enough.”

Even before news of the indictment began to spread on Wednesday evening, a growing chorus of elected officials had begun calling for the mayor’s resignation — most notably Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

If Adams were to resign or be forced out of office, decisions about the school system — including whether to move forward with Aviles-Ramos’ appointment — would fall to Jumaane Williams, the city’s public advocate. Williams’ office did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday about how he would approach managing the Education Department.

Just hours before word of the indictment broke, Adams joined Banks for a celebratory press conference where they formally announced Aviles-Ramos’ new role. She voiced her full-throated support for the mayor. “I want you to see me as a symbol of stability,” she said.

Multiple federal investigations have touched Adams’ inner circle, and several top officials have stepped down or announced plans to leave in recent weeks, including the city’s police commissioner and health commissioner. The Times reported that the investigation leading to the indictment probed whether the mayor, who received foreign donations to his campaign, expedited approval of a new high-rise Turkey consulate, despite safety concerns.

As news of the indictment spread Wednesday night, new calls emerged for Adams to resign — including from City Comptroller Brad Lander, state Senator Zellnor Myrie, and former Comptroller Scott Stringer, all of whom are running against Adams.

State Sen. John Liu, a Queens Democrat who chairs the Senate’s New York City education committee, acknowledged Adams was “entitled to his due process” but also called for his exit.

“The people of New York City, however, need a mayor who is able to devote full time and full energy to putting the city on the right track, including recruitment and retention of top leadership for the City,” Liu said in a statement. “Mayor Adams is simply unable to do that for the foreseeable future and therefore, for the good of all New Yorkers, must resign immediately.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org.

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy at azimmer@chalkbeat.org.

Melissa Aviles-Ramos, NYC’s next schools chancellor, says she’ll have Mayor Adams’ back

2024-09-25T21:31:48+00:00

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One day after schools Chancellor David Banks abruptly announced that he will retire at the end of the year, he and Mayor Eric Adams tried to project an air of calm as they formally introduced the woman who will lead the Education Department.

Melissa Aviles-Ramos, the highest-ranking Latina in the public school system, has been instrumental in her work with migrant students, Adams said, even as he celebrated Banks’ nearly 40-year career in the city’s schools. Both men emphasized that Banks’ impending departure — the latest in a series of high-profile resignations at City Hall — had nothing to do with multiple federal investigations into Adams’ inner circle.

“I want you to see me as a symbol of stability,” said Aviles-Ramos, who was quick to cement herself as an ally to Adams as he faces growing pressure from some local and state officials to step down.

“Mayor Adams is New York City,” she said at a press conference. “Before, you would look at mayors and you would see someone cold and inaccessible and on the news. You see Mayor Adams everywhere.”

Adams and Banks publicly announced the succession plan at the Bronx School for Law, Government and Justice, where Banks was founding principal in 1997. They emphasized that the chancellor’s Dec. 31 retirement plans — and their choice to tap Aviles-Ramos — predated the current swirl of federal investigations.

Aviles-Ramos, who was born and raised in the Bronx, started in the system as a high school English teacher in 2007 and then rose to being a principal, acting superintendent, and Banks’ chief of staff. She was responsible for overseeing the Education Department’s effort two years ago to help the thousands of migrant students coming into the school system.

She left the department in February to work at a college only to return this summer to assume a role as deputy chancellor for family and community engagement and external affairs.

Aviles-Ramos’ return was part of a handoff plan that had long been in the works, Banks and Adams said. The mayor tied conversations about Banks’ retirement to January, while Banks said those conversations “intensified” in the early months of the summer.

Though running the nation’s largest school system is considered one of the most prestigious — and difficult — education jobs in the country, multiple observers said it would be next to impossible to attract a talented leader outside the city. The next schools chief may only be in the role for a year if Adams does not win re-election — or less if he is forced to resign.

“It’s hard to imagine who would want to work under Eric Adams right now given the cloud and chaos surrounding his mayoral administration,” said Aaron Pallas, a professor at Columbia University’s Teachers College and longtime observer of the city’s school system.

Asked about his decision to step down in the middle of the school year, Banks said remaining in his role until June was “a romantic notion.”

“But the reality is that, after 40 years, when you recognize that it’s time, you feel that,” he said.

Banks departs at a pivotal time for some of his key initiatives — including a literacy curriculum overhaul — but he said Wednesday that he will leave in December with “no regrets.”

“I gave it everything that I had,” he said. “I poured it all out.”

Deputy Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos and Chancellor David Banks at Bronx School for Law, Government and Justice on Wednesday, September 25, 2024.

Aviles-Ramos has fans among Bronx educators

During the press conference, city officials portrayed Aviles-Ramos as a talented manager who impressed City Hall by coordinating across multiple agencies to support migrant students as part of Project Open Arms. Banks described her as hard-working and single-minded but also called her “side-cracking funny.”

Aviles-Ramos has also won fierce loyalty from some principals she worked with, both as a colleague and a superintendent overseeing Bronx high schools.

“She’s the kind of person you would follow into the gates of hell and back,” said Ron Link, principal of the Theatre Arts Production Company School in the Bronx, who got to know Aviles-Ramos when she oversaw his school as a deputy and acting superintendent.

Other education leaders who have worked with Aviles-Ramos pointed to her experience up and down the Education Department’s organizational chart.

“She is one of these people that is able to take the experiences she’s had as a teacher, as a principal, as a superintendent, and speak with authority on what those roles entail and the challenges that folks in those roles face — but can think at a big systems level,” said Mark Dunetz, president of New Visions for Public Schools, an organization that supports a network of city schools.

As she addressed the crowd on Wednesday, Aviles-Ramos leaned heavily on her Bronx roots. She noted her family had struggled with the city’s schools in the 1980′s.

“The Bronx was a forgotten place,” she said. “Public schools did not work out so well for my two siblings. … They had to fend for themselves and find their way after school.”

As a result of that experience, Aviles-Ramos said her mom, a single parent, worked hard cooking and cleaning in order to pay tuition at a Catholic school. But Aviles-Ramos said that if families leave the system, it shouldn’t be because they don’t have good public options.

“We shouldn’t have to move to different districts,” she said.

John Powers, who retired as principal of Herbert Lehman High School in 2023, got to know Aviles-Ramos well when she took over in 2016 as principal of Schuylerville Preparatory High School, a small school in the same building.

The school was in rough shape when she came in, and just 26% of students graduated within four years the year she started, city officials said Wednesday. Aviles-Ramos helped push that number to 67% the next year, according to city data.

“She’s the real deal,” Powers said. “She actually knows instruction.”

Hard road ahead for transition to chancellor job

Powers said he expects Aviles-Ramos, whom he described as a “very thoughtful planner,” to make good use of the coming months to map out a smoother transition.

He said he thinks she will focus on supporting teachers, a key task as educators adapt to sweeping curriculum mandates.

Some caregivers said they were glad the next chancellor already has relationships with parent leaders, as Aviles-Ramos served for the past three months as the deputy chancellor overseeing family and community engagement.

Though some education leaders treat soliciting input from parents as a box-checking exercise, “it’s definitely going to go beyond [that] with her,” said Shirley Aubin, the co-chair of the Chancellor’s Parent Advisory Council. “She respects and appreciates the parents and families and community voice.”

Still, steering the city’s school system, a vast bureaucracy with roughly 130,000 staffers and 900,000 students, is a tall order under normal circumstances. The situation Aviles-Ramos is stepping into is hardly normal. Her predecessor is leaving amid several federal investigations of the mayor’s administration, which could cut short the mayoralty of Adams, leaving the length of Aviles-Ramos’ tenure uncertain.

Aviles-Ramos will face a range of thorny policy questions on class sizes, cell phone bans, and other issues that will likely require buy-in from the Adams administration, which will be harder if officials are preoccupied with the investigations, said one Education Department official who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

“I think the bigger question is … how do you make sure the distractions don’t stop work from happening,” the official said.

Other leaders had more experience than Aviles-Ramos at the highest levels of the Education Department, the official said. That includes Deputy Chancellor Danika Rux, who oversees the city’s 45 district superintendents and recently took responsibility for Banks’ key literacy and math initiatives.

Aviles-Ramos is also in the unusual position of having been named chancellor months before she is expected to assume the role.

“This is the most responsible way that you can do this,” Banks said. “It doesn’t usually happen this way.”

Banks said Aviles-Ramos would be joining him at “all of the chancellor’s meetings” over the remainder of his tenure.

And Aviles-Ramos told Adams she was committed to continuing the mayor’s education initiatives.

“I have your back,” she told the audience. “We are going to get stuff done.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org.

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy at azimmer@chalkbeat.org.

Melissa Aviles-Ramos expected to take over as NYC schools chancellor, sources say

2024-09-25T03:00:51+00:00

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Melissa Aviles-Ramos, who helmed New York City’s efforts to incorporate thousands of migrant students into city schools, will take over as schools chancellor following the departure of David Banks, according to sources familiar with the situation.

Mayor Eric Adams was expected to announce Aviles-Ramos’ appointment Wednesday afternoon in the Bronx.

The succession plan follows Tuesday’s stunning news that Banks – a longtime friend of Adams who has served as schools chief since Adams took office in 2022 – was stepping down amid widening federal investigations into the Adams administration.

Banks will leave his post on Dec. 31, he said in a letter Tuesday. The announcement came three weeks after federal agents seized Banks’ phones, along with those of his partner, First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright, and his brothers, Deputy Mayor of Public Safety Phil Banks, and Terence Banks, a consultant and former MTA staffer.

Banks was the latest in a string of high-ranking city officials to announce their resignations in recent weeks, throwing the Adams administration into chaos. The quick naming of a successor to lead the Education Department is likely an effort to inject some stability into the operations of the largest city agency, which oversees 1,600 schools and more than 900,000 students.

Aviles-Ramos, who currently serves as a deputy chancellor overseeing family engagement, took on the high-profile task of steering the Education Department’s efforts to incorporate the wave of migrant students who began arriving in Summer 2022 – an initiative the city dubbed Project Open Arms.

Adams has cited that effort as a major success of his administration.

“When you do an analysis of the last two years, we incorporated over 40,000 students,” Adams said at a recent press conference. “It’s clear the Project Open Arms … has really met the mark.”

Aviles-Ramos began working in the city Education Department in 2007 as a teacher, according to her LinkedIn profile, later serving as a principal, acting superintendent, and Banks’ chief of staff.

She left the city Education Department in February to take a job as a college administrator, only to come back several months later in the new role as deputy chancellor for family and community engagement and external affairs. She replaced longtime Banks ally Kenita Lloyd, who took Aviles-Ramos’ old job as chief of staff.

Adams is expected to announce Aviles-Ramos’ appointment on Wednesday at the Bronx School for Law, Government and Justice — a school Banks helped launch as its founding principal in 1997.

Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

NYC schools Chancellor David Banks announces he’s retiring amid federal investigations

2024-09-24T20:46:30+00:00

Less than three years after taking the helm of New York City’s school system, Chancellor David Banks is planning to retire at the end of the year amid widening probes of City Hall.

Banks’ stunning Tuesday announcement comes nearly three weeks after federal agents visited his home the day before school started and seized his phones as part of a broader investigation into members of Mayor Eric Adams’ inner circle. Investigators also confiscated phones from Banks’ partner, First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright, and his two brothers, Phil Banks, deputy mayor for public safety, and Terence Banks, a consultant and former MTA staffer.

Investigators are reportedly looking into clients of Terence Banks’ consulting firm who sought contracts with the city.

The announcement from the 62-year-old schools chief concludes a 40-year career in the city’s public schools that stretched from being a school safety agent to helping launch a network of public schools geared toward boys of color. Tapped by Adams, who said he never seriously considered other candidates to helm the nation’s largest school district, Banks promised sweeping change to a system he described as “fundamentally flawed.”

In his time in office, though, Banks focused narrowly on two goals: overhauling reading instruction and exposing students to career options before graduating high school.

In a Tuesday letter informing Adams of his plan to retire, Banks said he would do “everything possible to ensure a smooth transition.”

“Serving as Chancellor has been a profound honor and a deeply fulfilling experience,” he said. “I am confident that NYC Public Schools will continue to grow, innovate and excel under the next Chancellor.”

Banks did not acknowledge the federal investigations in his letter, and he said his intent to retire by Dec. 31 predated the start of the school year.

“On behalf of all New Yorkers, we thank Chancellor Banks for his service, and wish him well in his retirement at the end of the calendar year,” Adams said in a statement Tuesday.

Melissa Aviles-Ramos, who currently serves as a deputy chancellor overseeing family engagement, is expected to take the helm of the nation’s largest school district, according to sources familiar with the appointment. She previously steered the Education Department’s efforts to incorporate the wave of migrant students who began arriving two years ago, in an initiative the city dubbed Project Open Arms.

Adams is expected to announce her new role on Wednesday in the Bronx.

Banks’ announcement comes on the heels of a series of resignations of high-profile figures in the Adams administration, including former Police Commissioner Edward Caban, who stepped down earlier this month, and Health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan, who plans to resign at the end of the year.

As members of his administration have left City Hall, Adams has faced pressure from some local and state officials to step down. Critics were quick to use the school chancellor’s announcement as further fuel for those calls.

Banks’ tenure has been filled with a host of challenges: prioritizing what programs to save amid fiscal pressures of evaporating federal COVID stimulus funding, figuring out how to meet the needs of thousands of migrant children, and responding to the ways in which ChatGPT and other AI technology are remaking the learning experience.

For much of last school year, the Israel-Hamas war has fueled tensions between students, teachers, and parents, thrusting Banks into the spotlight when he testified before Congress in May, defending the city’s record on responding to antisemitism.

In response to questions about the federal investigations, Banks told reporters two weeks ago he is someone “who lives his life with integrity.”

Several days later, he said there’s a “genuine fondness across the system” for his leadership. But roughly 32% of teachers surveyed this year said they were dissatisfied with the chancellor, the highest rate in five years and nearly double the figure in 2019, when former Chancellor Richard Carranza was at the helm.

Ties between Banks and Adams go deep

Banks has repeatedly touted his longstanding relationship with Adams, and their professional and personal lives are intertwined. In addition to Banks’ brother and partner holding key roles in the Adams administration, Adams’ girlfriend, Tracey Collins, and his sister-in-law, Sharon Adams, both work in the city Education Department.

Schools Chancellor David Banks (left) with Mayor Eric Adams at an East Village school on April 19, 2024.

Stepping into the chancellor role could prove challenging for Aviles-Ramos, as federal investigations continue to swirl, and there is no guarantee she will have enough time in office to put her own stamp on the system.

“One of the challenges of mayoral control is you’re basically hitching yourself to a mayor who may not be there that long,” said Aaron Pallas, a professor at Columbia University’s Teachers College and longtime observer of the city’s school system.

The next chancellor also inherits a system that is still reeling from the pandemic — from student learning loss to deep mental health challenges — but with fewer resources to respond. Banks’ successor also may have limited room to pursue their own policy goals. The Education Department is in the midst of implementing a state class size mandate that will require negotiations with union officials and billions in new spending, limiting dollars that could go to other projects.

Enrollment remains far below pre-pandemic levels, and the system has a growing number of small schools. Decisions about whether those schools should be merged or closed are often politically fraught and can consume the school system’s leadership.

The arrival of more than 45,000 migrant children over the past two years has helped stanch deep declines in student enrollment, though the city has long struggled to properly serve English learners and hire enough bilingual educators to support them. It still remains an urgent task.

The new chancellor will serve under the supervision of a mayor whose political standing has been riddled by investigations into campaign fundraising practices. The mayor and his staff have not been accused of wrongdoing by federal officials, and Banks did not indicate that the political scandal played a role in his departure.

Still, Banks has at times appeared to distance himself from Adams, a mayor who has not staked out a detailed agenda for the city’s schools. In the wake of Adams’ threats to slash funding from the Education Department, Banks — who earned $363,346 last year, according to public records — often said he had no choice but to implement the budget he was given.

And in response to a raucous student protest over a teacher’s support of Israel at Hillcrest High School in Queens, Banks’ alma mater, Adams was quick to condemn it as a “vile show of antisemitism.” But Banks struck a more conciliatory tone, cautioning against painting the students with too broad a brush (though in congressional testimony he later said some students were engaged “in an act of antisemitism”).

Banks’ departure comes at a particularly delicate moment for his literacy initiative. He has staked much of his legacy on ridding schools of curriculums he says are subpar and replacing them with materials aligned with the “science of reading,” a longstanding body of evidence about how children learn to read.

The rollout of that program has been bumpy, with some teachers reporting that they have not received sufficient training in adopting new materials, and experts widely agree that such transitions often take years to execute. There is scant evidence of the program’s effect on student learning so far. Test scores dipped slightly more in districts that began using the new curriculums last year, which officials have characterized as an “implementation dip” as teachers get used to the new materials.

It remains to be seen whether the new chancellor will prioritize those curriculum overhauls, including a new Algebra I curriculum that is mandated across the city’s high schools. Many advocacy groups, including the teachers union, have backed them.

Aside from a separate initiative to expose more students to career opportunities before they graduate high school, the new chancellor will not inherit many existing policy efforts. Banks has resisted calls to focus on integrating the city’s schools, which are among the country’s most segregated, and has argued it’s more important to elevate the quality of all campuses.

Some observers said it was shrewd to focus on a small number of initiatives instead of trying to disrupt the system as a whole given how difficult it is to change a system of its size. Still, others contend the administration doesn’t have a clear set of education priorities that match their rhetoric about how schools often fail the most vulnerable students.

Michael Mulgrew, president of the teachers union, praised Banks as “an educator who sought to improve public education for all students.”

State Sen. John Liu, a Queens Democrat who chairs the Senate’s New York City education committee, said in a Tuesday statement on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter, that Banks had been “a good Chancellor” for the city’s schools.

“But this departure is terrible news for our schools and the city, comes at the worst possible time, and will be a loss difficult for the mayor to recover from,” he said. “Heaven help our City.”

Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

16 NYC schools, including 12 run by DOE, named National Blue Ribbon Schools

2024-09-24T18:59:38+00:00

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Of the 16 New York City schools that made this year’s National Blue Ribbon Schools list, a dozen are run by the Education Department, including one that made headlines for protesting Chancellor David Banks’ signature literacy initiative.

The Brooklyn School of Inquiry, a K-8 gifted and talented program known as BSI, was the first and only school so far to win an exemption from the city’s mandate for all elementary schools to use one of three city-approved reading curriculums. The 480-seat Bensonhurst school, which draws students from across the city, was recognized for its “progressive education approach, innovative teaching practices, and diverse student body,” according to the Blue Ribbon website.

The local winners, which spanned all five boroughs, were among 356 schools across the country to win the honor, according to the U.S. Department of Education. It’s an achievement that recognizes a school’s excellence in academic performance or significant progress toward closing achievement gaps.

All New York City schools were recognized for strong academic performance. The award brings no financial boost to winning schools, though it does offer bragging rights.

The list included a mix of New York City elementary, middle, and high schools. Manhattan had the highest number of schools on the list, with eight.

In Queens, Louis Pasteur Middle School was highlighted in part for its students’ “local and regional awards and championships in robotics, math, science, track, basketball, volleyball, soccer, and the arts,” according to the Blue Ribbon website.

Meanwhile, Fordham High School for the Arts in the Bronx was recognized for “its ability to seamlessly integrate a high-quality arts education with rigorous core academic instruction that prepares students to excel in college and career,” the Blue Ribbon website said.

P.S. 35 The Clove Valley School, the sole Staten Island school on the list, serves about 400 elementary students. The award highlighted the school’s “personalized approach to education,” through which each student is “encouraged to take ownership of their learning, making informed decisions and actively engaging in the learning process.”

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said the National Blue Ribbon Schools serve as “models for effective teaching and intentional collaboration in their schools and communities.”

“As we celebrate their achievements, let us look to these schools for inspiration as we champion education as the foundation of a brighter future for every child,” he said in a statement.

New York Education Commissioner Betty Rosa praised the state’s recipients as “shining examples for all educational institutions throughout New York State.”

See the full list of local winners for each borough below:

Brooklyn

Brooklyn School of Inquiry
A. Fantis School of Saints Constantine and Helen Cathedral

The Bronx

Fordham High School for the Arts
Icahn Charter School 4
Icahn Charter School 6

Manhattan

M.S. 255 the Salk School of Science
The NYC Lab Middle School for Collaborative Studies
P.S. 124 the Yung Wing School
P.S. 150
P.S. 166 The Richard Rodgers School of Arts and Technology
P.S. 184 Shuang Wen
P.S. 77 Lower Lab School
Saint Ignatius Loyola School.

Queens

P.S. 130
Louis Pasteur Middle School

Staten Island

P.S. 35 The Clove Valley School

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

As hate crimes rise, museum hopes to teach NYC students about the dangers of hate speech

2024-09-18T17:47:37+00:00

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As reports of hate and discrimination against marginalized groups are on the rise, a new Lower Manhattan museum exhibit aims to teach students about the roots of hate speech, as well as the dangerous outcomes that can occur if it is left unchecked.

And they’re hoping to get thousands of New York City public school students to see it.

The Museum of Jewish Heritage exhibit, titled “Speaking Up! Confronting Hate Speech,” opened on Wednesday, and will remain on display through the end of the school year, closing on June 29. It comes on the heels of a new partnership between the museum and the city’s public schools, with the exhibit aiming to show how language can lead to discrimination, persecution, and mass violence — providing students with historical and contemporary examples of how words can connect to harmful events, according to exhibit organizers.

“Acts of hate don’t start with violence,” said Jack Kliger, the museum’s president and CEO. “They start with words, and with thoughts, and with teaching. You have to be taught to hate.”

Organizers say the exhibit comes at a critical time for the city’s students — as statewide, hate crimes against Jewish and Muslim New Yorkers rose by 89% and 106%, respectively, in 2023, according to a report from the state Comptroller’s Office.

The exhibit will offer students a look at examples of propaganda posters from the time of the Holocaust, which sought to dehumanize Jewish people, said Sara Softness, the director of curatorial affairs at the museum. But the scope of the exhibit is global, she added, with sections devoted to other conflicts like the Rwandan genocide in 1994 and the killings of the Muslim Rohingya people in Myanmar in 2016 — including how social media contributed to the latter of these atrocities.

“We’re moving not only through these global examples, but the way in which time has changed the transmission of those messages,” Softness said.

The exhibit also looks at historical and contemporary hate speech and discrimination targeted at Black, Native American, and Asian American Pacific Islander communities in the U.S., according to officials.

The museum hopes to equip students with tools to combat hate speech in their own communities, Softness said.

“The last third of the exhibition is all about how to counteract hate speech,” she said. “There’s counter speech: So how do you undermine a message that has started to proliferate online? How do you limit the dissemination of the message? How can you use protests to stand up to hateful rhetoric? How can you even just think about erasing graffiti as a way to stand up against the spread of hate?”

The troubling reports of rising hate follow a year that saw heightened tensions within school communities, as students and educators grappled with the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. In October, Hamas militants killed 1,200 people and took over 240 hostages, according to reports. Israel, in response, has bombarded the Gaza Strip, fueling a humanitarian crisis and killing more than 40,000 Palestininans, including many children, according to health authorities there.

That conflict has spilled over into the city’s classrooms, with several high-profile incidents garnering national attention. Meanwhile, schools Chancellor David Banks was called to testify at a congressional hearing in Washington D.C., where he defended the school system’s response to antisemitism.

Between October and the May hearing, there had been roughly 280 incidents of religious bias in New York City schools, with 42% involving antisemitism and 30% directed against Muslim students, according to figures Banks shared at the time.

Nearly 60% of Muslim students across the five boroughs and Long Island reported experiencing religious-based bullying at school, according to a recent report by the Council on American-Islamic Relations. The group noted the city had seen “a notable surge in anti-Muslim, anti-Arab, and anti-Palestinian sentiment” since October.

Amid this backdrop, city officials have looked for other ways to tackle reports of rising antisemitism, Islamophobia, and other forms of hate. Earlier this year, the city’s Education Department rolled out additional training to educators on how to have productive conversations about the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

The city’s Education Department is developing new Hidden Voices curriculums centered on the stories and contributions of Jewish and Muslim people, expected to be available by June 2025. The Hidden Voices curriculums, which include LGBTQ history and Asian American history, aim to elevate historical figures largely left out of textbooks.

The city’s public schools are also partnering with the Museum of Jewish Heritage to allow more eighth graders to learn more about the Holocaust through free field trips to the museum — bringing in more than 85,000 students over three years. Through that partnership, many of the city’s students may be able to view the new exhibit, as well as others offered by the museum.

“At the Museum of Jewish Heritage, we come from a very specific angle, thinking about historic and contemporary antisemitism,” Softness said. “But there’s a way in which hate speech, as presented in this exhibition, is shown as fairly universal. There are certain patterns and systems of the way that speech can be disseminated that lead to violence … that we really need to learn about in order to combat.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NY school funding formula needs an overhaul, more than 100 organizations urge

2024-09-16T10:01:00+00:00

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A coalition of more than 100 New York organizations is urging the state to overhaul its nearly two-decade-old school funding formula.

The organizations, which previously joined forces to raise alarm over school programs that were put at-risk by the expiration of billions of dollars of federal pandemic stimulus funds, are now turning their attention to the state’s Foundation Aid formula.

In a joint statement, issued on Monday, they called for a revision to how the formula accounts for student poverty, added funding for students in temporary housing and the foster care system, increased support for students with disabilities and English language learners, and new funds for preschool students, as well as extra money to implement the state’s class size mandate for New York City schools, among other changes.

First implemented in 2007, the state’s formula is no longer sufficient to meet student needs, many education experts and politicians agree. As part of a state budget agreement earlier this year, the Rockefeller Institute is conducting a study on how to revise the formula, which sends roughly $24.9 billion to school districts — including more than $9.5 billion to New York City schools.

Though Foundation Aid just recently received full funding for the first time, it relies on decades-old data to calculate some metrics of district needs. Other factors, such as the number of students living in temporary housing, don’t weigh into the current formula at all.

“Gov. Hochul and the state legislature deserve a lot of credit for fully funding Foundation Aid,” said Randi Levine, policy director of the nonprofit group Advocates for Children, one of the organizations that signed onto the statement. “But the formula was developed more than 15 years ago … and doesn’t address the current needs of students and schools. We think the time has come to make changes to this outdated formula and ensure it reflects the needs of today’s students and schools, with particular attention to students who need the most support.”

Some question state’s approach to updating school funding formula

Advocates have also called for the state to overhaul the base model the formula uses to determine funding, arguing it isn’t responsive to the needs of large, urban districts like New York City. Known as the “successful school district model,” the base of the formula is currently calculated using the average per-pupil funding from a subset of school districts that perform well on standardized state exams.

As part of its study, the Rockefeller Institute held a series of public hearings over the summer to solicit testimony on the current formula, and has been tasked with issuing recommendations by Dec. 1.

But some have raised concerns over the state’s current approach to updating the formula, noting the Rockefeller Institute’s recommendations are not binding, and the budget agreement tasked the institute with developing a formula that is “fiscally sustainable for the state, local taxpayers, and school districts.”

“The key question should not be what is fiscally sustainable, but what our schools and students need to get a high quality education today,” Levine said. “This process could have major implications for students and schools in New York City and around the state, and it is essential that we get it right.”

Arlen Benjamin-Gomez, executive director of EdTrust-New York, added that the Rockefeller Institute has been given just months to conduct its study and issue recommendations.

“We are really concerned about the aggressive timeline, and that the stakeholder engagement was done at a time when folks just aren’t around,” she said. “I went to the New York City hearing and testified in front of a big, empty high school auditorium, because it was the middle of summer.”

During the last budget cycle, Hochul also introduced a tweak that adjusted how the formula accounts for inflation. That change led to the city missing out on roughly $120 million, though total state funding still increased for the year, according to city officials.

Though the city and state contributed roughly equal funding to New York City schools in the 2001-02 school year, advocates and city officials have noted that balance has shifted significantly in the two decades since. Today, the state contributes just over a third of the Education Department’s budget — meaning the city is shouldering a greater share of education spending, as overall costs have risen significantly over time.

Some of the changes the organizations are calling for echo suggestions voiced by the city’s Education Department. During the July hearing in Manhattan, schools Chancellor David Banks said the state should work to create a “more effective and equitable” school funding formula.

“Even with full funding, the Foundation Aid that we’re receiving has not kept pace,” Banks said, citing new challenges facing the city’s schools — including an influx of migrant students and expanded costs associated with services added over the past two decades, like 3-K and pre-K. “It is not nearly enough to support our students in the educational experience that they deserve.”

He called on the state to review the successful school district model, and to implement four specific changes: Providing funds for students in temporary housing and the foster care system, increasing weights for students with disabilities, updating regional cost calculations, and designating dollars to support the implementation of the state’s class size mandate.

Concerns over the formula are not unique to New York City, according to Marina Marcou-O’Malley, co-executive director of the Alliance for Quality Education, another group that signed onto the Monday statement.

“The same concerns exist in every school district in the state that we have talked to,” she said.

Marcou-O’Malley noted she was alarmed during last year’s budget cycle to see the governor discussing changes that would result in some districts receiving less funding, despite Hochul continuing to point to her administration fully funding Foundation Aid.

“You can’t have it both ways,” she said. “You’re either going to fully invest in education and sustain that, or you’re going to be cutting education.”

In total, more than 110 organizations signed onto the Monday statement calling for the formula to be overhauled.

“It’s rare in education that so many folks are so aligned,” Benjamin-Gomez said. “Everybody agrees that this formula is outdated and needs to be updated.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC new education board chair pick is same as old chair, despite effort to distance role from mayor

2024-09-14T01:48:24+00:00

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When approving mayoral control for another two years, Albany lawmakers tweaked New York City’s governance model in an attempt to make its school board more independent from the mayor.

They called for the mayor to select a new chair of the Panel for Educational Policy to be selected from a pool narrowed by Albany officials. But as that process came to a close on Friday, little had been changed by its outcome.

Gregory Faulkner will once again be chair of the 24-member panel for the 2024-25 school year, according to an email from city officials about the pick obtained by Chalkbeat.

Faulkner was chosen by Mayor Eric Adams from among three potential chairs put forward by Albany officials. Senate and Assembly leaders, as well as the chancellor of the state’s Board of Regents, each nominated a candidate to oversee the city board, which votes on major policy proposals and contracts.

“I’ve been given an opportunity to shape things,” Faulkner told Chalkbeat. “Everyone has the same goal: to see the schools be effective.”

Faulkner said he resigned from his position as a mayoral appointee on Thursday to take on this new role, saying he takes its independence “very seriously.” His resignation leaves an opening for another mayoral appointee on the panel.

Faulkner has been calling the members of the panel individually, starting with the non-mayoral appointees, he said.

“I want them to tell me … how would they see this role enhancing what they are trying to do,” Faulkner said. “It’s going to take time. It’s going to take us building up a level of trust with each other.”

One of his top priorities, he said, is improving parent engagement. He created a committee a few months ago that will include parent leaders from across the city to focus on that.

“How do we have parents to feel more connected to the system,” he said, noting the testimony shared during the mayoral control hearings. “One of the things parents felt: They didn’t feel listened to.”

The new rules surrounding the panel’s chair came earlier this year as part of the state’s latest deal on mayoral control — extending Adams’ power over the school system by two years, while tweaking the panel to ostensibly weaken his degree of control. For more than 20 years, the city’s mayoral control system has relied on the mayor’s ability to appoint a majority of members to the panel, as well as to select a schools chancellor. Many feel that the panel is essentially a rubber stamp for the mayor’s policies.

News of the appointment might do little to instill confidence among those who have called for more oversight. Faulkner served as chair of the panel during the prior school year and was among the mayor’s first appointees to the panel in 2022. His initial selection raised some eyebrows because he had worked for a City Council member who in 2014 infamously supported Ugandan anti-gay laws while on a trip there.

“Judge me on me,” Faulkner told Chalkbeat. He cited his support for a resolution opposing a move by a Manhattan Community Education Council calling for a review of the city’s guidelines around transgender students and sports.

Faulkner, who lives in the Bronx and is retired — he worked for the City Council, he was a director of student leadership at LaGuardia Community College, and did a stint out of college as a drug prevention worker with Phoenix House — has never been a public school parent, but said that “requires me to give that extra moment of listening and sharing that experience.”

Spokespeople for the city’s Education Department and City Hall did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Faulkner was nominated by Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie. POLITICO first reported that Faulkner had been selected as chair on Friday.

Heastie’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Kaliris Salas-Ramirez, a former member of the panel who previously served as an appointee of Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, was nominated by Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, confirmed State Sen. John Liu, a Queens Democrat who chairs the Senate’s New York City education committee.

Salas-Ramirez, who served on the panel for more than two years, said that being nominated for the chair position was a “distinct honor.”

“I was excited by the possibility of truly being independent so that we could engage in this governance work with a collective vision of serving our students,” she said, echoing concerns that students, teachers, and parents don’t feel heard. “Because I am an educator, neuroscientist and parent of two children, one in early childhood and the other a teen with an IEP [individualized education program] I am deeply invested in having a system that serves our learners equitably.”

Liu said he was disappointed that the Senate’s nominee was not selected.

“However, the new process will make for better long-term governance of public schools, even if it did not result in an immediate change,” he said in a statement.

Prior to the Friday news, the state’s Education Department had confirmed to Chalkbeat that Board of Regents Chancellor Lester Young nominated a candidate, but did not specify whom Young put forward for the position.

As news of Faulkner’s appointment spread on Friday, some observers remained skeptical the change to the panel would have a notable impact.

“This makes a mockery of the opportunity to bring new perspectives to the PEP,” said David Bloomfield, a professor of education, law, and public policy at Brooklyn College and the CUNY Graduate Center, in an email. “And reinforces that the legislation installing a state nominated chair was silly in the first place.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy at azimmer@chalkbeat.org.

Federal agents seize phones of NYC schools Chancellor David Banks and his brothers, reports say

2024-09-06T13:13:04+00:00

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Federal agents seized phones from New York City schools Chancellor David Banks and his partner, First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright, early Wednesday at their Harlem home, the New York Times reported.

Federal agents also seized devices at the Queens home of Banks’ brother, Phil Banks, also a top aide to Mayor Eric Adams. Agents searched the home of a third Banks brother, Terence Banks, who retired from the MTA and now works as a consultant, according to the New York Times. THE CITY first reported some of the moves made by federal agents.

In a statement on Friday, Chancellor Banks confirmed he was cooperating with “a federal inquiry.”

“Yesterday was the first day of school for the 1.1 million students and staff of New York City Public Schools, and I remain focused on ensuring they have safe, academically rigorous, and joyful school year,” he said. “I am confirming that I am cooperating with a federal inquiry. At this time, I cannot comment any further on that matter.”

None of the officials have been accused of a crime, according to the New York Times.

The news of federal agents’ arrival at the doorstep of the schools chancellor came Thursday, on the first day of classes, casting a cloud over the typically ebullient first-day-of-school mood.

As he left a visit from a Queens high school Thursday afternoon, Chancellor Banks told a reporter from Fox 5, “Today is the first day of school, it is all about the kids. If there’s any other comments that are made, it will be happening tomorrow.”

Several Education Department staffers said news of the federal agents’ moves spread quickly in education circles Thursday. Multiple sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Education Department employees were shocked by both the news and timing, as the nation’s largest school system reopened its doors to nearly 900,000 students on Thursday.

Aaron Pallas, a Teachers College professor and longtime observer of the city’s Education Department, said the incident could impact Banks’ work leading the nation’s largest school system.

“Anything that can distract them from staying focused on the task at hand could impede their effectiveness,” he said.

Wednesday’s activity was the latest move in a swirl of law enforcement inquiries surrounding Adams, his administration, and his campaign. Federal officials are also looking into possible illegal campaign activity involving the Turkish government. The New York Times reported that the federal campaign inquiry was separate from the matter that federal agents were looking into Wednesday.

Meanwhile, search warrants were also executed on NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban and Tim Pearson, a top mayoral aide embroiled in multiple scandals, New York 1 reported.

“Investigators have not indicated to us [that] the mayor or his staff are targets of any investigation,” Adams’ chief counsel, Lisa Zornberg, told THE CITY in a statement. “As a former member of law enforcement, the mayor has repeatedly made clear that all members of the team need to follow the law.”

As he left City Hall on Thursday, Adams also told reporters that he had “confidence in the team,” according to THE CITY. “The goal is to follow the law and that is what this administration always stood for and what we’re going to continue to stand for,” he said.

Chancellor Banks is a core member of the unusually tight-knit inner circle of the Adams administration. Banks and Adams have known each other for years, and their family and professional lives are intertwined. Adams’ girlfriend, Tracey Collins, and his sister-in-law, Sharon Adams, both work in the city Education Department.

Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org.

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

‘Rebirth of our school system’: First day for NYC’s nearly 900,000 students

2024-09-05T18:24:05+00:00

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Bedtimes restored. Alarms reset. Roughly 900,000 public school students returned to New York City’s buses, subways, and blocks on Thursday morning buzzing with nerves and excitement for the first day of school.

Nowhere was the back-to-school energy more amplified than at P.S. 257, a magnet school for the performing arts in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, where Mayor Eric Adams and schools Chancellor David Banks were greeted by a DJ blaring music in a courtyard brimming with families. A smiling inflatable tube man flapped around in the crisp fall weather.

The festivities included a book giveaway and a celebration of the school’s ballet team, who won back-to-back national championships. Kids posed for pictures in front of a welcome back banner, hugging their caregivers before heading inside.

Angelica Jean-Lewis, a 5-year-old entering first grade, could hardly contain her joy, breaking into a dance moments after walking through the school’s front gates. Mary Paul, her mother, said Angelica woke her at 6:30 a.m.

“She was ready to go!” Paul said, laughing.

Banks, who high-fived kids amid the festivities, said, “This is the first day of school. It represents the rebirth of our school system, and we are always excited.”

Still the nation’s largest school system, with roughly 1,600 schools, continues to face challenges.

Mayor Eric Adams high-fives students as they walk into P.S. 257 for the first day of school.

Enrollment has declined over recent years, but the number of students citywide is expected to hold steady this year, largely due to the thousands of asylum-seeking and other migrant students who have brought their own set of challenges to school. Distractions from cellphones will likely continue to eat up class time, as the city’s put the brakes on a promised citywide cellphone ban. (Though many schools are implementing their own bans, collecting phones or requiring kids to lock them in pouches all day.)

How schools and students use, and perhaps misuse, AI will likely be front and center. Politics will surely touch schools in significant ways once again, with November’s presidential election and continued tensions over the Israel-Hamas war. And neighborhood violence will continue to reach into schools; this week, a teacher had his hand grazed by a stray bullet fired from outside the building, while he was setting up his classroom in the Bronx.

The biggest shift for the 2024-25 school year — and the Adams administration’s signature initiative — will be the continued push to standardize English and math curriculums for many students across the five boroughs. All elementary schools must now use one of three pre-approved reading programs. The city is expanding its ninth grade algebra curriculum mandate for nearly all schools and is scaling up a middle school math mandate over the next three years. The city has also required a curriculum for prekindergarten.

Few parents at P.S. 257, where Adams and Banks mingled with families, knew anything about the reading curriculum changes. Their school, in District 14, will be using a program called Into Reading, which is by far the most popular of the three curriculums. All elementary schools in 22 of the city’s 32 local school districts are using it this year.

Roseleen Magdaleno, a fourth grader at the school, said reading was her favorite subject in school — though her family wasn’t aware that the city’s literacy curriculum had changed in recent years.

Andrea Cole, whose sons Zyon and Trystan attend fifth and third grade respectively at P.S. 257, wasn’t aware of the city’s literacy curriculum overhaul. But she said she felt good about the instruction her sons were receiving, even though the material could be difficult.

“I feel like the curriculum that they’re teaching is a bit challenging for some students,” she said. “But anything new to children, they’re going to automatically grasp later on.”

It is perhaps unsurprising that parents weren’t aware of the changes. Some parents have complained that they feel in the dark about their school’s reading programs and are hungry for more communication.

At P.S. 138 in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, in District 17, which is adopting Into Reading this year, none of the parents Chalkbeat spoke with had heard about the city’s literacy initiative.

King, a third grader with a bright blue Sonic the Hedgehog backpack, was ready to start his first day at the school after transferring from a charter school. His dad, who declined to give his name, said he was most nervous about the state tests that begin in third grade. He hadn’t heard about the city’s new reading curriculum initiative, but he welcomed the focus on literacy.

“Reading comprehension is where he really needs more work on,” King’s dad said.

Just under half of New York City students in grades 3-8 are considered proficient in English, based on state exam scores, which was a big impetus for the curriculum shift.

After nearly half of the city’s school districts joined the new curriculum mandate last year (with the rest starting this year), scores on state English exams dropped — even more steeply for the schools already using the mandated curriculums, a Chalkbeat analysis found. Experts, however, urged caution when interpreting aggregate test scores since other variables could push scores up or down, such as fluctuations in federal COVID relief funding and elevated rates of chronic absenteeism.

Kids were more focused on things like school lunch — and last year, students mobilized when the city cut some of its most popular food items. Olivia Rivera, a P.S. 257 third grader, was most looking forward to a return to the cafeteria.

“My favorite is yogurt,” she said.

Olivia, who is on the autism spectrum, has attended the school since pre-K. Her mother, Awilda Rivera, said the school has been transformative for her daughter.

“In the beginning, she was a little shy,” said Rivera, who is also a member of the school’s PTA. “But with all the support, she’s been singing here.”

Students line up for their first day of school at P.S. 257 on Sept. 5.

Middle and high school admissions season already underway

Eddie Espada, a paraprofessional at P.S. 257, said both he and his fifth-grade son Jordan were thrilled to start the school year.

“He’s a little nervous about it as well, because it’s his last year,” Espada said.

They’re already preparing for the middle school admissions process this fall, hoping to stay close to home in Bushwick, just a few blocks from their elementary school.

For the city’s families of fifth and eighth graders, the clock starts ticking for middle and high school applications almost as soon as the year starts. High school applications open Oct. 1 and close Dec. 4, according to the Education Department. Middle school applications open Oct. 9 and close Dec. 13. (Offers are sent out March 6 and April 9, respectively.)

Tatiana Cruz just went through the kindergarten admissions process for her daughter’s first year at P.S. 138 in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. After having her daughter in the preschool where she works, Cruz felt some anxiety as she dropped her off in a sea of students in red and burgundy uniforms, awaiting a classroom assignment from a school staffer with a clipboard. But Cruz was no stranger to the school.

“I went here,” Cruz said. “That’s why I wanted her to come here.”

Cruz appreciated that school still gives kids opportunities to work with paper and pencil and practice handwriting, even as schools increasingly move towards laptops and tablets.

P.S. 257 parent Brian Vasquez adjusts the backpack of his daughter, Elise Vasquez, 5. This is Elise’s first day of kindergarten.

Ongoing debate over cellphone ban

As more school districts across the nation have embraced cellphone bans this year, New York City is continuing to take its time despite initially promising otherwise.

Kevin Alvarez, a 12th grader at the Williamsburg High School of Art and Technology, said his school doesn’t have a cellphone ban in place, though teachers ask them not to use them during class.

Though phones can be distracting, Alvarez said he doesn’t believe a citywide ban on phones in schools is needed.

“If people know how to control themselves, I don’t think it’s a problem,” he said. “Me and my friends, we don’t really have that problem.”

Marielis Acosta, another 12th grader at the school, noted phones can come in handy during the school day — allowing them to quickly calculate equations or translate between languages, for example.

Still, she acknowledged they can be a nuisance for teachers and disruptive to learning.

“We’re pretty addicted,” she said. “It’s pretty bad for school. It’s really distracting.”

One floor up, at the co-located Brooklyn Latin School, an 11th grade student said his teachers employ different policies to keep them off their phones during the day — including one who asks them to put their phones in pouches when they enter the classroom.

“I’ve seen some of my classmates have excessive use of cell phones,” said the student, who asked that his name not be printed. “But it doesn’t really mandate this whole over-the-top, put your phones in pouches approach.”

Roughly 300 schools already banned phones last year and 500 additional schools were planning to implement bans this year — bringing the total to about half of all schools — Banks told reporters on Thursday. But the Education Department paused its plans on a citywide ban to avoid having the plan fall apart because of “things we did not anticipate,” he said.

“We just want to be able to have a reasonable and studied response,” Banks said.

Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy at azimmer@chalkbeat.org.

Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC ousted a controversial parent leader from her Manhattan council. A judge reinstated her.

2024-09-04T19:43:30+00:00

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Months after schools Chancellor David Banks removed a controversial parent leader from a Manhattan education council, a federal judge this week ordered she be temporarily reinstated to her position pending the outcome of an ongoing lawsuit.

Maud Maron, a member of the Community Education Council in Manhattan’s District 2, was removed from her post in June for allegedly violating city regulations governing the conduct of parent leaders. That decision followed months of critics calling on the city to take action against Maron, who is affiliated with the right-wing group Moms for Liberty and has been embroiled in several high-profile controversies over the past year.

The court order issued on Tuesday could have far-reaching implications for the city’s process overseeing parent leader conduct. U.S. District Judge Diane Gujarati raised concerns that the city’s regulations may be unconstitutional and could breach the First Amendment, which prohibits the government from infringing on free speech.

In the order, Gujarati said there was a “clear and substantial likelihood” that parts of the regulations were overly broad and vague and could discriminate against certain viewpoints. Gujarati granted a temporary injunction reinstating Maron to her council position pending the result of a lawsuit against the city’s Education Department. (Maron is one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit.)

The city’s Education Department also paused enforcement of parts of the regulations last month, as it seeks to revise them to address concerns raised by the lawsuit, according to the court order.

Maron was a sponsor of a resolution District 2′s council passed in March calling on the Education Department to reconsider its guidelines allowing transgender students to join sports teams that align with their gender identities — which sparked national media attention and sharp condemnation from Banks. That followed texts she had sent in a private group chat denying the existence of transgender children, according to The 74. Earlier this year, she also called an anonymous student at Stuyvesant High School, where Maron is a parent, a “coward” and accused them of “Jew hatred” in response to an opinion piece published in the school newspaper.

Maron’s statements about the Stuyvesant student were cited in the city’s decision to remove her from her council position, according to the court order. City officials argued her statements violated regulations that prohibit parent leaders from making “derogatory or offensive comments about any DOE student,” as well as forbidding “conduct that serves to harass, intimidate, or threaten, including but not limited to frequent verbal abuse and unnecessary aggressive speech that serves to intimidate and causes others to have concern for their personal safety.”

Both of those provisions likely run afoul of the First Amendment, according to Gujarati.

The judge’s decision comes as a reversal of one of only two removals from the city’s parent councils in recent history. Under state law, the chancellor has the authority to remove members from local parent-led councils, but it’s unclear if any chancellor had exercised that power before Banks took action in June.

At the time, Banks also removed Tajh Sutton, the former president of the council in Brooklyn’s District 14, from her position for allegedly violating open meetings laws. (Sutton and District 14′s CEC are also named as defendants in the lawsuit, which alleges that they and the city’s Education Department are misusing the grievance process and suppressing the voices of some parent leaders.)

As part of the preliminary injunction granted Tuesday, the court also temporarily prohibited District 14′s council from enforcing some of its internal policies and from “discriminating against speakers at CEC 14′s public meetings on the basis of viewpoint and/or political association.” It also blocked the council from restricting access to its official account on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

In a statement over email, Maron said she was “thrilled with the judge’s decision.”

“There is more work to be done to make sure the DOE does not silence dissenting parents, but this is a great first step,” she said.

Nathaniel Styer, a spokesperson for the city’s Education Department, said the department was “disappointed by a ruling that limits our ability to protect students from harmful conduct by parent leaders.”

“Even prior to the court’s ruling, we began reviewing the applicable Chancellor’s regulation and are preparing to propose revisions and initiate our public engagement process,” he said in an email. “We will also continue to support CEC 14 towards complying with its legal requirements. We will continue to review the ruling for next steps.”

Sutton did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Don’t expect a new COVID policy for NYC schools, even as the virus surges

2024-09-03T21:22:12+00:00

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More than 900,000 students will return to New York City schools on Thursday, after a summer that saw COVID cases surge across the nation and the five boroughs.

But don’t expect any changes to COVID guidance for the start of the 2024-25 school year.

Students will not be mandated to quarantine at home upon testing positive for the virus, under a policy adopted by city agencies in the spring that eliminated a prior five-day isolation requirement. Instead, officials ask individuals to remain at home until their symptoms improve as per the latest guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“There is no real new guidance, because this is going to be our new normal,” said Anne Williams-Isom, the city’s deputy mayor for Health and Human Services, during a Tuesday press conference.

She urged New Yorkers to get their updated COVID vaccine and stay home if feeling ill.

“If you’re not feeling well, if you have sniffles, you should stay at home so we’re not spreading it,” she said. “We just have to make sure that we’re taking those precautions, and it’s the same thing for kids as they’re going back to school.”

It may be difficult to track the city’s COVID rates as fewer people test for the virus. (The federal government discontinued its free at-home test program in March but plans to bring it back at the “end of September,” according to the CDC’s website.) A “very high” level of the virus was still being detected in New York state’s wastewater as of late August, according to CDC data.

Since March 1, the CDC has instructed people to stay home until their symptoms improve and they remain fever-free for at least 24 hours without using fever-reducing medication. The federal agency still advises people to take precautions over the following five days, including wearing a mask, social distancing, and testing. It’s part of a shift in health policy toward treating COVID like other common illnesses, including RSV and the flu.

Under current New York City Education Department policy, those who are experiencing COVID symptoms should isolate themselves from others and get tested. Like the CDC, the city advises students and staff to remain at home until symptoms have improved and they’re fever-free for 24 hours without medication.

The department also urges students and staff to wear a mask and take other precautions for five days after returning to school.

Those who test positive for COVID but do not exhibit symptoms do not need to stay home from school, according to the city’s policies. But upon returning to school, the city instructs individuals to take precautions to avoid getting others sick, such as wearing a mask and practicing good hygiene by covering coughs and sneezes, washing hands often, and using hand sanitizer.

The city’s Education Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

5 education issues to watch as NYC students head back to school

2024-09-03T18:50:03+00:00

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More than 900,000 New York City public school students will return to the classroom on Thursday, ushering in a new academic year.

It marks the start of a school year that will bring a slate of new initiatives and challenges to the nation’s largest school system, including the rollout of new curriculums and a possible citywide cell phone ban. It will also bring a shift in how students commute: Instead of MetroCards, they’ll get OMNY cards they can use any day, any time, all year long.

Meanwhile, students and families will feel the lingering effects of major struggles from recent school years.

Elementary school teachers and students will continue to adjust to the city’s literacy curriculum mandate. Schools will still grapple with how best to meet the needs of the thousands of asylum-seeking and other migrant students who have entered the school system. And tensions fueled by the Israel-Hamas war could persist in school communities this year.

Plus, several looming elections — both local and national — could mean a school year where students are especially politically engaged.

Here’s a look at five major education issues that may come into play this school year:

Curriculum changes continue in NYC classrooms

This school year will, for the first time, see every local school district adopt new elementary literacy curriculums under the city’s mandate — the signature education initiative of schools Chancellor David Banks.

That mandate started last year, with nearly half of the city’s districts required to select one of three pre-approved curriculums. The curriculum overhaul came as Banks sought to improve the city’s literacy rates, though already some school communities have pushed back on the mandate, and at least one school won a waiver out of it.

Last month, as state test results showed a dip in English scores among the city’s 3-8 grade students, education officials acknowledged that the new curriculums may have negatively affected test scores, with teachers still getting used to unfamiliar materials. However, experts told Chalkbeat that aggregate test scores should be interpreted with caution, as many other variables besides the curriculum changes could push scores up or down.

Separately, the city is looking to overhaul math curriculum in middle schools, while expanding its mandate for ninth grade algebra.

This school year will also see the citywide rollout of a new K-12 Black Studies curriculum. Banks has also said that additional curriculums are being developed for the city’s Hidden Voices initiative — which seeks to teach New York City students about individuals from diverse backgrounds — including stories about Muslim and Jewish figures who have played significant roles in history.

Status of NYC school cell phone ban remains unclear

Near the end of last school year, momentum for a systemwide school cell phone ban picked up steam — with Banks expressing support and promising a policy update would arrive during the summer.

But that prospect became less certain last week after Mayor Eric Adams said the city was “not there yet.”

“There will be some action in the upcoming school year, but the extent of a full ban, we’re not there yet. We want to make sure we have parents on board,” Adams said.

“The previous administration attempted to do this, and they had to roll back,” he added, referencing a previous cellphone ban instituted by former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, then overturned by his successor, former Mayor Bill de Blasio. “I don’t want to go backwards after we make a determination.”

With just days remaining until students return to the classroom, Banks said an update would be made “very shortly.”

“Cellphones, in my opinion, have no place in our schools,” he said during an appearance on ABC7. “There may not be a full-on mandate just yet, but over the next couple of days, we’re absolutely going to have something to say about cellphones in schools.”

In July, Chalkbeat reported that the city’s Education Department was considering a ban that would go into effect in February. Under that policy, schools would have to come up with their own plan for keeping phones out of students’ hands during the school day.

Many schools already have bans — with some collecting phones at the start of the day and others requiring students to place them in locked pouches. Still, many educators have been hopeful that a citywide policy could help offer clearer and more consistent enforcement.

Enrollment shifts continue to pose challenges in NYC

New York City schools and educators continue to face challenges as a result of citywide enrollment shifts. Though enrollment ticked up last year for the first time in eight years, the city’s student population remains well below pre-pandemic norms, with just over 912,000 students in the system from pre-K to 12th grade during the 2023-24 school year.

Whether the upward trajectory persists this year is an open question – one with major implications for the city’s schools. Funding from the state is based on student headcount, and at individual schools, budgets are linked to student populations. Enrollment shifts in the coming years will play a key role in a number of critical policy questions, including how the city complies with the state class size law and whether officials will be forced to merge or close more small schools.

Student demographics have also seen notable shifts in recent years. The number of English language learners, for example, jumped from 135,000 in the 2022-23 school year to more than 148,000 last year — a change with major implications, as schools have scrambled to hire more bilingual staff.

Presidential, mayoral, and education council elections loom

In November, voters across the nation will cast their ballots for the next U.S. president, choosing between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. It’s an election that has garnered serious interest among young people, with nearly 60% of people nationwide aged 18-34 reporting they were “extremely likely to vote,” according to a 2023 poll by the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement at Tufts University.

In New York City, the election may drive youth engagement in politics, particularly as older high school students prepare to vote for the first time. It may also serve as a tool for grounding lessons about civic engagement in classrooms across the city.

Meanwhile, here in New York City, several local elections could have an impact on the city’s school system.

Later this school year, elections will be held for two-year seats on the city’s Community Education Councils — parent-led boards that have the power to approve or reject school rezoning plans, pass resolutions about various school-related issues, and work with district superintendents.

And with the city’s mayoral election set to take place next year in November, challengers to Adams are gearing up for the Democratic primary in June. Already, several notable figures have thrown their hats into the ring, including city Comptroller Brad Lander, a frequent critic of Adams.

Educators, students experiment with artificial intelligence

It’s been well over a year since the tech group OpenAI introduced ChatGPT to the public, and in the time since, it and a slew of other chatbots have offered new ways to generate writing and content using artificial intelligence.

Already, some students at New York City high schools are reporting widespread use of AI-powered chatbots among their peers, while nationwide 44% of teenagers reported they were likely to use AI-powered tools to complete their schoolwork for them.

Across the country, schools have grappled with how to respond to the new technology, with some large districts creating their own AI-powered tools at times to mixed results.

In New York City, the public school system initially blocked ChatGPT on school devices and networks, citing “negative impacts on student learning, and concerns regarding the safety and accuracy of content.” But a few months later, the Education Department reversed course, with Banks proclaiming the city’s schools were “determined to embrace its potential.”

It remains to be seen what citywide policies or partnerships will be adopted regarding artificial intelligence. But already, local teachers have begun experimenting with the tools, including those geared toward developing lesson plans or assisting with grading.

Meanwhile, the American Federation of Teachers has released a set of “guardrails” and other resources intended to help educators safely navigate the new technology. The organization emphasized that safety and privacy should be prioritized any time AI-powered tools are used.

Teachers: We want to hear from you about how you’re using AI-powered tools in the classroom.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

For some NYC students, a summer job means helping combat local gun violence

2024-08-29T20:21:20+00:00

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Jahsani Peters, a rising senior at Forest Hills High School in Queens, said that two years ago, he didn’t think about community violence at all.

At the time, he’d been looking for work as a barista, eager to earn extra income over the summer. But after striking out, he applied to the city’s longstanding Summer Youth Employment Program and got placed through LaGuardia Community College with Community Capacity Development, a Queens-based nonprofit that works to support marginalized communities and prevent gun violence by fostering neighborhood healing and growth.

Peters said he was thrilled to find paid work and eager to impress his managers. In the time since, though, he’s begun to think more deeply about community violence and seen firsthand how organizations like CCD are making a difference.

“We don’t have to leave it up to the police to make sure our people are all right,” he said.

This year, Peters spent his second summer working with CCD through the Summer Youth Employment Program, or SYEP. He said he’s spent days canvassing residents of Woodside Houses and helping connect community members with critical resources. It’s been rewarding work, and he feels the organization has made a difference in the community, Peters said.

“We just try to help people see the good in life,” he said. “That there are other ways to handle problems without violence or having to raise your voice and get crazy with somebody.”

For decades, SYEP has provided the city’s young people with paid opportunities to explore possible career pathways. It’s also expanded in recent years, with Mayor Eric Adams adding 25,000 seats in 2022, bringing it to 100,000 spots in total. Last year, the program made an additional commitment to matching LGBTQ+ youth with “supportive work opportunities.”

City officials say the program can improve school attendance, reduce incarceration rates, and help keep young people safe over the summer.

The Department of Youth and Community Development, which oversees SYEP, noted that young people are increasingly working with violence interruption organizations and other groups seeking to reduce local gun violence. This year, more than 650 young people worked with 12 “Cure Violence” partners that use violence interruption strategies, while more than 1,000 were placed across 36 organizations through the city’s Anti-Gun Violence Employment Program, according to DYCD officials.

“These programs are transformative for young people,” DYCD Commissioner Keith Howard said in a statement. “DYCD is proud of Jahsani and his peers for contributing to the city’s economy, and helping to keep New Yorkers safe.”

Community-based violence intervention groups like CCD take a public health approach to stopping gun violence, with outreach workers who build personal relationships in neighborhoods, help to mediate local conflicts, and prevent retaliation before it occurs. Often, such groups also connect individuals with social services and counseling, as well as employment and educational opportunities.

“They’re able to stop the violence, and have conversations, and mediate conflicts,” said Judy Fears, a community coordinator at CCD. “We don’t carry weapons. We don’t have bulletproof vests. It’s all words, and language, and talking to the community.”

It’s a model that has seen some measurable success around the country. In Baltimore, for example, a report on the city’s violence interruption program found neighborhoods saw homicides and nonfatal shootings decrease by 16 to 23% on average.

The city’s partnerships with CCD and other groups through SYEP are one part of its broader effort to address community violence, particularly its impact on young people.

In 2022, the city launched Project Pivot, partnering hundreds of schools with a range of community groups that provide mentorship, counseling, and violence interruption programs. This year, the city also kept some summer youth programs open later to offer kids more time in supervised settings and to help reduce the risk of crime.

Though violent crime has trended down over time, particularly in New York City, some surges did occur around the country as the COVID pandemic upended life and disrupted efforts to reduce violence. Nationwide, firearm injuries were the leading cause of death among children and teenagers in 2020 and 2021, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

For Peters, employment through SYEP has meant an opportunity for personal growth. Before, he said he didn’t know the basics of the workplace, like what a resume was or how to successfully apply for a job. At CCD, his coworkers have taken him under their wing and taught him how to thrive in the workplace.

With a laugh, Peters said the extra income from the program has helped fuel his “spending problem.” He’s hoping to upgrade his phone soon, with additional storage he can devote to editing videos and music.

“Being realistic and serious, though,” he added, “the money has helped me learn independence and money management.”

Canvassing in the Woodside community has also helped him step out of his shell, learn to be more social and overcome his nerves when interacting with others. It’s taught him to better resolve conflicts in his own life, too, Peters added.

“It’s changed me for the better,” he said. “Now, I’m more open minded. I think, ‘You know what, that person might have had a bad day. They might have lost somebody today.’ You never know.

“So I’m just like, ‘All right, I’ll give you space. I’ll let you say what you’ve got to say,” Peters added. “And when you feel better, I’ll try to uplift you.”

Nate, a human justice ambassador who works with Peters at CCD, described him as “one of a kind.” Over the past two years, he’s seen Peters become more confident and outgoing, he said.

“At the Woodside office, 70 to 80% of the kids are from Woodside, so he didn’t know them at first,” he said. “But now, he’s like a leader to them.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

How a Bronx program takes high school students inside cancer research labs

2024-08-26T21:41:56+00:00

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Sumaiya Jessi, a rising senior at the Bronx High School of Science, was searching for summer opportunities that would help her pursue a career in medicine when she came across a program at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

Now, as the new academic year approaches, she’ll return to school with weeks of research experience behind her. For two months, Jessi worked in a lab at the Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center studying dormant lung cancer cells to help with earlier detection and more effective treatment for patients who experience relapse.

She’s had the chance to conduct cell culture work, analyzing how different drugs are used to treat cancer cells, all while earning a stipend of $2,500. And although Jessi hopes to attend medical school after graduating from college, she said it’s been “eye-opening” to see how the disease is studied through an academic lens.

“It’s really interesting to see how the textbook knowledge applies here, and how they’re able to create these treatments that are eventually given to patients,” Jessi said.

Researchers encourage students to ask questions

Jessi is one of 15 Bronx high schoolers helping with cancer research at Einstein College this summer. The BEYOND ALBERT program, which is supported by the Montefiore School Health Program and the Pinkerton Foundation, allows these students to earn a stipend while experiencing hands-on lab work and attending workshops to help prepare them for careers in academia and medicine. (The Pinkerton Foundation also supports Civic News Company. Learn more about our funding here.)

Since 2022, the program has helped local high school students get their foot in the door of careers in scientific research, offering students 40 hours each week, split between research in labs, scientific workshops, and other professional and academic development experiences.

The program is open to Bronx students who are rising juniors or seniors and who are at least 16 years old, according to Kristina Ames, assistant director for Cancer Research Training and Education Coordination at the Cancer Center. There are no prerequisite classes, Ames added, and the program is open to any student with a deep interest in science and a willingness to learn.

Over the past year, the program has more than doubled, growing from seven high school students in 2023. The 15 students this summer were each placed in a different lab at the Cancer Center, Ames added.

Hayley McDaid, an associate professor of oncology, medicine, and molecular pharmacology at Einstein College who oversees the lab where Jessi worked, said she hopes local students who come through the program will benefit from their exposure to science.

“In the Bronx, sometimes these opportunities don’t exist,” she said. “As a medical school and research center in the Bronx, it’s incredibly important that they’re able to appreciate what we do, experience it firsthand, and experience the joy of science.”

She added it’s critical to take a one-on-one approach with students, meeting them where they are as they enter the program and walking them through cancer terminology with simple, real-world explanations.

“What I’ve learned over the years mentoring students is not to assume they know what you’re talking about, because quite frankly, they won’t feel safe when they come in to say, ‘I don’t understand what that means,’” she said. “They feel that they have to be perfect at that stage in their education.”

This year, McDaid noted her lab paired its high school and undergraduate students with mentors attending graduate school, hoping that bonds between students would allow mentees to feel comfortable asking for help when they encountered subjects or terms they didn’t understand. For Jessi, that approach appears to have been successful.

“The biggest thing I’ve learned from this experience is not being afraid to ask questions,” Jessi said. “Growing up, for me, asking questions was always a sign that you don’t understand something you’re supposed to, or that you’re falling behind. Just being able to explore my curiosity and use my voice to ask questions and learn more about the world around me — it’s been really eye-opening and inspirational.”

Bronx program offers glimpse at scientific research careers

For Diana Plaza, a rising sophomore at Fordham University who participated in the BEYOND ALBERT program while attending high school in the Bronx, working in an Einstein lab helped her prepare to study science in college by giving her experience writing academic papers and presenting her research findings.

“Usually, these opportunities are found in other boroughs, like Manhattan or Brooklyn or Queens,” said Plaza, who attended the Bronx Academy of Health Careers. “It felt really nice to have a program here in the Bronx that gave us an opportunity to show our talents.”

This summer, Plaza returned to Einstein College, working alongside her mentor Gracia Bualuti, an M.S. candidate at Lehman College, to study how air pollutants affect the development of lung cancer in cells. Plaza’s experiences at Einstein in high school and as an undergraduate have helped solidify her plans beyond her undergraduate studies, she added.

“Until this program, I didn’t realize that research was an option for me,” she said. “I thought that everything science had to be medical. Once I started doing this program, and I realized that this was more focused on knowledge and understanding and developing the field, then I realized that I actually liked doing this type of work more than being on the medical side.”

To Plaza, the work was also personal, as her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer prior to Plaza’s time in the BEYOND ALBERT program. Though she recovered, her mother was recently diagnosed with uterine cancer, Plaza added.

“I just feel grateful that I’m pushing the field forward so that these things can happen less in the future,” she said.

Gracia Bualuti, an M.S. candidate at Lehman College, and Diana Plaza, a rising sophomore at Fordham University, at a lab at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

How the lab prepares students for graduate school and beyond

Nazia Jamil, a Ph.D. student in the lab and Jessi’s mentor for the summer, noted opportunities like the BEYOND ALBERT program weren’t around when she was younger. Jamil, who moved from Bangladesh to New York City as a teenager, graduated from John Adams High School in Queens.

“These kids, eventually, they’ll go to apply for graduate school, and this research will help them be a strong applicant,” she said. “I lacked those opportunities, and it was a really hard struggle. But obviously time is evolving, and it’s getting even more competitive, so they definitely need this kind of exposure.”

The experience has not only given Jessi a new perspective on the future, but also a supportive community.

“I’ve always thought of the science field as isolating,” she said. “But this is like a second home, and I love coming in every day.”

Jessi, who was born in Bangladesh and whose parents never attended college, added that the relationships she’s formed and the research she’s conducted have offered further insight into what a career in the sciences might look like.

“Being here, surrounded by so many motivating women who have accomplished so much, has been truly inspiring,” she said. “A Ph.D. was never something I knew much about, and just getting to explore that this summer has in some ways really opened up different pathways for me to consider.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

NYC Education Department developing tool to help applicants gauge high school admissions chances

2024-08-22T18:57:51+00:00

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New York City’s Education Department is developing a new tool that could help high school applicants gauge their chances during the city’s notoriously complex admissions process, officials confirmed to Chalkbeat on Thursday.

The monthslong admissions process can be daunting for the tens of thousands of eighth grade students applying to public high schools each year, requiring families to consider more than 700 programs at over 400 schools. Schools across the city also employ different methods to determine admissions, further complicating the process.

For example, the city’s selective screened schools sort applicants into four different priority groups based on their seventh grade GPAs in core subjects. In cases where there are more applicants in a priority group than seats, selections are made based on a random number assigned to each applicant, sometimes referred to as a “lottery number.”

Meanwhile, schools that use open or educational option admissions primarily consider an applicant’s random number for admissions — though some take into account additional criteria to create priority groups. (Educational option programs set aside seats for students at different academic levels to promote academic diversity.)

The new tool — which is being developed through a partnership with Clemence Idoux and Viola Corradini, two affiliates of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Blueprint Labs — would live within the MySchools directory, and would take into account the many potential factors that can play a role during the admissions process, according to Education Department officials. That includes a student’s random number, as well as their home borough, their course grades, and more.

Officials said the tool is intended to give families more information as they determine which schools they plan to apply to. However, officials did not say whether the tool would be available during this year’s admissions cycle, adding the Education Department is continuing to engage with families to solicit feedback on the potential tool, and the timeline for its release remains unclear.

Elissa Stein, an admissions consultant who runs High School 411, believes such a tool would be “both helpful and disheartening.”

It’s “constructive to get a more realistic sense of where kids stand,” she said. But it would “also be a blow when students and families discover what is out of reach due to a random number.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

NYC test scores: Math scores rose, while English scores declined, data shows

2024-08-21T19:08:18+00:00

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Math scores rose across New York City public schools last school year while English scores ticked down, according to state test results released Wednesday by city officials.

Among students in grades 3-8, 53.4% were considered proficient or above in math, an increase of 3.5 percentage points. The share of children considered to be reading on grade level slipped to 49.1% — a 2.6 point decrease.

The dip in English scores comes at a pivotal moment, as schools Chancellor David Banks’ top priority is to raise literacy rates. He has required all elementary schools to use one of three approved reading programs. City officials acknowledged that the curriculum overhaul — which began in just under half of the city’s local districts last year and will roll out to all schools this fall — might have negatively affected test scores as teachers were getting used to unfamiliar materials.

A Chalkbeat analysis found that districts that began using the new curriculums last school year saw average proficiency rates drop by 3.5 percentage points. In districts that were not covered by the curriculum mandate, the drop was slightly smaller, at 2.8 percentage points. An analysis conducted by the Education Department shows similar trends.

Those figures only include students in grades 3-5, as middle schools have not been universally required to change reading curriculums. (Students who score a 3 on the state tests are considered proficient, while a 4 is above proficiency.)

“Significant change does not happen overnight, and the slight decline in [English] test scores represents a transitional period as our school system adjusts to a new method of instruction,” Banks said in a statement. City officials said other states that have pursued curriculum overhauls have also seen initial test score declines.

Still, experts said that aggregate test scores should be interpreted with caution, as many other variables besides the curriculum changes could push scores up or down, such as fluctuations in federal COVID relief funding and elevated rates of chronic absenteeism. The Education Department did not randomly select which schools were required to overhaul their curriculums in the first phase of the rollout.

The state test scores should be used “as only a rough indicator of students’ performance and not in any way as a decisive evaluation or referendum” on the curriculum overhaul, said Aaron Pallas, a professor at Columbia University’s Teachers College who has studied school performance and accountability systems. “When there’s multiple things changing at once, it’s really, really hard to isolate the impact of a curriculum change.”

Officials pointed to data from a separate battery of assessments that the city delivered to students in grades K-2 last spring that showed an uptick in reading scores compared with the year before as a sign of improvement. But those statistics also show that the scores among schools that adopted the new curriculums rose slightly less than schools that were not part of the curriculum mandate. Officials said the differences were not statistically significant.

Susan Neuman, a New York University professor who has supported the curriculum changes, said that while the city’s assessment data seemed more encouraging, it is too early to draw conclusions. “I don’t think it is valid” to use the state test scores to assess the curriculum mandate so far, she said. “I’m not concerned” about the decline, she added.

For his part, Pallas was skeptical that the city’s assessment data, based on a screener from a company called Acadience, could reveal much about policy implementation since it is typically used to identify individual students who are struggling so schools can deploy extra help.

“I fully understand the impulse of the city to crow about numbers that seem to be going up,” Pallas said. “But there, too, I think that has very little to do with the curricular changes that we are seeing.”

The state test scores released Wednesday came out months earlier than in recent years, which city officials said was due to state education officials giving them the green light to release local scores earlier. Scores were delayed until the fall last year as state officials developed cut scores for the new exam, but in 2022 and 2021, the data was released in late September and late October, respectively.

The scores continued to reveal disparities between different student groups.

About 70% of Asian American students and nearly 66% of white students scored proficient or above on English exams compared with nearly 39% of Black students and about 36% of Latino children. About 21% of students with disabilities were considered to be on grade level.

In math, almost 80% of Asian American children and just over 72% of white children were proficient, compared with about 38% of Black students and nearly 40% of Latino ones. Math proficiency rates were much lower for students with disabilities, at just over 27%.

The figures released Wednesday do not include charter schools.

More broadly, the state’s standardized tests have undergone a series of changes in recent years, making it difficult at times to compare data from one school year to the next. In 2020, for example, the exams were canceled due to the start of the COVID pandemic, and the following year they were reinstated but made optional for students across the state.

In 2023, students for the first time took a new exam aligned with the Next Generation Learning Standards, which were established after revisions to the controversial Common Core. Earlier this year, the city’s fifth and eighth graders took a computer-based model of those exams, as the state continues its multiyear phase-in of computer-based testing.

And across the city, an additional 185 schools opted into digital English exams for some portion of their third, fourth, sixth, or seventh graders, while 166 schools did so for math.

City data showed a larger drop in the share of fifth and eighth graders who scored proficient in reading on the most recent exams when compared to the city’s 3-8 grade students as a whole. While some studies have found students tend to do worse on exams taken on a computer or tablet, research isn’t definitive. Many states have already switched over to a computer-based model, but there have been different outcomes across the country.

City officials said they were “not able to confidently disentangle the impact of computer-based testing versus other factors” on students’ scores.

Still, the tests can be helpful for schools and districts, informing instructional decisions and assisting in the development of individual student learning plans.

Curious about school-level test results? Here is a searchable breakdown of math and English scores across all of the city’s public schools.

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

State test scores are out for NYC families, but broader city data yet to be released

2024-08-20T20:19:52+00:00

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New York City families: You can now view your student’s test scores from state exams last year, but you’ll have to wait for the broader city data.

The assessment scores were sent to schools just weeks before the start of the new year. The preliminary data can be helpful to schools and districts as they prepare for the start of the academic year, informing instructional decisions and learning plans for individual students.

Each spring, schools administer the standardized exams in reading and math to third through eighth graders. Fifth and eighth graders also take science exams. The test scores offer one look at how students are faring.

Statewide, 46% of traditional public and charter school 3-8 grade students scored proficient or above in English last year, meaning they demonstrated a performance level of 3 (proficient) or 4 (exceeds proficiency). Meanwhile 52% did so in math, according to the preliminary data. For science exams, 35% of fifth and eighth grade students scored proficient or above.

State officials have yet to release overall data for the city, and state figures still need to be verified and are subject to change. The public release of finalized data is anticipated by November, officials added.

“Our goal is to provide teachers, administrators, and parents with as much information as possible about their students’ performance and make it available as quickly as possible to improve classroom instruction,” the state’s Education Department said in a news release.

The 2024 state exams were only the second batch to follow the implementation of the state’s Next Generation Learning Standards, which were established after revisions from the controversial Common Core. They also saw schools across the city and state more widely make use of computer-based testing, with all of the city’s fifth and eighth graders swapping out paper exams for the digital model. That change came as part of the state’s multiyear phase-in of computer-based testing.

Families can view their students’ test scores in their NYC Schools Accounts. (To set up their accounts, families need their child’s student identification number as well as an account creation code from their child’s school.)

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org

About 25% of NYC high schools have newspapers. City Council wants to see more.

2024-08-14T18:03:30+00:00

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New York City Council members will soon call on the city’s Education Department to broaden access to newspapers at high schools across the five boroughs.

Council members are expected to pass a resolution on Thursday that will urge education officials to address stark inequities in journalism opportunities — calling on the Education Department to provide support for student newspapers at every high school. The push follows efforts by the New York City Youth Journalism Coalition earlier this year to garner support for expanding school journalism programs.

As of 2022, roughly 73% of the city’s high schools did not have school newspapers or student-run websites, according to a study by Geanne Belton, a journalism professor and director of the high school journalism program at the City University of New York’s Baruch College.

Students’ access to a journalism program broke down on racial and socioeconomic lines. More than three-quarters of the schools with the highest concentrations of white and Asian American students had student publications, while only 8% of schools with high concentrations of Black students and 16% of those with large shares of Latino students, according to the study. Schools with higher rates of poverty were far less likely to have a student publication.

Those inequities mirrored trends in the broader industry. A 2018 survey found that journalists of color made up just 22% of the workforce.

“There’s always been an absence of Black and brown bodies in telling stories — people are always telling our stories,” said Council member Rita Joseph, chair of the council’s education committee and the primary sponsor of the resolution. “This is an opportunity for students across the city to know what it’s like to tell their own stories.”

Joseph wants to see the Education Department provide further support to high schools seeking to establish journalism programs, including rolling out curriculum, training educators, and facilitating the creation of journalism clubs. She’s hopeful, too, that council members will use discretionary funds in the coming years to support journalism programs in their local district schools.

The council resolution does not require action by the city’s Education Department, but it’s the latest sign of support for further investments in high school journalism programs. Supporters of such programs note that journalism can help students build reading, writing, and media literacy skills, while addressing issues around civics, ethics, misinformation, and more.

Nathaniel Styer, a spokesperson for the Education Department, noted the city had recently connected superintendents with organizations that support student newspapers for presentations on how schools could better support student journalism.

“We’ve invested over $1.5 billion in schools, which goes a long way towards providing enriching opportunities for our students, like student newspapers,” he said in a statement over email. “We appreciate the councilmember’s advocacy on this topic and we look forward to continuing this work to support our student newspapers.”

Earlier this year, students, advocates, and educators gathered at City Hall for a day of action — urging officials to support more journalism programs in the city’s schools. That effort came as part of the launch of the “Journalism for All” initiative, which included a newly developed high school journalism curriculum set to roll out in the 2025-26 school year.

On Wednesday, members of the Youth Journalism Coalition praised the proposed council resolution.

“This is a really important step towards youth journalism equity within New York City,” said Makenna Turner, a recent graduate of the Institute for Collaborative Education in Manhattan and a member of the coalition.

Joseph noted it will take time to bring newspapers to the many schools that currently lack programs. But she’s hopeful to see access to journalism trending up in the coming school years.

“We’re not asking for this to happen overnight,” she said. “Right now, only 26% of New York City public high schools have student newspapers. I would love to see if we can get to 50%.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC families: Just weeks remain to apply for $120 per child in summer food benefits

2024-08-08T20:03:50+00:00

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Some New York children are already receiving summer food benefits as part of a new federal program rolling out this year, but hundreds of thousands of eligible families still have yet to apply, Gov. Kathy Hochul said Thursday.

So far, the state has issued nearly $200 million in benefits to more than 1.5 million children through the new Summer EBT program, with eligible families receiving $120 per child. Some families have already received the funds, while others will see them arrive in the coming weeks, according to state officials.

“No child should ever, ever go hungry because the cost of living was just too damn high for their parents and their families,” Hochul said during a Thursday press conference on the Lower East Side. “My jaw drops when I see the cost of groceries right here in our city and across the state of New York.”

The new benefits follow a similar federal program that began during the COVID pandemic and operated for several years, intending to help cover costs for meals usually provided at school. But though advocates described that program as a lifeline for families in need, some New Yorkers never redeemed their benefits, and millions of dollars in potential aid were routinely left on the table. Some critics blamed the unused funds on insufficient state outreach.

There are also key differences between the two programs. All New York City public school families received the pandemic-era benefits, but a smaller number of families are eligible under Summer EBT. Some New York City families will also have to apply in order to receive them — a potential barrier for those who may be unaware of the requirement.

“Here’s the issue: there are still hundreds of thousands of kids who are eligible, and their parents have not taken advantage of this,” Hochul said.

State officials estimate roughly 2 million children across the state are eligible for the benefits.

Families have just weeks left to apply to the program. Here’s what New York City families need to know:

Who is eligible

How to apply

Most eligible families, including recipients of SNAP, Temporary Assistance, or Medicaid, will automatically receive the funds. Those who will automatically receive them will be notified via a letter, state officials said.

Others will need to apply. Families can access the online application here, and must apply by Sept. 3.

When do benefits expire

Summer EBT funds will expire 122 days after they are issued.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

No, NYC schools haven’t adopted a systemwide dress code

2024-08-07T19:25:36+00:00

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A New York City Council resolution passed last month stirred some confusion over whether the city’s public schools would soon adopt a universal dress code policy.

Despite some headlines after the resolution’s passage, the resolution cannot mandate action, and the city’s Education Department has so far given no indication it will implement such a policy during the next school year.

Currently, principals have leeway to develop and implement their own dress code policies, meaning students across the city may have different rules depending on their school’s policies.

But in several hearings over recent months, Council members have expressed concerns that dress codes at some schools may unfairly target students of color, as well as those who are LGBTQ+.

Here’s a look at what action the Council took, why they took it, and what rules remain in effect for the coming school year:

City Council passes a bill and resolution on dress codes

City Council members passed a two-pronged legislative package. One was a bill that requires the city’s Education Department to report data on dress code policies, violations, and penalties in public schools. The other was a resolution calling on the department to adopt a universal dress code policy.

Though the bill will require action from the Education Department, the department can choose not to adopt a universal dress code policy in response to the resolution. (The Council can require data collection and other reporting from the Education Department, but is unable to set department policies.)

Discriminatory dress codes prompt City Council concerns

At recent hearings, council members expressed concerns that students may face discriminatory school dress code policies — particularly students who are LGBTQ+ and students of color. Some students said they’d seen policies applied unfairly and arbitrarily at their schools.

“I didn’t know about the term ‘dress code’ until middle school, when I noticed peers in school were getting tapped for wearing certain things like tank tops, skirts, shorts, or crop tops,” said Natalie Henry, a member of the Girls for Gender Equity Speakers’ Bureau, during a June hearing. “There wasn’t a clear dress code policy, though, so its enforcement seems to come from school staff members’ own unpredictable, personal, and sometimes, biased opinions.”

Jasmina Salimova, another member of Girls for Gender Equity, said her first introduction to dress codes came in middle school when her friend with a “curvier body type” was “dress coded” for wearing a tube top.

“This confused me, because other girls in my school did not get in trouble for their tube tops or tank tops; the only difference was their body types,” Salimova said. “That’s when I started realizing that the dress code targeted students with specific body types.”

Council members said increased transparency and oversight was needed to ensure policies were applied fairly across schools. Deputy Speaker Diana Ayala, a sponsor of the reporting bill, said students and families should be able to easily access any school’s dress code policies, allowing them to better ensure such policies are non-discriminatory.

“Uneven dress code policies in New York City public schools have led to disproportionate discipline and consequences for students simply expressing themselves,” Ayala said last month. “My hope is that this transparency will bring us towards consistent, inclusive, and fair policies across our school system that do not unjustly target our students.”

Education Department offers dress codes guidelines, not universal policy

The city’s Education Department has a set of dress code guidelines, which require schools to implement them “equally and in a non-discriminatory manner,” and to notify staff, students, and parents in writing about the dress code, as well as the consequences for violating it.

“Dress codes are decided at the individual school level and require that schools examine their reasoning and justification for their respective policies,” Education Department spokesperson Nathaniel Styer said in a statement. “Schools must consider evolving generational, cultural, social, and identity norms. Also, dress codes must be gender-neutral and cannot prohibit certain types of clothing that are stereotypically associated with one gender, and they must be implemented equally and in a non-discriminatory manner.”

At the City Council hearing in June, Education Department officials said students cannot be suspended for dress code violations. However, students can be removed from the classroom for repeated violations, officials said.

Styer advised any students concerned about their school’s dress code policy to contact their principal and School Leadership Team, a group of parents, staff, and other community members who develop policies for a school.

He did not comment on whether the Education Department would take any further action in response to the council resolution.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

A summer youth jobs program placing students in school kitchens offers a taste of culinary careers

2024-08-05T19:12:03+00:00

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Edgar Cordova, a rising 12th grader at Xavier High School in Union Square, has spent his summer working in a school kitchen — bagging milk, cleaning tables, and cutting up fruit.

But even though he’s surrounded by cooking constantly, he said he was excited to see a firsthand demonstration tailored to students.

Last month, he sat among roughly a dozen students in a kitchen at Essex Market, a food hall on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, watching as Chef Lily Chin mixed gochujang, honey, water, and vinegar for a sauce for bibimbop, a Korean rice dish.

Though Cordova isn’t doing much cooking in his current position, he added, “Maybe, if I practice more in the kitchen, I’ll improve.”

Cordova is one of about 150 students who found work as a culinary aide through this year’s Summer Youth Employment Program, a New York City program that connects young people between the ages of 14 and 24 to paid work experiences in July and August. Employment through the program has offered Cordova more than just the chance to improve his cooking skills — it’s given him income that he can put toward college and the future.

“I’ve been trying to save it up as much as I can,” he said.

For decades, the Summer Youth Employment Program, also known as SYEP, has provided the city’s youth with paid opportunities to explore potential career pathways. In recent years, it’s also expanded, with Mayor Eric Adams adding 25,000 seats in 2022 — bringing it up to 100,000 spots in total. Last year, the program also made a commitment to matching LGBTQ+ youth with “supportive work opportunities.”

City officials say the program can improve school attendance, reduce incarceration rates, and help keep young people safe over the course of the summer.

Cordova and other SYEP participants attended the cooking demonstration in late July as part of a series of four professional development days for those employed as culinary aides in New York City public school kitchens. These events were organized by the Mayor’s Office of Food Policy. (Adams has repeatedly emphasized the importance of healthy eating, and has included steering kids toward a better diet among his policy initiatives.)

In addition to a tour of Essex Market, students also attended panel discussions on careers in “food advocacy, justice, urban farming, and the connections between food and personal and planetary health,” according to a press release. Students also toured the Staten Island Composting Facility.

Darren Wong, a rising junior who has spent the summer prepping meals at Sunset Park High School in Brooklyn, said even though he works in a kitchen every day, he doesn’t know how to cook. His work has mainly consisted of cleaning the kitchen, preparing pizza and mozzarella sticks for summer school programs, or packaging cold lunches for other school programs.

Still, Wong likes the extra source of income. He said he plans to invest his earnings from the summer.

“I want to try to make more money using what I’ve earned,” he said.

Meanwhile, Jadore Baptiste, a student at the High School for Medical Professionals in Canarsie, said she’s been saving money from SYEP to help her move later this year. Working in the kitchen and helping to serve breakfast and lunch to students at P.S. 181 in Brooklyn has been a fun experience, she added.

“I’m learning,” Baptiste said. “In the kitchen, sometimes when they don’t have things, chefs improvise. So I’m learning how to improvise on meals.”

Chin went on to show students how to cook seasoned watercress, before offering a presentation on the nutrients within different foods. She emphasized the importance of eating calcium-rich foods like watercress. Between the ages of 19 and 30, bone mass in the body is increasing, Chin said. Without sufficient calcium during that time period, individuals become susceptible later in life to osteoporosis, a disease that causes bones to become weak and brittle due to a loss of density and mass.

She also took students on a tour of the market’s rooftop gardens, and then to Mille Nonne, an Italian restaurant on the ground floor, where students spoke with the owners about the work that led to opening their restaurant.

Students tour the rooftop gardens of Essex Market as part of a professional development day provided by New York City's Summer Youth Employment Program on July 26, 2024.

Chin, who teaches cooking classes to both students and seniors, said she’s enjoyed speaking with students interested in potential culinary careers and sharing her own path into the industry as a chef who learned by working at restaurants and did not attend culinary school.

But Chin hopes that if students take anything away from their experience at Essex Market, it’s not strictly about kitchens or cooking. It’s the nutritional information she shared about calcium.

“I didn’t learn about this until I turned 30 — no one told me,” she said. “Everyone says you should have calcium, but never exactly why.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC students to get free OMNY cards, allowing for year-round travel any time of day

2024-07-25T16:30:10+00:00

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Goodbye, student MetroCards.

New York City students will receive free OMNY cards in the coming school year, allowing for more flexible travel on weekdays and weekends, Mayor Eric Adams announced Thursday.

The new cards — which will be available for the 2024-25 school year — allow for four daily trips, and can be tapped 24 hours per day, seven days per week, for the entirety of the calendar year, city officials said Thursday during a press conference at Transit Tech High School in Brooklyn.

Previously, student-issued MetroCards allowed for just three free rides per day between 5:30 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. on school days. Students were issued new cards each semester, and couldn’t use them on evenings or weekends, which was a burden for students who come home late from internships or jobs or attend weekend classes or sporting activities. It also limited students who had to commute for other reasons, such as ferrying their siblings around. (Kids could only use MetroCards in the summer if they were enrolled in summer school.)

Now, students will receive one card that remains active until the start of the following school year. The initiative is supported by a mix of state and city funds. New York state will provide $25 million to the student OMNY card program, while the city contributes $50.5 million, up from $45 million, according to a press release.

“No more hourly restrictions, no more restrictions that you can’t use it on the weekends, and no more restrictions that you can’t use it out of the school year,” said MTA Chair Janno Lieber during the press conference. “It is about flexibility. That’s the difference.”

New York City’s subways and buses operate 24-hours a day all year, and the fare is $2.90 per ride for most straphangers.

The OMNY cards will allow students to travel on MTA subway lines, local, limited, and select buses, on the Staten Island Railway, the Roosevelt Island Tram, and the Hudson Rail link, according to a press release. Cards will be distributed by schools at the start of the year, with the MTA and Education Department partnering to promote card usage across the city’s school districts.

Students in K-12 grades who live half a mile or more from their school are eligible for the free transportation cards, according to the city’s Education Department. On Thursday, students from Transit Tech High School — which offers training for students interested in careers in the transit industry — praised the expanded flexibility of the new OMNY cards.

“I’m a student athlete, so we have games on Sundays and Saturdays, and not having the ability to travel for free, it kind of hurts sometimes,” said Malik Inniss, a student at the school, of the prior transit card rules. “As a full-time student, I don’t always have the ability to participate in internships and work.”

The new cards come as Adams has cracked down on fare evasion, increasing police presence in subways and suggesting links between fare evasion and violent crime.

“When it comes down to students, they are doing it out of necessity,” Adams said. “They are trying to get to school. They’re trying to pick up their niece, their nephew, their sibling, and they just don’t have the money to do so. We are attempting to make it easier to not have these young people have a record because they’re trying to carry out an activity that they must do.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

30 years ago, he led a landmark case on NY’s school funding formula. Now he wants it overhauled.

2024-07-24T21:55:34+00:00

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More than 30 years ago, the Campaign for Fiscal Equity filed a landmark case against the state of New York, alleging that its school funding system violated the constitutional right of New York City students to a “sound basic education.” After a drawn out legal fight, the state’s highest court agreed.

It paved the way for the state’s Foundation Aid formula, which determines how much money is sent to school districts based on student need — for example, providing additional funding to districts that serve higher populations of students in poverty, among other factors. That formula, implemented in 2007, didn’t receive full funding for more than a decade. In the coming year, New York officials may revise the formula amid widespread concerns that it’s outdated.

Now, a lawyer who led the Campaign for Fiscal Equity, or CFE, during its legal fight claims the state’s approach to updating the formula is unconstitutional.

As part of a state budget agreement earlier this year, the Rockefeller Institute is conducting a study on how to revise the formula, which sends roughly $24.9 billion to districts — including more than $9.5 billion to New York City schools. The institute began holding a series of public hearings this month, taking place in Manhattan and other districts across the state, to solicit testimony on the current formula.

Michael Rebell, executive director of the Center for Educational Equity at Columbia University’s Teachers College and the lawyer who led CFE, argues it isn’t enough just to tweak the nearly two-decade-old formula. Instead, he believes a true accounting of student needs requires going back to the drawing board — and that’s exactly what he intends to do.

The Center for Educational Equity will undergo its own effort to create a fair and equitable school funding formula, Rebell said.

Chalkbeat asked Rebell about this effort, why he believes the state’s approach falls short of its constitutional mandate, and whether he’s gearing up for another legal fight.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

You’ve referred to the Foundation Aid formula as outdated. Can you talk about some of the ways it’s failing to meet student needs?

To start off, the statistic that they use for counting the number of poverty-students is based on the 2000 census, or at least part of it is. Just out of the box, that is crazy. We’re looking at poverty figures from 24 years ago. Needless to say, in New York City, and in the rural areas all over the state, there have been huge changes.

It’s the same with this regional cost factor. That figure comes from 2006. It’s kind of nuts that we’ve got an 18-year old figure determining what’s a fair cost of living difference between the different parts of the state.

A lot of major changes have happened in the last 18 years. Some of the most obvious are: We didn’t know anything in those days about migrant students, and that’s become a big burden on New York City, on some of the Long Island districts, elsewhere in the state.

It’s the same with students in temporary housing. That was a minor issue in those days. There were a relatively small number of those kids, so that was also not put into the formula. But right now, we’ve got 10% or 11% of the students in New York City public schools in temporary housing, and as many people testified, there are a lot of extra costs that go along with that.

I’m from New York City. We’re certainly going to be sensitive to New York City’s interests, but we’re also concerned about kids throughout the state in rural areas. There’s a problem about “hold harmless.” And the reason that the legislature has been holding a lot of those districts harmless for the last five or six years is they’ve lost a lot of population. And there are some real questions about how you can have a viable school system if you’re substantially cut.

I’m not claiming to have an easy answer to that, but we are going to look into that.

Besides that, we have new needs like pandemic learning loss, and much greater concerns and issues about mental health throughout the state. So that’s why we’ve been saying for the last couple of years, “What you really need to do is start from scratch and say, let’s look at current needs — and once we examine what those current needs are, let’s come up with a fair formula.”

Our position is: That is exactly what the Constitution requires.

During your testimony, you said the state’s current approach to updating the Foundation Aid formula is “unconstitutional.” What is the constitutional mandate here, and why do you believe the state’s approach falls short of it?

The CFE case we started in 1993. Ten years later, we got this amazing decision from the highest court in the state that upheld our position 100% and more.

The system that was in effect before this court order was basically political wheeling and dealing. The powers that be — the speaker, the majority leader, and the governor — would go in a backroom somewhere, and they’d decide how much money we were going to spend on education, health, welfare, whatever. How much we were willing to raise taxes. Whatever it was to determine how much money was needed. But the basic consideration was a political calculation: How much do we want to spend on education? And then: How are we going to divvy up whatever that amount is?

That was always a political power play. Whoever was in control of the legislature was in control of how that pie was divvied up.

We found some correspondence that went from the Office of the Speaker to the state Education Department. This was a message saying, “All right, the decision has been made. Here are the percentages for this year. New York City gets 38.86% of the following amount, which is what the leaders agreed to. Run the figures and do it any way you want, but just make sure the bottom line is that New York City gets 38.86%.”

In other words, they’d have 50 different formulas, and depending who they felt they had to appeal to politically, they put more money in that basket.

We brought that to the court’s attention and they were just flabbergasted.

The court had already said the Constitution requires the state to provide all kids the opportunity for sound basic education. So in the decision, they said very clearly about five times, “The formula has to be based on need.”

The state must determine what is the amount of money you need for sound basic education based on relative need. Now that is the most critical thing, and that’s really what we’re relying on here. Essentially, the court was saying, “You don’t go in a backroom and throw around figures depending on political power.” You come up with some system that clearly and fairly looks at what the needs are, and you say, “Here’s the amount of money we need.” You don’t say, “Here’s the amount we’re willing to spend.”

That’s why we say it’s unconstitutional to do what the governor has been doing, because she’s not attempting to develop a new formula to determine what is the amount of funding we need based on need in 2024.

What does a constitutionally compliant school funding project look like? What work will the Center for Educational Equity be engaging in?

When we saw that the state was not going to do anything to move this forward, we got some support from a couple of foundations, and we’re entering into contract with the American Institutes for Research, which is one of these national firms that has a lot of experience and a lot of expertise in developing methodologies.

So we’re going to work with them to develop a new formula. We’re going to do stage one of it, but it’s really the state’s responsibility.

Offhand, there are six different ways of calculating poverty. Our people will come up with one of them, and we’ll have reasons for that, but in good faith, somebody else may say the other way of doing it is better. So it’s not an exact science. You can’t find the golden number, and everybody’s going to fall in line — which is why, if the state sets up a fair way of doing it, we’re better off having the state do it. If we come up with what we think is a fair, objective formula, well, we then have to advocate for it. If we have to, we’ll do that. But what I’d rather do is start the process.

During the current budget cycle, AIR is going to do what’s called a cost function analysis, a statistical pulling together of all of the relevant data that you can find, and doing a lot of data runs to figure out various ways of doing things.

So again, if we take poverty, there are six different ways that have been identified to calculate poverty. They’ll put in all the data for New York state and every school district in New York state, and they’ll give us what the outcome would be of the six different ways of doing it. So all of this statistical work that you need as a basis for making decisions will be done, but it’s all based on statistics.

There are things that you don’t have any statistics about. We’ve been very big on the importance of civic education recently, just to give an example. So the extra costs for getting students engaged in community engagement programs, we think is one of the best ways to get students civically involved. That costs money. It’s extra teacher time. It’s extra mentoring. Somehow, that should come into the calculation, if we want to make civic education a priority. I’m just picking up that one example, but you can imagine all kinds of qualitative things that need to be taken into account. That’s why you do need human judgment coming into it.

We’re going to do this cost analysis part of it, and we’re going to do that by next spring, when they’re doing the budget. But it’s got to have this qualitative thing. That’s part two. And we hope that by publicizing this, and keeping the pressure on them and saying, “We’ve already done some of the work for you, so it’ll be less expensive for you to do it next year. You guys can hire AIR or some other firm if you prefer, but pick up what they did. You’ve got all the statistical data now.

Get the job done in the second year.”

If the state chooses to continue with its approach, would you consider further legal challenges?

When the state was dragging its heels and not paying out the CFE money, we did bring another case. We filed it in 2014. These cases take a long time. It’s an enormous amount of data you have to pull together to prove to a court that they’re not meeting their responsibilities. We were ready to go to trial when the pandemic was starting, and that’s when Gov. Hochul came in. We had had this problem with Andrew Cuomo for years, and he wouldn’t budge. So we said, “We’re bringing you to court.” And we did. And as I said, the case was ready to go, and Hochul said, “Wait a minute… I’m going to settle this case. We’ve got a moral obligation. We should pay out the money.”

I don’t lightly threaten going to litigation, and to tell you the truth, I’ve done this twice — I’m not eager to do it again. Courts are not going to decide this overnight, so we’d rather work it out this way. We don’t want to wait years.

So I’d rather not, but I’m not telling you we wouldn’t.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

New York schools must notify parents ahead of lockdown drills, under newly amended rules

2024-07-15T21:33:32+00:00

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New York education officials are mandating that schools develop procedures to notify parents at least a week in advance of lockdown drills.

The change is part of new regulations set to take effect in 2024-25 requiring that the drills be conducted in “a trauma-informed, developmentally and age-appropriate manner,” according to the amended rules adopted by the state’s Board of Regents on Monday.

To some advocates and lawmakers who for years have sought changes in lockdown drill requirements out of concerns about their impact on student mental health, the amended regulations come as a welcome step. But they fall short of the full reforms that advocates sought.

Currently, New York law requires that public schools conduct at least four lockdown drills each year — a number that critics argue was arbitrarily chosen. Earlier this year, some lawmakers introduced a bill that would lower the requirement to two drills, but it didn’t pass by the end of the legislative session.

That bill included a series of provisions related to school drills — including several that were adopted by the Regents on Monday, such as the requirement that that parents and staff get advance notice and that the drills be trauma-informed, meaning they avoid tactics that could cause or trigger a traumatic response, like using props or actors to simulate a school shooting.

Lockdown drills had occurred in 95% of public schools in the U.S. as of 2016, with at least 40 states requiring them, according to Everytown for Gun Safety, a nonprofit that advocates against gun violence. The organization has advised against conducting lockdown drills, noting they can cause “collateral consequences to school communities’ mental health and wellbeing.”

New York is one of just a handful of states that require four or more lockdown drills each year, and its students can in some cases experience twice as many drills as those in other states, according to an analysis from the Trace, a news organization that covers gun violence.

Under the newly amended regulations, schools cannot use “props, actors, simulations, or other tactics intended to mimic a school shooting” during drills. For schools that choose to conduct additional exercises involving such elements, the amended regulations note that they cannot be conducted on a school day or involve students without written parental consent.

Robert Murtfeld, a Manhattan parent who has been advocating for the lockdown drill reform for years, said the amended regulations are “a hugely positive step.” Though he still hopes to see state lawmakers lower the mandated number of drills and allow parents to opt their children out, Murtfeld added that the amended rules will be greatly beneficial in the coming school year.

“It’s absolutely transformative,” he said. “Last year, when the bill stalled, we started in September with nothing. Now, the bill has stalled, but we really have something quite comprehensive.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Families say a Brooklyn elementary school won’t let students form an LGBTQ+ club

2024-07-12T20:30:07+00:00

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Families at a Brooklyn elementary school say the school’s administration has been resisting their efforts to establish an LGBTQ+ club, despite a city official acknowledging to one parent that students were entitled to the club.

Johanna Neufeld, whose daughter recently finished kindergarten at P.S. 139 in Flatbush, said families began advocating more than a year ago for a Rainbow Club. Parents and students sought to establish a space for those who identify as LGBTQ+, or who have family members within the LGBTQ+ community.

But those efforts have stalled, with administrators introducing a growing list of obstacles, said Neufeld. As a result, she feels her family’s experience and those of others are being excluded.

“It’s really important for kids to feel seen, and validated, and have their home life validated,” Neufeld said. “We do a lot of stuff around food, and culture, and peoples’ backgrounds, and where their families are from, and it’s really important, and it’s been wonderful for my daughter… But there hasn’t been an opportunity for her to say, ‘I have two moms, and this is how we live, and this is our experience.’”

The school’s principal did not respond to a request for comment. Education Department officials did not comment on why the P.S. 139 club has not been approved.

The continued push for the club comes as a petition urging city, district, and school officials to support its formation garnered more than 65 signatures from families at the roughly 700-student school — with signees sharing hopes that the club will offer a supportive and affirming space for students to learn about and celebrate all identities. Studies have found that such clubs, often referred to as gender and sexualities alliances, or GSAs, can have a positive impact on student mental health and youth development.

“Broadly, these clubs exist like any other,” said Clark Wolff Hamel, director of education programs at PFLAG NYC, an organization that supports LGBTQ+ youth. “They allow students a space to find other people who share similar interests. That’s the point of an extracurricular club: To establish community.

“Establishing community at young ages is incredibly important, because those are the ages at which kids are starting to understand a sense of identity — not just personal identity, but family identity,” he added. “There are kids who come from LGBTQ+ families — whether it’s families with same-gender parents, whether it’s families who have siblings who are part of the community, whatever that looks like — [these clubs help them] understand that they are not alone in it.”

Still, in spite of the potential benefits to school communities, Hamel said he’s encountered many schools that resist efforts to establish them due to a fear of pushback from other families.

GSAs and other LGBTQ+ student groups have existed in schools for decades — with a group of New York City students forming one of the first such clubs at their high school in 1972. Across the country, the number of schools with GSAs can vary significantly between states. New York was among just a handful of states to report that more than half of their secondary schools had a GSA in 2018, according to one analysis of U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.

The city’s Education Department did not provide data on the number of GSAs in New York City schools.

Initially, P.S. 139 administrators told families they couldn’t establish the club without a faculty advisor and without funding to support it, Neufeld said. But when parents addressed each of those concerns — finding a teacher willing to run it, and securing funding from the Parent Association — the school continued to resist the club’s creation.

Eventually, families were offered a “Respect for All” club instead, with a curriculum that would address LGBTQ+ issues in a limited capacity, while largely focusing on combating bullying and creating a supportive student community, Neufeld said.

“Those are all important things, but not what we were asking for,” she said.

Orli LeWinter, a member of the Parent Association executive board, said the PA has not been directly involved with efforts to establish the club, but confirmed it will fund the club if it is approved.

Under federal law, students generally have a right to form GSAs in secondary schools. Though the Equal Access Act’s club protections only explicitly refer to secondary schools, Hamel said there has been “a massive precedent set in NYC that … elementary schools should also be protected in the same ways.”

And emails shared with Chalkbeat show an official from the city’s Education Department confirming to Neufeld in January that students at the school are “entitled to affinity group spaces” under federal law.

“Students within NYCPS are entitled to affinity group spaces, as stated in the Federal policy, the Equal Access Act,” wrote a member of the Education Department’s Office of Safety & Youth Development, instructing local district officials to help facilitate the creation of the club. “Please contact the school and make them aware of this legal compliance, being that we are a public school system.

“Please also inform them that NYC Public Schools is in full support of GSA groups at all grade levels,” the Education Department official added, according to the email obtained by Chalkbeat.

Still, despite the involvement of city and district officials, the club has not been formed, Neufeld said.

City officials told Chalkbeat there is no policy regarding GSAs in elementary schools, adding the Education Department’s LGBTQ Supports Team provides programming and general assistance to schools to ensure they meet the needs of LGBTQ+ students.

Neufeld expressed frustration with school administrators at P.S. 139, as well as the city’s Education Department and officials in her district — all of whom she noted have been made aware of the situation. It remains unclear why the club cannot be formed at the school, she added.

“What has become clear is that the administration does not want it to be something that is identifiably pro-LGBTQ,” Neufeld said.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Proposed NYC charter hopes to become second LGBTQ+ affirming middle school in nation

2024-07-11T22:48:50+00:00

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A proposed New York City charter school hopes to become the second LGBTQ+ affirming middle school in the nation, as a vote on nine potential new charter schools could come as soon as next week.

Joji Florence and Jill Glassbrook, founders of the proposed Miss Major Middle School, are seeking to establish a school that supports students as they navigate questions of identity.

“As you’re understanding your identity, and as you’re going to explore it, we want to be the place that gives you a lot of time, and a lot of space, and a lot of support for you to stumble through it,” said Florence, a long-time educator who would serve as Head of School at Miss Major Middle. “To connect as many moments of joy with your identity as possible. That’s what we’re trying to do… There’s no space like that here for middle schoolers.”

The school draws its name from Miss Major Griffin-Gracy, a Black transgender activist. Glassbrook, who would serve as executive director of the proposed school, is also the executive director of Future Leaders Incubator, an organization that has worked with schools to create more diverse communities, placing more than 350 teachers in New York City schools over the past five years.

If approved, the downtown Brooklyn school would become the second charter middle school in the U.S. designed for LGBTQ+ students and their families, according to Florence and Glassbrook. They’ve taken inspiration in part from a visit to Magic City Acceptance Academy, a 6-12 school in Alabama that was also founded as an LGBTQ+ affirming school.

Miss Major Middle School is one of 21 applicants for nine spots for new charter schools in New York City, according to public records. A SUNY board that authorizes the charters could vote as soon as July 17, Florence and Glassbrook said.

The SUNY Charter Schools Institute did not respond to a request for further information about the upcoming vote.

The new charter schools are part of a deal struck between state lawmakers and Gov. Kathy Hochul during last year’s budget negotiations, ending a four-year pause on new charters. Under the deal, legislators agreed to allow charter school operators to open 14 “zombie” charters — schools that closed or were never opened.

Of those, nine remain available. Others vying for the nine spots include charter networks seeking to expand, as well as smaller independent groups. Success Academy, the city’s largest charter network, is seeking to add six additional schools to its more than 50 sites. Meanwhile, Zeta Charter Schools has applied to open four new schools, in addition to its five current locations.

Classical Charter Schools and Urban Dove Team Charter Schools each are hoping to open an additional school for their networks.

On Thursday, Florence and Glassbrook took a small group on a tour of the site that has been secured for the potential school. They envision 18 classrooms, as well as common areas and outdoor terraces, spread across three floors of a retail building located at the base of a luxury high-rise apartment complex. An additional space will be devoted to the arts, with hopes of potential partnerships with local organizations supporting LGBTQ+ arts.

Miss Major Middle School would serve roughly 160 students in fifth and sixth grades in the 2025-26 school year, growing to serve around 400 fifth- to ninth-grade students over the next few years. Admissions to the school would be open to all students across the city through a lottery, though applicants within downtown Brooklyn’s District 13 would have an advantage and be entered twice in the lottery.

To Florence, Glassbrook, and other supporters of Miss Major Middle School, the proposed school represents a chance to provide LGBTQ+ students with additional support — though they emphasized it would be a welcoming space for all students.

The site for the proposed charter school Miss Major Middle School on Thurs., July 11, 2024 in Brooklyn, New York.

Across the country, many LGBTQ+ students have reported facing hostility at school, and struggling with mental health challenges. Reports have found depression, hopelessness, and suicidal thoughts occur far more frequently among LGBTQ+ students than their peers.

And in New York City, a Manhattan parent council’s resolution calling on the city’s Education Department to revisit guidelines on trans girls’ sports participation sparked anger and fear among students and families. Education Department officials said the council’s resolution would be rejected.

Supporters of Miss Major Middle School hope that its approval will offer middle school students in New York City a safe place to explore and embrace their identities.

It’s a mission that some other schools locally and nationwide have adopted. Glassbrook said Miss Major Middle School has partnered with a handful of other schools, including Magic City Acceptance Academy, as well as Harvey Milk High School in Manhattan. The latter school, named after the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California, was founded in the 1980s to support LGBTQ+ and other students and currently serves about 100 students.

Ashirea Burroughs, a local educator and former Future Leaders Incubator fellow who supports the proposed school, emphasized its importance for New York City students.

“A school like this is critical — it has to exist,” Burroughs said. “The truth is, most schools are not safe for LGBTQ students now. But Miss Major Middle is an opportunity to create one that is safer, and that supports a future where all schools are.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC educators: How are AI-powered tools changing your classroom?

2024-07-09T18:19:01+00:00

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New York City teachers: We want to hear your thoughts about how artificial intelligence-powered tools like ChatGPT are changing the classroom.

It’s been more than a year since the tech group OpenAI introduced ChatGPT to the public — with it and a slew of other chatbots and tools introducing new ways to generate writing and content using AI. Today, some students at New York City high schools report widespread use of AI-powered chatbots among their peers. And nationally, 44% of teenagers said in a survey they were likely to use AI-powered tools to complete their schoolwork for them, even though a majority considered it cheating.

Others say they’ve turned to artificial intelligence as a means of enhancing their learning — viewing it as a potential personalized tutor, capable of breaking down difficult concepts and challenging assignments.

School districts across the country have grappled with how to respond to the new technology. Some large districts have moved to create their own AI-powered tools — at times to mixed results.

Early last year, New York City schools blocked ChatGPT on school devices and networks, citing “negative impacts on student learning, and concerns regarding the safety and accuracy of content.” But a few months later, the city reversed course, with schools Chancellor David Banks proclaiming the city’s schools were “determined to embrace its potential.”

At a discussion last month at The Neighborhood School, which was co-sponsored by Chalkbeat, AFT President Randi Weingarten noted advances in artificial intelligence have prompted questions over how such tools could benefit educators.

“What if you used AI, for example, if you were a high school social studies teacher, and you used AI as the first cut of grading papers to actually make sure that grammar was right, or that spelling was right?” she said. “Some people might say ‘No, let’s not,’ and some people might say, ‘Well, that may be an interesting thing.’”

As conversations around AI in schools remain ongoing, we want to hear what you’re seeing in your classroom. Are your students using ChatGPT and other AI-powered tools? How do you think this technology is changing schools?

Please fill out the form below to let us know.

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Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC budget deal invests more money in 3-K, but falls short of full early childhood restoration

2024-06-28T21:53:47+00:00

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A tentative budget agreement announced on Friday will see additional dollars funneled to New York City’s free preschool program for 3-year-olds, but falls short of the full restoration sought by child care advocates.

The deal on a total $112.4 billion city budget comes just days shy of the July 1 deadline and follows months of negotiations between City Council and Mayor Eric Adams’ administration. The turbulent budget process has seen Adams direct several rounds of cuts and restorations to the Education Department’s budget, as New York City braces for the expiration of billions of dollars of one-time federal pandemic relief money.

Officials did not say how much funding in total would be allocated to the city’s Education Department during the Friday announcement. In April, the mayor’s proposal devoted $32.2 billion to the city’s schools. That proposal represented a 2.4%, or $808 million, decline in funding for the next fiscal year.

Still, the city’s contribution to the Education Department’s budget — which also includes federal and state dollars — is set to rise by at least $1.6 billion. However, that additional funding isn’t enough to offset the $2.4 billion drop in federal funds.

The final budget represents a significant win for advocates who feared City Hall would institute deep spending reductions on top of expiring federal aid. But in the end, Adams dialed back the worst of the cuts and found hundreds of millions in city money to replace federal dollars.

“We began the year sounding the alarm,” wrote Kim Sweet, the executive director of Advocates for Children, an organization that represents high-need families and pushed hard for funding restorations. “We appreciate that the budget deal includes more than $600 million for critical education initiatives currently supported with expiring federal funds.”

Preschool programs see partial funding restoration

The budget agreement will see an additional $20 million invested in the city’s program for 3-year-olds to add seats for families without 3-K placements, as well as an additional $25 million — that will join an existing $15 million, for a total of $40 million — to expand days and hours at more preschool programs and help fill vacant 3-K and pre-K seats, according to city officials.

It will also add $30 million to increase funding for preschool special education seats. Children with disabilities have languished without placements despite a vow from Adams to provide universal access, as required by law. Adams had already agreed to replace $56 million in federal funding that he had previously directed to stabilize the preschool special education system, and another $25 million to create more seats and help provide other services like speech therapy.

City officials said the additional funding would guarantee every child with a disability a seat, though it remains to be seen if that promise will translate into reality — as the shortage of seats and related services has persisted for many years.

Under the budget agreement, a working group will also seek to develop reforms to the early childhood system, officials said.

The city budget “balances fiscal responsibility and taking care of working class New Yorkers,” the mayor said.

But the budget agreement won’t fully reverse the cuts that early childhood programs have faced this year. The city’s preschool system has taken center stage in budget negotiations, with council members and advocates pushing for further investments.

Adams put forward a plan in April that would replace $92 million of expiring federal funding for 3-K with city and state funds, but that plan did not restore a separate $170 million of city funding that was previously cut from early childhood programs. The mayor repeatedly argued the cuts were necessary because the city was wasting money on thousands of unfilled preschool seats.

Though the council initially sought a full restoration of the $170 million cut, Finance Committee Chair Justin Brannan acknowledged on Friday that “some of the numbers are aspirational,” conceding that vacant seats were an issue and the early childhood system needed deeper reforms.

“We needed to do more than just restore those cuts,” he said. “We needed to be smart about it, because you have a system right now that’s got a wait list and lots of vacant seats, so it needs reform … just throwing money at the problem wasn’t going to fix it.”

Despite cuts to the early childhood system, the mayor has promised every family who desires a seat in the city’s prekindergarten and 3-K system will receive one.

Still, last month, some families said they didn’t receive a spot in any program they applied to — or were admitted to a program that was far from home, posing severe logistical challenges. Officials later said many seats remained open and the city would work with families who were not initially admitted to find nearby open seats.

Council Speaker Adrienne Adams stressed that offering a 3-K seat to every family will require more funding from state sources. “We cannot afford to do this work alone,” she said.

Despite added funding, concerns over preschool, other programs persist

The looming fiscal cliff has also placed the fate of several other education programs in limbo. Those include roughly 400 contracted school nurses — some of whom provide care at buildings that previously lacked a school nurse — as well as Promise NYC, a program that offers subsidized child care for undocumented families.

The budget deal will see $25 million invested in Promise NYC, a roughly $9 million increase, though it was not immediately clear on Friday whether it would provide funding for school nurses.

Though child care advocates were pleased to see some funding restored, many remained concerned over the state of the city’s early childhood system. The sector has struggled under Adams, faced with payment delays that have hobbled many programs. Additionally, the city has not yet solved the longstanding salary disparity issue, where teachers in privately run but publicly funded pre-K programs earn significantly less than their counterparts teacher 3- and 4-year-olds in public school programs.

“The early childhood education system in New York City is complicated — the needs of children and families are not,” said Nora Moran, the director of policy and advocacy at United Neighborhood Houses. “We continue our fight to ensure there is a seat for every young New Yorker in our early childhood education system, and we urge the City to invest in our center-based early childhood workforce by bringing them into parity with their public school counterparts working the same jobs with the same credentials — something this budget fails to address.”

Budget process marked by repeated cuts and restorations

In recent months, the mayor has announced a series of budget cuts and investments as the city worked to fill sizable gaps left by the expiring federal relief funds — further clouding the already complicated process through which the city determines its more than $112 billion budget.

In November, the Education Department cut roughly $550 million from its budget as Adams directed a sweeping round of citywide reductions. Another round of cuts in January slashed an additional $100 million from the budget, though those cuts were less severe than had been previously anticipated.

Separately, the Adams administration has worked to find city and state dollars to replace funding for programs currently propped up by federal funds.

In April, the mayor announced the city would use more than $500 million of city and state funds to plug holes in the Education Department budget created by expiring COVID relief funds. And earlier this month, the mayor announced an additional $127 million would help reverse budget cuts at some schools that have faced enrollment losses, fund restorative justice programs that encourage peer mediation and other non-punitive methods of resolving conflicts, and restore hours for the city’s popular Summer Rising program.

Though some education programs that were previously propped up by federal funding will have dedicated city funds that persist beyond the next fiscal year, others — like a roughly $92 million expansion of 3-K, the Learning To Work program that supports students at risk of dropping out, and the Project Pivot program that partners schools with community organizations to reduce violence — will need to be renegotiated during the next budget process, teeing up future education funding fights.

City Council is expected to formally vote on the budget deal on Sunday.

Michael Elsen-Rooney contributed reporting.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

Cell phone ban for NYC schools could come ‘within 2 weeks,’ Chancellor David Banks says

2024-06-26T20:51:38+00:00

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New York City schools Chancellor David Banks may announce a cell phone ban for the nation’s largest school district “within the next two weeks,” he told reporters on Wednesday.

“You’re going to hear, within the next two weeks, the big announcement, but I will tell you we are very much leaning towards banning cell phones,” Banks said outside of P.S. 165, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, as kids were dismissed for the last day of school. “We’re working out the kinks on this, and we want to make sure that we do it right.”

The move comes as momentum is swiftly building around school cell phone bans. The board for Los Angeles public schools, the country’s second largest district, voted last week to ban phones and expects to implement a plan in January 2025. Gov. Kathy Hochul last month said she was mulling a statewide school cell phone ban. And in a New York Times op-ed last week, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy called for a warning on social media platforms, and said that schools should be phone-free spaces.

Banks first mentioned the two-week timeline on NY1.

New York City currently allows principals to set their own policies on cell phones, after a citywide prohibition was dropped in 2015.

But in recent weeks, Banks has raised alarm over the harmful effects of cell phones on student mental health and learning. He has also pointed to safety issues, previously stating some students have used phones to arrange after-school fights.

“I can’t think of any good reason why kids would actually have their phones while they’re in school,” Banks said on Wednesday.

Banks previously said he’s been talking with “hundreds” of principals, and they have overwhelmingly told him they’d like a citywide policy banning phones.

The details of any ban are critical as to whether it will help reconnect students with their schoolwork — and each other, according to results of a Chalkbeat survey.

Most schools across the five boroughs already have bans in place, but they differ dramatically. Some schools mandate their students carry around Yondr pouches, cloth cases for phones that are locked from morning to dismissal. Others collect and store phones during school hours. Still other schools have policies on paper that ultimately put the onus on teachers to enforce – and many students and educators said that often leads to a patchwork of policies.

None of these approaches is foolproof, according to educators, parents, and students. To avoid the pouches or collection systems, kids might use “dummy” phones or say they forgot to bring their devices, teachers and parents said. Nonetheless, many educators are hungry for a clear and consistent policy.

Any ban would need to address not only the school-level logistics of collecting or storing cell phones but also the concerns of parents, who are often prime offenders of contacting kids during the school day.

“We know [students] need to be in communication with their parents after school,” Banks said, “and if there’s something going on during the day, parents should just call the school the way they always did before we ever had cell phones.”

Banks recently told parents in Brownsville that he read “The Anxious Generation,” a new book by Jonathan Haidt, a New York University Stern School of Business social psychologist and New York City public school parent. In the book, Haidt makes a strong case for phone-free schools. He also recommends that parents not give smartphones to students before high school and prohibit the use of social media before age 16.

The chancellor’s latest comments on cell phones represent a relatively recent shift in his views.

“I’m not sure that we’re at the point yet where we’re talking about banning the cell phones,” he said when Chalkbeat asked about the possibility of a citywide ban in March. “It’s a very, very difficult thing to enforce, number one. Number two, I want to make sure schools are figuring out ways to better engage kids in more beneficial uses of technology, including their phones.”

Antoine Zoundi, a parent of a first and fourth grader at P.S. 165, said he was in favor of a school cell phone ban. His kids do not yet have mobile phones — and he doesn’t anticipate allowing them to have devices until they’re 15 or 16, he said — but he can already see how phones are making it harder for students to concentrate on schoolwork.

The dad, who lives in the Bronx, wasn’t concerned about needing to reach his children during the school day, saying he could reach out to the school.

“When I want to get in touch with my child,” he said, “I have to get in touch with the school because they are responsible for the safety of the child during this time of school hours.”

The parent of another student at P.S. 165, who asked not to be identified for privacy reasons, added that she’s hoping to see the city adopt a cell phone ban in schools.

“Recently, I was on a field trip with my fourth grade son and his friends,” she said of a school trip to a nearby playground. “Some of them, instead of playing games, they were just on their phones.

“They’re so young for that,” she added. “I don’t think they need a phone at school.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy at azimmer@chalkbeat.org.

Math instruction overhaul: NYC unveils new curriculum mandate for middle and high schools

2024-06-24T22:42:52+00:00

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Math instruction is the latest problem New York City officials are trying to solve.

Middle and high schools are adopting standardized math curriculums in hopes of addressing stark racial disparities in state test scores, Mayor Eric Adams said Monday.

Known as “NYC Solves,” the new initiative takes a page from the city’s literacy curriculum overhaul, the signature education policy of Adams and schools Chancellor David Banks, which requires elementary schools to choose from among three pre-approved reading curriculums.

“Schools all over the city, even on math, were just kind of doing their own thing,” Banks said at a press conference at Samara Community School in the Bronx. “That’s no way to run a system.”

The vast majority of high schools are in the process of adopting a single Algebra 1 curriculum. By this fall, 420 high schools will use Illustrative Mathematics for that subject, a program that emphasizes building students’ conceptual understanding of math rather than focusing on more step-by-step procedures. (Six high schools were granted waivers from using the curriculum; officials did not immediately say which ones.)

Meanwhile, over the next three years, all middle schools will be required to use an approved math program. Curriculums created by the companies i-Ready, Amplify, and Illustrative Math are currently approved by the department, though Deputy Chancellor Danika Rux said the city may tweak that list in future years. Local superintendents will be able to select which curriculums their schools use from the list, a process similar to the city’s literacy initiative. Officials said they have allocated $34 million to “NYC Solves” over five years.

The districts in the first round — Manhattan’s District 2; districts 7, 11, and 12 in the Bronx; Brooklyn’s districts 14, 15, and 32; and District 26 in Queens — are participating voluntarily, officials said. Those districts already widely use Illustrative Math, meaning many middle schools will likely not see significant changes next school year. About 63 of the initial 93 middle schools participating in the first phase are currently using the curriculum, though a spokesperson said other schools may have been using a free version that is not tracked centrally.

At the high school level, the math curriculum mandate is expected to extend to other high school grades, as well as elementary schools and District 75, which serves students with disabilities, in later phases of the initiative, though officials did not offer a specific timeline.

The curriculum overhaul comes as the city’s students have long struggled with the subject, and some educator advocacy groups have pushed for changes. Fewer than half of the city’s elementary and middle school students scored proficient on state math exams last year given to third through eighth graders. Urgency to address the issue has been heightened by pandemic learning losses, as well as stubborn disparities in math achievement between Black and Latino students and their white and Asian American counterparts.

Last year, just 34.3% of students who are Black and 35.7% who are Latino demonstrated proficiency on their math exams, compared to 70.2% of white students and 77.6% of Asian American students.

“That is wholly unacceptable,” Banks said. “As the data shows, not only do we have a literacy crisis in this country, we absolutely have a math crisis as well. And this struggle with math, for many of us, runs very deep, and it starts early.”

Banks suggested that the curriculum changes could be a challenge for teachers, many of whom he said are themselves uncomfortable with the subject.

The Illustrative Math curriculum has focused on posing unfamiliar math problems to students with minimal introduction, prioritizing student exploration with a goal of developing deeper conceptual understanding. It was developed by a University of Arizona professor in 2011, following sweeping changes to math teaching that occurred after the rollout of the Common Core standards, a set of benchmarks meant to give states shared academic goals.

Earlier this year, the curriculum left some New York City educators divided — with some arguing it represented an overdue shift away from rote memorization, while others worried it lacked the kind of structure and built-in repetition that many students need, particularly those who are struggling.

Marielys Divanne, the executive director of Educators for Excellence, an advocacy group that has pushed for math reforms, praised the shift.

“NYC Solves is another huge and much-needed step forward in helping our students achieve better outcomes in math,” she said in a statement.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

NYC schools restructuring: A new deputy chancellor for students with disabilities, English learners

2024-06-24T19:50:18+00:00

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New York City’s Education Department is creating a new division to support students with disabilities and children learning English as a second language, officials announced Monday.

The Division of Inclusive and Accessible Learning, or DIAL, will be led by Christina Foti, who is being promoted from her role as chief of Special Education — where she has earned accolades from advocates and families — to Deputy Chancellor for Inclusive and Accessible Learning.

Mayor Eric Adams first announced the move Monday in a Daily News op-ed.

The new division will have a $750 million budget and 1,300 staffers, pulling staff and funding that were already directed toward students with disabilities and English learners but were housed in a different part of the Education Department bureaucracy. The city’s special education advisory council, composed of parents, students, educators, and advocates, will help support the new division.

“We’re going to give it our all,” Adams said Monday at Samara Community School in the Bronx. “We’ve heard it over and over and over again about this population of achievers who are not given the opportunity that they deserve.”

The move represents the latest reshuffling for administrative staff who oversee special education and multilingual learners. The Education Department previously had a deputy chancellor position responsible for special education and multilingual learners, though that role was eliminated in 2018.

More recently, special education and multilingual learners fell under the division of teaching and learning overseen by Deputy Chancellor Carolyne Quintana. In March, schools Chancellor David Banks disbanded that unit, and Quintana left the department. The staff then reported to Danika Rux, the deputy chancellor of school leadership.

Advocates largely praised the move to give students with disabilities and multilingual learners their own division and deputy chancellor, as city officials have historically struggled to serve those students, who represent a significant chunk of the school system.

Roughly 21% of students in New York City are classified as having disabilities and requiring special education services through Individualized Education Programs, or IEPs, according to data from the 2022-23 school year. About 14% of students across the five boroughs are learning English as a new language.

Both groups have seen major challenges in recent years.

City officials have long failed to provide all students with disabilities with the therapies and instruction they’re entitled to, driving thousands of families to seek out private schools or services that now cost the city more than $1 billion each year.

Under Adams, the Education Department has made some reforms to the special education system, including modestly expanding programs that serve students with autism.

But some of Adams’ highest-profile efforts have fallen short. A major promise to provide every student with a disability access to a preschool seat has gone unfulfilled. Hundreds of children are still languishing without one, despite a legal requirement to offer them seats.

And even after his schools chief promised to comply with a federal court order to address lengthy delays in providing services to families, the city has not fully implemented most of the order’s requirements.

And with about 38,000 migrant students entering the city’s public schools over the past two years, many schools have struggled to keep up with the demand in language services, mental health support, and helping them with basic needs such as food and clothing. Many of their families are living in shelters they are only able to stay in for 60 days, which adds a layer of stress as parents navigate long commutes for their children when they move or try to figure out the notoriously difficult yellow school bus system.

On Monday, special education advocates praised Foti’s promotion and the establishment of the new division, though they remained wary over the city’s track record on supporting students with disabilities. Foti received multiple standing ovations during Monday’s press conference from Education Department staff and advocates.

Paullette Healy, an advocate and parent of a child in District 75, which exclusively serves students with disabilities, said Foti’s promotion was “a long time coming.”

“Having a thoughtful and effective leader helming this historic division is a major win for struggling families raising children with learning differences in NYC,” she said.

Maggie Moroff, a special education policy expert at Advocates for Children, noted Foti’s new position “makes a lot of sense.”

“This feels like a smart move and a statement of commitment to the students her division will be supporting,” she said. “We will, of course, be watching closely and hoping it ensures all students with IEPs and learning differences can be successful in the NYC schools.”

Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NY is changing high school graduation requirements. Here’s what’s next in the multi-year effort.

2024-06-10T19:25:41+00:00

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Students will no longer be required to pass the state’s Regents exams to earn a high school diploma under a set of proposed actions New York Education officials outlined on Monday.

Instead, they will have a menu of options to choose from to demonstrate their knowledge and skills in seven key areas: critical thinking, effective communication, cultural and social-emotional competences, innovative problem solving, literacy across content areas, and a status as a “global citizen.”

Together, these areas help establish a “portrait of a graduate,” which officials hope will serve as the “north star” of the education system.

The proposals — presented at a meeting of the state’s Board of Regents — come as the latest step in a multi-year effort to redefine the state’s graduation requirements.

Though state officials did not take action on the proposed changes on Monday, they are moving toward implementing the 12 recommendations that a 64-member Blue Ribbon Commission unveiled last year, which included calling for assessment options beyond the Regents exams, broadening access to career and technical education, creating additional credit requirements in subjects like cultural competence, writing, STEM, and more, as well as other changes.

Education officials will present a full plan for implementation to the Regents in November, with projected timelines as well as further details about possible fiscal and regulatory implications of the changes.

Here’s a look at the four proposed actions outlined by state education officials, as well as what lies ahead for New York high schools:

How New York diploma requirements could change

New York education officials presented four “transformative actions” to move the state toward implementing the commission’s 12 recommendations.

The first of these actions would adopt the commission’s portrait of a graduate as the framework for high school diploma requirements, tasking students with demonstrating proficiency in each of its attributes prior to graduation. Education officials also called for the state to redefine credits to focus on proficiency, expanding the ways students can show their skills to include options like capstone learning projects, work-based learning experiences, and more.

As an example, education officials noted students could demonstrate their communication skills in various ways, like obtaining a seal of biliteracy, taking an English composition course, working a summer internship at a community newspaper, passing a state English exam, and completing a digital media career and technical education program.

The state would also add new CTE and financial literacy credit requirements.

State education officials also proposed ending a requirement that students pass Regents exams in order to earn a diploma — keeping the exams as one option for students to fulfill requirements, but not mandating all students pass them in order to graduate.

The state should also consolidate to a single state diploma, eliminating local and advanced designation diplomas, and instead offering those distinctions as seals or endorsements, officials said. Under this change, local school districts would be required to confer degrees to students who fulfill state graduation requirements and could no longer withhold a diploma based on district requirements.

What the proposals mean for the state’s Regents exams

Officials emphasized Monday that the state’s Regents exams will continue to be administered.

The exams, a rite of passage for New York high schoolers for more than a century, have faced criticism from some, including students and families who previously expressed that the tests do not feel like sufficient measures of student learning. New York is one of a handful of states that has continued to require exit exams, though research has found little evidence to show such exams improve student achievement.

And as the state worked to rethink its diploma requirements, some speculated that changes would mean the end of the long-standing exams. Discussions over the exams also prompted concerns from some that changes would relax state requirements. But at Monday’s Regents meeting, education officials pushed back on that narrative.

“We need to be careful with how we frame this, because the new proposed framework will be assessing students — it’s just not a standardized Regents exam requirement,” said Regent Shino Tanikawa. “There are multiple ways of assessing students.”

Officials from the state’s Education Department added all of the current Regents exams will remain available to students, even if their passage is no longer required to earn a diploma.

To some, the proposed decoupling of Regents exams from diploma requirements came as a significant victory.

Kim Sweet, executive director of Advocates for Children of New York, praised the state’s Education Department for “proposing bold steps to revamp New York State’s graduation framework.”

“At AFC, we routinely work with students — many of whom have disabilities or are still learning English — who have completed their coursework but are unable to earn a high school diploma because they struggle with standardized assessments, sometimes sitting for a single exam a half-dozen times to try to raise their score by just a few points,” Sweet said in a statement. “Allowing young people to demonstrate their skills and knowledge in multiple ways, without requiring them to pass high-stakes exams, will help ensure our State’s education system meets the needs of today’s students.”

What comes next for NY graduation requirements

No formal action on the proposals was taken on Monday, and each of them will need to be approved and adopted by the state’s Board of Regents before being implemented.

The state’s Education Department will continue to discuss the proposed changes at a series of forums over the coming months, soliciting feedback and refining aspects of the framework ahead of the November presentation of a full plan, according to a timeline shared at the meeting.

Still, questions remain over what these proposed actions could look like in practice for schools and students.

David Bloomfield, a professor of education, law, and public policy at Brooklyn College and the CUNY Graduate Center, called the proposed elimination of required Regents exams “a welcome end to the era of months-long test prep and rote learning.” But he added that many specific details remain unclear.

“It’s not clear how students and districts will navigate these new pathways and if the end result will be well-rounded, educated graduates ready for post-secondary opportunities and citizenship responsibilities,” Bloomfield said. “The Regents presentation was more of an advertisement than an analysis of hard questions the proposal raises about the future of high schools.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

As millions in pandemic food benefits expire in NYC, a new summer meals program approaches

2024-06-07T12:00:00+00:00

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For families across New York City, unused food benefits from the final installment of a pandemic-era program have already begun to expire — but some will see additional funds through a new program that lays on the horizon.

The funds — known as the Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer, or P-EBT — have been disbursed in several installments since 2020 to help cover meal costs for families whose students usually receive free meals at school. Because New York City’s public schools have universal meals, all families were eligible for the program regardless of household income.

But as P-EBT ends, tens of millions of dollars from the most recent disbursement remain unspent, according to figures provided to Chalkbeat.

As of April 22, more than 381,000 P-EBT cards with funds issued for the summer of 2023 had not been used in New York City, meaning over $45 million in potential benefits was at risk of expiring, according to data provided by David Rubel, an education consultant who has been raising alarm about the unspent federal benefits. For the state as a whole, more than 740,000 cards had not been redeemed, leaving over $88 million in total on the table.

Those funds began rolling out to families in August last year, state officials said. Since the benefits expire 274 days after they were last used, families who never used the cards may have already seen their funds expire.

While advocates have praised the P-EBT program as a lifeline for families struggling with food insecurity, the rollout of the federal funds left some struggling to access them. Parents previously told Chalkbeat they never received their cards, or had trouble getting help using their cards from a state hotline. Meanwhile, community organizations said language barriers posed an issue in disseminating information about the benefits to families who needed them.

“There are very important lessons to be learned from P-EBT in order to have a successful Summer EBT program,” said Rubel, who obtained the data through a state records request.

To Rubel, school districts are best positioned to conduct outreach about the summer meal funds, sharing information directly with families.

Officials from the state’s Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, which has overseen the summer meal programs, said the agency is working closely with state and city education departments, as well as community partners, to conduct outreach and education efforts for the Summer EBT program, including information and guidance that can be distributed directly to families.

“OTDA worked tirelessly to follow federal guidelines and provide Pandemic EBT benefits to millions of eligible school children throughout the state who lost access to free and reduced-price school meals as a result of school closures during the public health emergency,” said a spokesperson for the state agency.

Officials added the agency conducted “extensive public outreach,” and partnered with advocacy groups across the state to raise awareness about the benefits.

There are key differences between P-EBT and the new Summer EBT program. Unlike the pandemic-era program, not all New York City families will be eligible to receive the summer funds.

Under federal guidelines, a child is only eligible for the program if they attend a school with free lunch and meet household income requirements for free- or reduced-price school meals. And families who do receive them will have fewer days to use them. Summer EBT funds will expire 122 days after they are issued.

While officials note most eligible families — like recipients of SNAP, Temporary Assistance, or Medicaid — will automatically receive the funds, some families may need to apply. Families who will automatically receive them will be notified via a letter this summer, state officials said.

For others, an online application will open in July, with applications due by Sept. 3, according to state officials.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

New York parents, lawmakers call for bill to end early voting in schools

2024-06-05T17:51:36+00:00

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As the end of the legislative session draws near, some New York parents and lawmakers are pushing to eliminate public schools as an option for early voting sites.

It’s an issue that has prompted concerns among some parents and educators — with schools that are used as polling sites losing access to school facilities for notable portions of the year. And as the city’s public schools have moved to adopt more stringent security measures over the past year, the continued use of school buildings for elections has left some confused.

“With all of the security measures that are in place, why would you then open the backdoor and let anyone walk in?” said Kindra Hall, a Manhattan mom. “It doesn’t make any sense.”

In Albany, the bill has stalled in the Assembly, with just two days left until the session ends. Sen. Liz Krueger, a sponsor of the bill, noted that early voting has improved voting access for New Yorkers, but added that schools should not be used as poll sites.

“Unfortunately we have seen considerable disruption caused when public schools are used as early voting sites, which is a particular problem in New York City,” she said in a statement. “I’ve heard from many of my constituents and school leaders, for several years now, about students losing access to critical facilities in their schools, such as the cafeteria or the gym, for weeks at a time. There are other options available, and this bill requires certain publicly-supported institutions to make themselves available if needed.”

Currently, four of the five boroughs use schools as early voting sites, with Queens as the exception. In January, the city’s teachers union passed a resolution calling for an end to the practice, noting 33 out of 140 early voting sites were located in public schools in 2023.

City officials said police officers are stationed at every polling site, including at schools. Jenna Lyle, a spokesperson for the city’s Education Department, said the department will continue to prioritize the safety of school communities.

“We work closely with leadership at schools hosting early voting to address any concerns, minimize disruptions, and ensure schools are able to effectively perform their primary function of educating students,” she said in a statement. “We are required by state law to comply with decisions made by the Board of Elections regarding polling sites, and we appreciate each school’s flexibility making early voting successful.”

Hall said her two kids at Wagner Middle School on the Upper East Side missed out on more than 30 days of gym access to accommodate early voting this year. During New York’s presidential primary in March, her daughter attended gym class in the school’s auditorium, where she sat and “did nothing,” Hall said.

Meanwhile, after-school sports that relied on the gym, like basketball, volleyball, and others, were disrupted.

Assembly member Alex Bores, a sponsor of the bill, said despite widespread support, passing the legislation before the end of the session on Thursday will be “an uphill climb.”

“We want to make sure that we do this right, not just for this election, but for the future as well,” he said. “So I’m hoping it gets done in the next few days, but I want to make sure that we get it right regardless.”

For Hall, though, the urgency feels more immediate. While recent elections have seen relatively low turnout, she remembers voting at Wagner in the 2020 presidential election and waiting for hours as the line wrapped around the block. She worries about thousands of voters entering her kids’ school as they cast their ballots for president in the fall.

“I have my eye on November,” she said. “If we don’t get it signed, if it’s not all the way through by Thursday, then that process starts all over again in January, which is too late.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

How a new musical hopes to spotlight NYC student experiences with school safety

2024-05-30T22:24:13+00:00

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A new musical in Brooklyn will spotlight the stories of students navigating policing in New York City public schools.

Written and directed by Jess McLeod, an artist-in-residence at the New York Civil Liberties Union, “SAFE” will have two June 1 performances at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. The roughly 50-minute show is based on interviews with students from across the five boroughs, and will follow students across a single school day. “SAFE” aims to demonstrate the potential harms of excessive policing in the city’s schools.

Debates over New York City school safety can be divisive. Some students argue police are ill-equipped to defuse tension and conflicts in schools, as tensions between students and officers can often be fraught. Advocates have also long pointed to data showing Black and Latino students can be disproportionately subjected to police interventions in the city’s schools.

But proponents of school safety agents and other measures, like metal detectors, have argued they are essential for maintaining order. In the past, students, parents, and educators have generally reported on annual school surveys that the agents help keep schools safe and respectful, though children at predominantly Black schools were less likely to agree.

Some students and advocates have also criticized the use of metal detectors in schools — arguing the technology can be invasive and detrimental to students. It’s an issue that the musical will tackle, giving audience members insight into student perspectives on how these machines impact their time at school. About 100,000 students in the city encounter metal detectors at school each day — a majority of which are students of color — according to the NYCLU.

The “SAFE” cast and production team feature an array of theater veterans, including McLeod, who previously worked on “Hamilton” and other stage productions.

Tickets to the event are available for free, but those who wish to attend one of the two Saturday performances must RSVP online. Seats will be distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis, and those who wish to attend should plan to arrive 45 to 60 minutes prior to the 3 p.m and 7 p.m. start times, according to organizers.

Although only two performances are currently scheduled, McLeod is hopeful there may be future interest in additional productions — potentially even in schools.

Chalkbeat spoke with McLeod, as well as NYCLU Center for Education Policy Director Johanna Miller, about the upcoming musical.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Talk to me broadly about “SAFE.” Why were you interested in telling this story? How does the format of a musical lend itself to this issue?

Miller: Our goal is to bring the student experience to life for adults — parents, teachers, and especially policymakers — who very often see metal detectors as either a small inconvenience or a necessary evil. But what students tell us is that the metal detector experience is neither minor nor necessary. It’s not a thing that makes them feel safe, but it is something that adds a huge amount of complication into their day. And it’s really not the same experience of an adult going through a metal detector in an office building or in the airport. It’s a very different experience.

So by using this artistic medium, we can really put you in the shoes of a young person in a way that me, as a lawyer at the NYCLU, I can never truly get you to inhabit that space.

McLeod: I am always interested in art that gives the mic to whoever seems to not have the mic, and on this particular issue, it really seems like so many decisions are being made about student safety in schools, but none of those decisions include the students. No one is asking them what they need.

This was an opportunity to spend a year doing interviews and focus groups with students from all five boroughs who attend New York City public high schools with a significant police presence, and ask them to define safety. How does having metal detectors and school safety agents make you feel? Does it make you feel more safe? And then to make that question open-ended, and say, “What would make you feel safe?”

Something we did in these focus groups was take giant Jenga blocks and have the students each take one and write down a building block of their dream school. They say things like: “One-on-one follow ups,” multiple social workers,” “jobs,” “food,” “health care,” “early postsecondary planning,” “community events.” They say things like: “Attention,” “guidance counselors,” “breaks between classes” — needs that I would call rather basic, and physical, as well as psychological and emotional.

We took all the items on those Jenga blocks and we made them into a song called “Dream School.” That’s how we end the show. It’s just a group of students sitting and fooling around with a guitar, talking about what a dream school might look like.

New York City is home to the nation’s largest school system, and students can experience the school system in vastly different ways. How do you tackle that in the musical? Can you talk further about the kinds of characters you chose to bring into this performance?

Miller: There is a huge diversity in New York City public schools and a gigantic spectrum of experiences. However, police and the police apparatus are heavily concentrated in not that many schools. There are 1,800 schools in New York City, we believe about 110 of them have metal detectors. So already we’re looking at a very small proportion of the entire district, and in those schools, there are about 100,000 students — almost entirely those are students who are Black and brown.

It’s simply not the way that we treat white students in New York City or frankly, anywhere. So we actually are dealing with a very pervasive experience among Black and brown students in New York City, but within the larger district, it’s a pretty small proportion of students.

McLeod: In creating the characters, this is where the research part of it was both qualitative — we did a day of focus groups and interviews and collected anecdotes and stories from students — and also quantitative. We had 700 students from all five boroughs answer questions to be able to collect some data as well.

Taking all of that and synthesizing it, we’ve constructed a show that follows two main protagonists, Zyniah and Fredo, and they both get pulled out for pat-downs in their respective schools at the top of the day, and then we follow them through their days. They get treated in very different ways. One of them gets encouragement and care and support from a teacher that shapes their day in a certain way. One of them gets treated harshly, and that student ends up lashing out. So we watch the domino effect of that pat-down on those two individual students’ days.

While that’s happening — because we wanted to show as broad a swath of students as possible — we also cut back to this group of four students. We get to know them in between main scenes, and they are talking through headlines, and about the way they’re being portrayed. And they’re asking each other questions, like: When did the school safety agents show up? How many do you have in your school? What’s actually going on? They’ll often ask questions that the next scene answers.

And we have a very diverse cast. We have a half Black cast, as well Latinx actors. So we’re ensuring that we’re being true to who attends the schools that have the most significant police presence.

What do you hope audiences will take away from this performance?

Miller: I hope that audiences will walk away with a better understanding of how non-police interventions can be successful. There’s often a lot of skepticism that an adult in the school building a healthy relationship with a kid and checking in with them in a relational or restorative way could actually work. But actually, the research supports that it does.

In fact, there is no research supporting that metal detectors made schools any safer. I want people to walk out the door thinking, “Have we asked the right questions about police apparatus?” Have we actually asked, “Does this have a negative impact on children? And are we doing enough to boost up the things that we know work?”

The play does an amazing job of showing how positive interventions work and why they work. You get to see it actually happening on stage — and it’s straight out of the focus groups — how that type of intervention works to make a kid have a better, safer, and calmer day.

McLeod: I hope parents and adults and everyone who works in a school walks away thinking about whether or not they are allowing students to be part of the solution.

We’re all in a sort of general mental health crisis post-pandemic, but I think especially the public high school students of New York are in a very specific post-pandemic mental health crisis where they experience a lot of whiplash in learning styles, in their environment switching around. A lot of them changed schools, or went to high school, or were leaving high school during that time. Many of their extracurricular activities experienced cuts.

In general, I think they’ve returned to a stricter, more militaristic school environment, and that’s something we should question.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Hochul considers smartphone ban for New York schools, citing student mental health concerns

2024-05-30T20:44:10+00:00

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Gov. Kathy Hochul is mulling how to get smartphones out of New York schools as city and state officials grapple with the potential harmful effects of social media and other online platforms on youth mental health.

This week, Hochul said smartphones should not be available to students during the school day, adding that she is exploring ways to make that happen next year. The governor and other city and state officials say social media platforms are designed to be addictive, harm young people’s mental health, and create avenues for bullying.

“They’re living in this dark place where there’s this FOMO — fear of missing out — that if they put down their device for one second, that someone might be saying something about them, or they’ve got to respond to something,” Hochul told reporters on Tuesday. “This is how addictive it is. We have to liberate them from this. We have to just draw a line now and say, ‘No. Enough is enough.’”

The governor has added she understands parent concerns over maintaining a line of communication with their children during the school day and indicated the state may consider action that solely affects the use of smartphones.

“I’m okay if you have a flip phone,” she said during a Thursday appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” “But you don’t have to be in the world of social media throughout the day. So, let’s talk about that for New York.”

A spokesperson for Hochul confirmed she intends to engage with teachers, families, and others about potential legislative action for the next session, which begins in January 2025. But officials added there was currently no formal legislative proposal.

Julie Scelfo, founder of Mothers Against Media Addiction, said potential legislation by the governor would represent “an important step toward keeping addictive technology out of the classroom and ensuring school hours remain devoted to education and in-person social interaction.”

“Smartphones have no place in the classroom,” she said in an emailed statement. “Educators, social workers and parents understand that the presence of phones during the school day impedes students’ social, emotional and academic growth and further fuels the current youth mental health crisis.”

In New York City, Mayor Eric Adams has repeatedly blamed social media companies for the nation’s ongoing youth mental health crisis. Earlier this year, the city joined hundreds of other municipalities in filing a lawsuit against five leading social media companies.

Though the city’s schools have not adopted a system-wide policy on cellphones, schools Chancellor David Banks said officials are continuing to pay attention to the issue. While some public schools require students to turn in phones at the start of the school day, others employ more relaxed policies.

“These are all complicated issues, and we have not made any decision,” Banks said at a Thursday press briefing. “In light of what the governor just said, I think it’s incumbent upon us to absolutely start exploring these issues.

“The kids are on these phones 24 hours a day, and there’s all kinds of research that’s coming in and talking about all the negative impacts that it is having on them,” he added. “We can’t control what happens once they’re home … but maybe six to eight hours out of the day, we might have a little bit more control.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

To combat antisemitism, NYC 8th graders will visit the Museum of Jewish Heritage

2024-05-23T20:52:26+00:00

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As part of a new initiative aimed at combating antisemitism, New York City eighth graders will learn more about the Holocaust through field trips to Manhattan’s Museum of Jewish Heritage.

The $2.5 million school tours initiative unveiled Thursday comes as local officials continue to grapple with how to address rising antisemitism and Islamophobia in the city’s schools, where tensions among students and educators have been fueled by the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

Since October, there have been roughly 280 incidents of religious bias in New York City schools, with 42% involving antisemitism and 30% directed against Muslim students, according to figures schools Chancellor David Banks shared at a congressional hearing earlier this month.

The nation’s largest school system has faced some criticism in the past year after a handful of high-profile incidents at local schools stirred fierce controversy. But Banks has defended the city’s record on antisemitism, contending that schools have consistently responded to troubling incidents with discipline, while also emphasizing education as a key tool in confronting hate.

“There is a level of persistence that we have to have to meet the moment,” Banks said Thursday as he spoke in support of the initiative. “It won’t happen just because we are going to try to do the right thing. There are certain times when it requires a different level of intensity.”

The program at the museum — which offers educational exhibitions on Jewish life before, during, and after the Holocaust — was spurred by Manhattan City Council member Julie Menin. She referred to the rise in reported cases of antisemitism as a “real existential crisis for the Jewish community.”

Eighth grade students are at an appropriate age to learn about the Holocaust, during which roughly 6 million Jewish people were murdered, she said.

Over the next three years, the museum will expand its school tour capacity and pay for transportation for schools, bringing in more than 85,000 eighth students from across the city, according to officials. Those students will be able to explore different exhibitions, including current displays on the rise in antisemitism before and during the Holocaust, as well as the rescue of Danish Jews during the Holocaust.

“You simply cannot learn about the Holocaust from a textbook,” said Menin, whose mother and grandmother survived the Holocaust in Hungary. “You need to viscerally see and hear the stories and materials that are on display in this exhibition.”

Funding for the school tours program will come in part from a $1 million gift from the Gray Foundation, which seeks to expand access to education, health care, and other opportunities for New York City youth from low-income backgrounds. The museum expects to raise the remaining funds, officials said.

Tours will be offered for free to local public and charter schools. The program follows an FAQ on antisemitism tailored to educators that museum officials released in March.

One educator said he was pleased to see the newly announced program.

“I wish it was something available to students prior to the upcoming school year,” said Kenneth Hillman, a 10th grade global studies teacher at the High School for Health Professions and Human Services in Manhattan. “What I really like about it is that students get out of the classroom and into a museum that is specially curated to address the various events involved with the Holocaust. I would argue that doing so increases student engagement with the learning material.”

Hillman noted some might be concerned that no similar educational field trip programs exist to address incidents of Islamophobia in the city’s schools — adding as a teacher, he would welcome any learning opportunities that attempt “to deepen student engagement with the many educational resources NYC provides.”

The city’s Education Department is also developing new Hidden Voices curriculums centered on the stories and contributions of Jewish and Muslim people. The Hidden Voices curriculums, which include LGBTQ history and Asian American history, aim to elevate historical figures largely left out of textbooks.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Amid record high NYC homeless student population, calls grow for laundry machines in schools

2024-05-21T21:11:04+00:00

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More than a decade ago, Principal Joseph Mattina noticed students at P.S. 23 Carter G. Woodson were consistently arriving at the Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, elementary school without their uniforms.

Initially, Mattina grew frustrated with the students, asking why they couldn’t wear the clothes that had been supplied by the school.

“One day, one of the kids turned around and said to me, ‘Well, it’s dirty, and my mom can’t wash it,’” he said. “That really resonated with me, because it was something that I had never thought of before. It was an obstacle that I didn’t realize existed.”

Today, P.S. 23 is one of just a fraction of the city’s more than 1,600 public schools that offers on-site laundry services, allowing students who live in temporary housing or who otherwise lack access to such facilities to wash their clothes while at school.

As of November 2022, 119 public schools in the city had washers and dryers installed, according to the city’s Education Department.

Still, it’s a tool that some have looked to as a means of combating chronic absenteeism, preventing cases where a lack of clean clothing causes students to miss class. Earlier this year, some lawmakers in Albany sought to make it easier for the city’s schools to install laundry machines — putting forward a bill that would have established a grant program for just that purpose. But that effort stalled after legislators failed to secure funding for it during budget negotiations.

And the need for laundry facilities in schools may be especially relevant this year, as the city’s homeless student population reached a record high and as pandemic-era jumps in chronic absenteeism linger. Last year, roughly 36% of New York City students were chronically absent, meaning they missed at least 18 days of the school year, according to city data.

In New York City, at least one City Council member has been working to draw attention to the issue. In February, Manhattan Council member Gale Brewer sent a letter to schools Chancellor David Banks, seeking additional support for more than 30 schools in her district that were serving students who live in temporary housing but did not have laundry facilities in their buildings.

“I’ve been talking about this for like two years,” Brewer said. “Kids will not come to school if they’re smelly. They just won’t come.”

Community donations support Brooklyn school’s laundry machines

Before P.S. 23 installed its washer and dryers, school staff had tried raising money to purchase laundry detergent on behalf of families who couldn’t afford to pay for laundry services, Mattina said. Still, the financial cost to access laundry machines posed a barrier for some families.

Through community donations, the school was able to install a washer and two dryers — with one of the machines sourced through a local Home Depot, where Mattina said he begged a manager to contribute a dented floor model. But he added that avenue isn’t necessarily available or apparent to other schools.

“When you go to school to be an administrator, they don’t teach you all of these nuances,” he said.

Now, families can come during the school day to wash their students’ clothes, or drop off laundry for the school to clean. Mattina said he frequently throws loads of laundry into the washer in the morning. The school’s speech therapist also shares an office with the machines and often moves clothes over to the dryer, he added.

The result, Mattina said, has been a stronger sense of community among students.

“We’ve always struggled with chronic absenteeism,” he said. Last school year, about 57% of students were chronically absent — though that figure had dropped about 10% from the year prior, according to city data. But he added that kids largely want to attend class and participate in the school community, which recently added a hydroponics lab, sensory room, makerspace, and more to support students.

“We’re trying to create this warm and welcoming environment, and I think it makes a difference,” Mattina said.

The school itself is located near five shelters, with about a third of the student body living in temporary housing, he said.

“Often when we tell parents that we have this service for them, they break down and cry,” he said. “Because of the unspeakable things that they’ve gone through and the trauma that they’ve experienced. This is just one less thing that they have to worry about.”

But funding for the machines, their upkeep, and other associated costs wouldn’t have been possible without community donations. At times, when the school runs out of laundry detergent, they’ve continued to rely on the community.

“We’ve been lucky with the generosity of the public,” Mattina said. “That funding has to come from someplace, because a school can’t sustain it out of their own budget.”

Space, funding pose barriers for many schools

P.S. 23 was fortunate in more ways than one. Its building, constructed in the 1960s, had an old home economics classroom, with sinks and stoves that allowed for machines to more easily be installed, Mattina said.

“Space is an issue,” he noted. “For us, it was fairly easy, because we had an existing room that we were just repurposing. There already was the water line in there, we just had to have the electricity upgraded, and that was an easier fix than actually running in piping.”

But for other schools, it can be far more difficult to install machines.

In Manhattan’s District 3, just seven out of 45 public elementary, middle, and high schools had a washing machine on campus, according to a survey conducted by Brewer’s office. Among those, one school did not have a dryer, while two others reported their washer and dryer no longer worked.

Out of the 38 schools without any machines, 31 had at least 10 students who were living in temporary housing.

For schools seeking to install machines, the financial barriers can be significant. The city’s School Construction Authority told Brewer’s office that upgrades to a school’s electrical and water facilities could cost between $50,000 and $100,000, according to her letter to Banks.

David Clarke, a spokesperson for the city’s Education Department, said the department was “reviewing the letter” and looked “forward to continuing this conversation with her.”

“We believe in supporting the whole child, and that means helping students gain access to the services and resources they need to be successful in our classrooms,” he said in a statement.

Meanwhile, in Albany, a bill sponsored by state Sen. Roxanne Persaud and Assembly member Brian Cunningham, sought to establish a pilot program that would provide funding for laundry facilities to schools with a higher proportion of low-income students — with priority given to schools serving higher shares of students in temporary housing, as well as those with a significant population of students experiencing “frequent absenteeism due to a lack of clean clothing.”

The issue first came to Persaud’s attention in 2022, when a school in her Brooklyn district contacted her about their need for laundry services. Through a collaboration with Lowe’s, Persaud and students from the school were able to secure laundry machines for their community. But in the aftermath, more and more schools expressed having a similar need.

“So we came up with a suggestion: How do we have the state sponsor these laundry rooms?” Persaud said.

At first, Persaud introduced legislation that would have created a statewide program. But after some hesitation from colleagues, it was scaled back to a pilot program based solely in New York City. Though the state Senate allocated $2.5 million to the program in its budget proposal, that funding was ultimately not included in the final state budget agreement, meaning further action on the bill is unlikely to occur this year.

Brewer pointed to “community schools,” which partner with nonprofits to provide wraparound support to students like mental health and dental services, as a broader example of how schools should be supporting their local communities. Some of these schools already offer laundry facilities as part of their services.

“In 2024 and into the future, I think we have to think differently about schools,” she said. “I don’t know that every school needs a washer and dryer, but an awful lot of schools do.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

As NYC preschool offers release, some families are left without a 3-K seat

2024-05-16T20:01:39+00:00

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Mayor Eric Adams has vowed that every family who wants a seat in New York City’s free preschool program for 3-year-olds will receive one, despite recent cuts to city funding for the early childhood system.

But as the city distributed 3-K offers on Thursday, some families say they didn’t receive a seat at any of the programs to which they applied.

Diana Sidakis, a public defender who lives in Manhattan, said she tried to be savvy with her application. She spent hours extensively researching programs, compiled spreadsheets, attended tours, and eliminated any programs that seemed unlikely to admit her son.

Despite applying to 12 programs, the maximum number, Sidakis did not receive a seat for her child. She was waitlisted at all of them.

“Every kid needs education at 3 years old,” she said. “They’re socially and developmentally ready, and it changes the rest of their life. So for Mayor Adams to say that he can cut this program and every family who wants a seat will get a seat, it’s just such a fraud.”

Building up the free prekindergarten system was a signature initiative of former Mayor Bill de Blasio, who leaned heavily on federal COVID relief dollars to expand preschool for 3-year-olds, aiming to make the program universal. That effort stalled under Adams, whose administration has justified funding cuts to the program by arguing that thousands of seats are sitting empty due to a mismatch of supply and demand in some neighborhoods. Advocates counter that the mayor has not invested in promoting preschool options to families.

This year, the city’s early childhood system has taken center stage in budget negotiations between City Council members and the Adams administration. Under a plan Adams proposed last month, the city would replace $92 million of expiring federal funding for 3-K with city and state funds — but it would not restore a separate $170 million in city funding that was cut from early childhood programs in November. Adams also promised to spend $5 million to help recruit more families to the city’s pre-K programs.

At a budget hearing on Wednesday, Education Department officials said enrollment in preschool programs, including the larger pre-K program for 4-year-olds, had grown to roughly 114,000 children. In total, there were about 53,000 seats in the city’s 3-K program, with about 44,000 filled.

Despite cuts to early childhood funding, Adams has remained adamant that “every child who wants a 3-K and pre-K seat will have access to one.”

In a statement Thursday evening, city officials emphasized that thousands of 3-K seats remained open and said the city would work with families who were not initially admitted to find nearby open seats.

“The mayor was clear: Every child who wants a seat will have access to a seat and he will keep his word,” said Amaris Cockfield, a spokesperson for City Hall. “The guidance sent to a limited number of families by New York City Public Schools, unfortunately, did not fully convey all the seats still available to New York City students.”

The city made offers to 94% of families who applied to 3-K on time, receiving approximately 43,000 applicants for about 52,000 seats across the city, according to city officials. The Education Department will send an “updated letter” to families about seats that remain open in 3-K.

Still, advocates were quick to condemn the mayor’s previous promises as some families received the news that they had not been offered a 3-K seat. As of Thursday afternoon, more than 20 families across the city had reached out to the advocacy group New Yorkers United for Childcare, informing them they had been rejected or waitlisted. Others told the group they were admitted to programs far from home, adding logistical challenges for parents seeking care for their young children.

“The impact cannot be understated: without free 3-K, childcare costs families an average of $20,000 a year per kid, with many spending more — a cost far too many families cannot afford,” said Rebecca Bailin, director of the group, in a statement. “Now, New Yorkers who are already facing a skyrocketing cost of living must decide whether to leave work and stay home with their child, drain their savings, or potentially leave the city altogether.”

Prior reports have shown a lack of access to affordable child care can have a significant impact on parents’ ability to work. More than half a million people did not seek employment in 2021 due to child care needs, and about 375,000 parents chose to leave or considered leaving their jobs due to the combined impact of the pandemic and a lack of affordable child care, according to a 2022 city report.

Sidakis said she’s unsure whether her family can afford to consider private child care options if she ultimately does not receive a 3-K seat that works for her family.

“It’s just an enormous, enormous source of financial and emotional stress,” she said.

“I really don’t want to leave the city,” Sidakis added. “I’m a public defender. I’ve devoted my life to public service. I want my kids to go to public school. I believe in public school. But this is really wrong.”

Alex Zimmerman contributed reporting.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Preschool funding, school food, and other key education issues take center stage at budget hearing

2024-05-15T22:39:24+00:00

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As New York City schools stand to lose nearly $1 billion in the next fiscal year, City Council members pressed Education Department officials on how the looming drop in funding could impact the city’s early childhood system, school cafeteria menus, and other key education programs.

The Wednesday hearing came as City Council members and Mayor Eric Adams continue to negotiate the city’s budget for the next fiscal year, which is due by July 1.

Last month, Adams unveiled a budget proposal that would see the city’s Education Department funding shrink by 2.4%, or $808 million, next year — largely spurred by the expiration of billions of dollars of one-time federal COVID relief funds. Despite that drop in funding, the proposed budget devotes half a billion dollars in city and state funds to preserve several education programs currently propped up by the expiring federal dollars, including money for hundreds of social workers, the city’s free preschool program for 3-year-olds, and new staffers working in homeless shelters.

Other programs that have relied on the federal funds, however, remain at risk.

Education Department officials acknowledged the difficulties presented by the expiring federal funds, noting that they’ve advocated for the continuation of all such programs. Specific decisions about which programs to devote long-term city funding to have been made by the city’s Office of Management and Budget, said Emma Vadehra, the department’s chief operating officer.

Questions also centered on how the city’s schools would be impacted by sweeping cuts that Adams has ordered city agencies to enact over the past year to help cover costs for services to an influx of migrants. Under that separate directive, the Education Department faces more than $700 million in cuts to city funding for specific programs next year, including roughly $170 million slashed from early childhood programs. (The city’s overall contribution to the Education Department’s budget would still rise by nearly $1.6 billion under Adams’ proposal, though it’s not enough to offset the vast drop in federal funding next year.)

Schools Chancellor David Banks told council members it’s been “very challenging” to select certain programs to prioritize.

“I mean, it’s like, ‘Which one is your favorite child?’” he said. “These are all wonderfully, amazing programs. We don’t want to lose any of them.”

Here’s a look at some of the key education issues that arose during the hearing:

Council member clashes with DOE over preschool programs

Though Adams’ proposed budget would replace $92 million of expiring federal funding for 3-K — the city’s free preschool program for 3-year-olds — it does not restore a separate $170 million cut to city funding for early childhood programs. City Council members repeatedly expressed concerns over that cut during the hearing, seeking further details from Education Department officials about the potential impact of reduced funding.

Building up the free prekindergarten system for the city’s 3- and 4-year-olds was a centerpiece of former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration. Under Adams, the sector has been plagued with problems, including declining enrollment and lengthy payment delays to community organizations running programs.

On Wednesday, Education Department officials contended those issues had been inherited from the prior administration. They pointed to some improving metrics in the city’s early childhood system, stating enrollment in such programs had grown to roughly 114,000 children. That was up from 97,000 children earlier this year, according to city data released in November. Meanwhile, the average processing time for payments for early childhood providers had decreased to roughly 11 days.

Officials added they’ve worked to shift existing seats to neighborhoods with higher demand.

Capacity for the city’s 3-K program is roughly 53,000 seats, with about 44,000 filled, according to figures shared by Education Department officials during the hearing.

In one particularly contentious exchange, Brooklyn Council Member Lincoln Restler questioned why Education Department officials were unable to say definitively how many seats the city’s preschool programs would be able to offer next year after the $170 million cut.

“These are the cuts that the mayor has proposed that he wants to implement to your agency: What would be the impact of them?” he said. “How many fewer seats would you have? This is like the most plain, simple, obvious question that we were going to get all day. I’m a little disappointed that we’re not getting a straight answer.”

Education Department officials said any reductions would be focused in areas where seats aren’t filled.

Restler also pressed department officials for details about the full release of a report on 3-K seats. City officials hired the consulting firm Accenture last year to “map out needs and seats” as the program grappled with thousands of vacancies.

Officials previously said Accenture would be paid $760,000 to compile the report. But on Wednesday, Education Department officials cited a significantly lower figure of “$350,000 or $250,000.” They did not provide a precise timeline for the release.

City officials did not immediately explain the discrepancy between the two figures.

Budget cuts prompt concerns over school food

City Council members also expressed concerns over how budget cuts to school food would affect students next year. A $60 million November cut to the city’s school foods budget sparked outcry earlier this year, as the reduced funding forced cafeterias to remove popular items like chicken dumplings and bean and cheese burritos from their menus.

Though the city later restored some of those menu items, council members questioned whether the lingering cuts would impact cafeteria menus in the coming school year.

“We are monitoring this very closely,” Vadehra said. “We are very invested in making sure all of these food options stay on the menu for students next year.”

City officials express concerns over state funding

Education Department officials noted multiple times during the hearing that although state funding for the city’s schools increased for the coming fiscal year, the city is getting less than expected. A change to the formula determining how much money is sent to districts left New York City schools with $126 million less than anticipated.

Over the coming year, the state’s Education Department will partner with the Rockefeller Institute to conduct a longer term examination of that formula, in hopes of implementing further changes, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced last month.

“Our costs do continue to grow each year, which is why it’s important the state’s contribution — which is a lesser proportion of our budget now than it was 20 years ago — continues to increase,” Vadehra said.

City Education Department officials also told council members they had not yet received sufficient funding to fully implement a state law mandating smaller class sizes. But the department will continue to invest in hiring additional teachers and expanding classroom space to remain in compliance with the law, officials said.

An additional $180 million will go to school budgets, with around $135 million explicitly earmarked for compliance with the state class size law, Vadehra said. She estimated those funds would allow for hiring between 1,200 and 2,000 new teachers.

“Assuming those teachers can be found,” she added.

Education programs still at risk as fiscal cliff looms

City Council members drew attention to several education programs that have relied on expiring federal funds and are not included in the mayor’s proposed budget — including $65 million funding roughly 400 contracted school nurses, as well as millions of dollars to support restorative justice programs.

Education Department officials were unable to say during the hearing how many schools would be left without a nurse as that funding dries up later this year. Currently, every public school in the city has at least one nurse in the building.

Meanwhile, restorative justice programs, which aim to resolve conflict through peer mediation and other less punitive methods, are at risk of losing more than half of their current budget as the federal funds expire. Education Department officials said roughly $8 million of the $13.6 million committed to restorative justice programs this year comes from expiring federal dollars.

At the hearing, Banks encouraged council members to advocate for the funding to be restored.

“You all are still engaged in the process,” he said. “You can certainly, as you are engaged in this conversation and negotiations, push to make sure that [restorative justice] gets restored.”

In total, the city’s Education Department faces a gap of more than $200 million in expiring federal funds for education programming next year, officials said.

Alex Zimmerman contributed reporting.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Concerned about mental health, NY lawmakers and advocates want fewer school lockdown drills

2024-05-14T21:54:30+00:00

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Lawmakers, parents, and school safety advocates rallied in Albany on Tuesday, calling for the passage of legislation that would reduce the number of school lockdown drills required under New York state law.

It’s the culmination of a multi-year effort by advocates who want changes in state law, which currently requires public schools to conduct at least four lockdown drills each year. Proponents of the bill say that number was arbitrarily chosen and that conducting so many drills harms student mental health without providing clear safety benefits.

The bill — recently amended through negotiations — would lower the required number of drills to two, while still allowing schools the option to conduct additional drills. It would also mandate that drills are conducted in a “trauma-informed, developmentally, and age-appropriate” manner, with accommodations for students with disabilities, training for educators, and advance notice provided to school staff and parents.

On Tuesday, state Sen. Andrew Gounardes and Assembly Member Jo Anne Simon, the sponsors of the bill, joined other lawmakers, advocates, and mental health experts to call for changes to the state’s “excessive and ineffective” lockdown drill requirement.

“We don’t want kids to grow up normalizing and believing that this is just an everyday fact of life,” Gounardes said. “Lockdown drills are supposed to prepare students for an active shooter in the event that one enters the school, but our current approach is deeply traumatizing for kids — not to mention teachers and parents — and simply is not making them safer.”

Simon added there was no data to suggest that lockdown drills are effective, or to justify requiring four drills, when the state enacted its law in 2016.

“There is no excuse for us traumatizing and re-traumatizing our kids because we are worried,” she said. “We have to find a way to solve this problem that doesn’t put the obligation on them.”

As of 2016, lockdown drills occurred in 95% of public schools in the U.S., with at least 40 states requiring them, according to Everytown for Gun Safety, a nonprofit that advocates against gun violence. But the organization has advised against conducting them, pointing to the “collateral consequences to school communities’ mental health and wellbeing.”

New York remains just one of a handful of states that mandate four or more lockdown drills per year — meaning its students can experience twice as many drills as those in other states, according to an analysis from the Trace.

“Excessive drills increase anxiety and depression in children of all ages,” said Sheffali Welch, a member of Moms Demand Action and a New York City parent. “Haven’t our kids been through enough?”

There are some signs that concern over the impact of the drills is gaining traction in Albany. At a meeting last month, the New York Board of Regents discussed proposed amendments to state regulations related to school safety planning — requiring schools to establish procedures for notifying parents about drills and mandating that drills be conducted in “a trauma-informed, developmentally and age-appropriate manner.”

Though state lawmakers initially sought to lower the number of mandated drills to one and offer parents the ability to opt their children out of drills, both provisions were changed during negotiations over the bill.

Still, advocates see the growing momentum to pass the legislation as a win, and lawmakers noted Tuesday they’re hopeful the bill will pass this legislative session.

“Kids are gaining from this,” said Robert Murtfeld, a Manhattan parent who has been advocating for the law for years, in a phone interview ahead of the press conference. “It’s the best solution for everybody to move forward with this in New York.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC schools could lose 400 nurses as federal relief funds expire

2024-05-14T00:39:41+00:00

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New York City public schools could lose hundreds of nurses next year, as the city faces the expiration of billions of dollars in one-time federal COVID relief funds.

For years, many education programs have been propped up by the federal funds, including $65 million that supported roughly 400 contracted nurses, some of whom provide care at buildings that previously lacked a school nurse. But as that money dries up later this year, the future of those nurses and other school programs funded by the federal dollars remains uncertain.

Last month, officials announced the city’s Education Department would see its budget shrink by 2.4%, or $808 million, in the next fiscal year — largely spurred by the expiring federal funds. With the disappearance of the relief money, Mayor Eric Adams’ latest budget proposal allocated more than $500 million in city and state funds to preserve some of the programs it funded, including hundreds of social workers, staffers in homeless shelters, and preschool for 3-year-olds. Others, however, remain at risk.

Currently, every public school has a nurse or school-based health center, according to city officials. If a school nurse calls out sick or is otherwise unavailable, then a contracted nurse is deployed to that school to provide coverage.

“We’re grateful to the stimulus funding that has allowed us to ensure every school has a school nurse on site, and we will continue to advocate for and prioritize this need through the budget process,” said Jenna Lyle, a spokesperson for the city’s Education Department.

Prior to the pandemic, at least 137 schools serving roughly 70,000 students did not have a school nurse, according to Advocates for Children, an organization that works on behalf of low-income families.

Without a school nurse in the building, kids with particular health needs like those with asthma or diabetes are at a higher risk of experiencing complications, said Anna MacEwan, a former school nurse who previously worked at a K-12 campus in downtown Brooklyn. It also shifts further responsibilities onto teachers, she added.

“You have to have a nurse in the building … to manage all the things that come up,” MacEwan said.

Nurses also provide families with additional peace of mind, said Noelia Gomez, an after-school program director with Good Shepherd Services, a nonprofit organization that supports children and families.

“Having nurses gives families a safeguard,” she said. “Somebody that they can trust — that’s going to care for their child like they would at home.”

She noted her program serves more than 500 students at P.S. 246 in the Bronx, each of whom may at some point need medical attention or support.

“It’s a very scary thought,” Gomez said. “What happens if the nurse isn’t there?”

With the mayor’s proposed budget still subject to negotiations with the City Council, advocates and local lawmakers are continuing to push for funding for initiatives that have relied on the federal dollars. The city must finalize its budget by July 1.

Council members will discuss the city’s Education Department budget at an Education Committee hearing on Wednesday.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

LISTEN: An exclusive interview with schools Chancellor David Banks

2024-05-01T10:00:00+00:00

In this special episode of P.S. Weekly, student reporters Shoaa Khan and Jose Santana spoke to Chancellor David Banks about a range of issues facing the city’s schools — from efforts to expand how Black history is taught in the classroom, to the harms of social media, and the continued use of academic screening in the high school admissions process.

Banks, who oversees New York City’s sprawling school system, emphasized the importance of the “Hidden Voices: Stories of the Global African Diaspora” curriculum that the city unveiled in February.

It’s one of several curriculums to come out of the city’s Hidden Voices initiative — Banks signaled more loom on the horizon.

“We’ve got others coming up for the Latino community,” he said. “We’re working on several others as well, particularly in light of what’s going on right now in the Middle East and what’s happening in Israel and Gaza.”

And as New York City’s schools have remained among the most segregated in the nation, Banks touched on the difficulties of implementing integration efforts, particularly as families remain fiercely divided over practices like academic screening.

“It’s a complicated issue,” he said. “For me, I have not spent a lot of time on it because I recognize that as chancellor, you can’t do everything. … The major issue for me has been around how do I ensure that no matter where you are, that you have a good school experience, you learn to read well, you learn to think critically, and you can have a great life for yourself.”

Listen to the full episode to hear his thoughts on academic screening, student mental health, cell phone usage in schools, and even his upcoming podcast.

P.S. Weekly is available on major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Be sure to drop a review in your app or shoot an email to PSWeekly@chalkbeat.org. Tell us what you learned today or what you’re still wondering. We just might read your comment on a future episode.

P.S. Weekly is a collaboration between Chalkbeat and The Bell. Listen for new episodes Wednesdays this spring.

Read the full episode transcript below

Shoaa Khan: Can I hold it?

Sanaa Stokes: Yeah.

Shoaa Khan: Hey, everyone. So we’re going up the stairs to Tweed Courthouse, and, I’m here with Sanaa, and Santana, and Jose, and I’m super nervous. Super quiet, super pretty. Looks like a castle, and I’m nervous.

Santana Roach: We’re currently walking down some really beautiful architectural stairs. It’s quite...

Sanaa Stokes: In this special episode of P.S. Weekly, a few of us went down to the Tweed Courthouse in lower Manhattan, where New York City’s Department of Education is headquartered, to talk to the person who makes decisions on the issues we talk about on this podcast every week.

Chancellor David Banks: All right, you ready? All right. My name is David Banks. I’m a proud product of the New York City public school system, and I currently serve as chancellor of the New York City public schools.

Santana Roach: For those of you who don’t know Chancellor Banks, he was appointed by Mayor Eric Adams in January 2022. In simple terms, he’s the head of the Department of Education for the City of New York. He oversees policies for the largest school system in the nation.

Sanaa Stokes: When we first started this podcast, we knew we wanted to speak to Chancellor Banks, considering his powerful position at the DOE. We were very excited that he agreed to meet with us. As New York City high school students, we asked him questions about things that matter to us, like the new Hidden Voices curriculum, which elevates diverse stories, often left out of the history books.

Santana Roach: Academic screening for selective high school admissions.

Sanaa Stokes: And interestingly enough, his future podcast.

Santana Roach: We talked about all sorts of topics with Chancellor Banks, including some breaking news.

Chancellor David Banks: I’ve never said this to anybody. I love pajamas. Like when I’m done at the end of the night, I have to go to all kinds of events. I’m a pajama guy. I love to put on nice, warm, comfortable pajamas.

Sanaa Stokes: You’re listening to Pierce weekly. The sound of the New York City school system. I’m Sanaa Stokes, a junior at the Professional Performing Arts High School.

Santana Roach: And I’m Santana Roach, a senior at Frederick Douglass Academy.

Sanaa Stokes: So here’s an edited version of the interview led by our fellow student reporters Shoaa Khan and Jose Santana.

Shoaa Khan: Good morning. Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to us. Let’s get started. So we would like to know more about your Hidden Voices curriculum. This is something that you’re really passionate about. Your announcement comes at a time where schools are trying to restrict what we learn about race. So what is your message to New York City students and teachers and others around the country about why this curriculum matters?

Chancellor David Banks: My message to teachers, administrators, students all around the nation is that to have a real education, you must be exposed to the contributions of many different cultures. And I’m thrilled. We just recently announced, as part of our Hidden Voices initiative, the Global African Diaspora curriculum. That really is all about the contributions of Black folks inAmerica and to the world, and that the history of Black people did not start at slavery in the United States, but that we have a history that goes back thousands of years. And the hidden voice is really our profiles on a wide range of different individuals in history where we were able to teach you about history, sometimes through the lens of some of these people, most of whom you’ve never heard of. And so that’s why I’m excited about Hidden Voices. We —we’ve already launched Hidden Voices for the Asian American Pacific Islander community.

Chancellor David Banks: We’ve launched Hidden Voices, for the LGBTQ community because it’s really important that everybody have an idea and understanding around these communities. We’ve just launched one now for the global African diaspora. We’ve got others coming up for the Latino community, and we’re working on several others as well, particularly in light of what’s going on right now in the Middle East and what’s happening in Israel and Gaza and that war. It’s really important for more of our kids to have a deeper understanding about Jewish history and the Holocaust, because I think when you understand that and you appreciate what the Jewish community has gone through, you have a different level of respect and understanding. Similarly, those of, Muslim background and the Palestinian cause, it’s important to understand what their history is and what their contributions have been to the world and to this nation. And so, yes, we have a message to send to the nation that exposure to history is critically important to the building of the consciousness and of the mind.

Shoaa Khan: So, is there some kind of system or how are you going to, like, measure how much impact this has had in schools?

Chancellor David Banks: You know, we’ve got certain measures that we have in place now, just with respect to some of the assessments that we give to our kids. And any of these curriculum that we roll out have their own kind of built in assessments that are tied to that. But I think much more broadly than just exams that are given in school, I think about a societal impact. I think about how do we reduce a level of hate and ignorance in our nation and in our world? When I go and I visit schools and I see kids who lock arms, who have-- who come from very different cultures, very different backgrounds, and have an appreciation for one another, that’s how I see an overarching assessment. It’s greater than a test that you would take in class. But ultimately the greatest assessment is how we change society and how we get young people to be more accepting of one another. That’s what I’m pushing for.

Shoaa Khan: So how should us as students advocate for change and what we want to see in the curriculum?

Chancellor David Banks: I, you know, listen, some of these things that we’ve put into the curriculum, into hidden voices and a passport for social studies. Which, lifting up a lot of these issues, are coming directly from our students and our teachers. I mean, they are the ones that have been raising it to us to tell us this is what we think we need for our experience. I’m a big believer in student voice. You know, a lot of kids who are experiencing serious challenges with their own mental health. And so one of the things that we did, working with the New York City Department of Health, they recently announced the formation of something called Teen Space, which is a mental health initiative where high school kids who are going through some things, maybe suffering from some form of depression or mental challenge, can call and get real support in real time. This is a new initiative, and that’s coming from kids who kept saying that to us. I visited so many schools and kids would tell me mental health is such a huge issue.

Chancellor David Banks: So keep lifting your voices. I remember when I was in high school, I led a walk-out at high school, and I marched everybody out of the back door to a building. I remember when I got outside, I said, “Okay, now what am I supposed to do?” And hundreds of kids followed me outside. And I remember the assistant principal came over to me and said, “if you would have just asked for a meeting, we would have met with you and discussed all of this.” See, so sometimes, just do that. Show up at public forums. We have something called the Panel for Educational Policy. We have those meetings every month, and we talk about real issues of the day. There are not a lot of kids who show up for that. But if students started showing up for that, you’d be amazed how much your voice would really be heard. We look to hear the voices of young people. So a lot of ways to do that.

Shoaa Khan: Yeah. So this is kind of on a different branch. But according to the UCLA Civil Rights Project, New York has the nation’s most segregated school system today. So how do you feel about that?

Chancellor David Banks: I think there’s a lot of research that says that the more integrated school experiences that you can create for kids, the better it is for them. They get exposed to different cultures, much like what I talked about a little bit earlier, exposure, learning about other people, making new friends with people who have different cultures is really a good thing. The challenge in a place like New York is creating those systems, because many of our kids and families live in very segregated places. So while the city is diverse, we’re diverse in that we have so many people who live here from different places, but many of them live in isolation from each other, and then they go to school in isolation. Thus, integration is a good thing. It’s a serious challenge to implement, and we have some districts in the city which have done this district 15. Brooklyn has done a great job with some of their integration efforts. There’s been a wide range of resistance to that as well. So yeah, it’s a complicated issue. And for me, I’ve not spent a lot of time on it because I recognize that as chancellor, you can’t do everything. Generally when people were asking about integration efforts, historically, that question was about how do you get more black kids into predominantly white schools? That’s historically what I meant, because that was what my experience was.

Chancellor David Banks: I grew up in southeast Queens, in pretty much all Black neighborhoods, and everybody was trying to go to better school districts and the better school districts, quote unquote, really meant going to the more whiter, more affluent neighborhoods because those schools seemed like they had everything. I’m trying to make sure that wherever you happen to be your district, your neighborhood has all the great stuff that anybody else has. In New York City, I asked people, I said, “What’s the percentage of students who are Black students who go to New York City public schools?” Most people tell me, “I don’t know, 50%, 40, 50, 60%.” It’s only 24%, and it’s dropping every day. It’s very different than it was years ago. White students in New York City public schools is only 15% and dropping every day. So the two Black and white, historically who made up the school system, are the ones who are in decline. And the groups that are on the upswing are Asian and Latino. Asian is 17% and growing, and Latino is 41%, and climbing significantly every day.

Chancellor David Banks: So we’ve got to be clear also about when we say diversity and integration. Who are we talking about? But the major issue for me has been around how do I ensure that no matter where you are, that you have a good school experience, you learn to read well, you learn to think critically and you can have a great life for yourself? I think an integrated school helps in that, but it’s a human’s task to kind of get to that place. And while we’re doing that, that I can help to deliver so that they can-- they can have a great, great school experience.

Santana Roach: We’re going to take a quick break, but stick around for the rest of this interview with Chancellor David Banks.

Shoaa Khan: We hope you’re enjoying listening to P.S. Weekly as much as we enjoy making it. We spend a lot of time after school planning each episode, setting up and conducting interviews, cutting the tape, writing scripts. It’s a long process and totally worth it. But here’s the thing. We don’t have a bunch of money or millions of followers, so we’re counting on you, loyal listener, to help us get the word out. So take a few seconds and send this link wherever you’re listening to three friends so they too can enjoy P.S. Weekly. Thanks for your support!

Sanaa Stokes: Welcome back! Our weekly reporters have been speaking with Chancellor David Banks. Let’s get back into it.

Shoaa Khan: So you mentioned integration a lot. And, you know, I think as high schoolers, we can all kind of speak on this, that a lot of segregation happens because of, like, the high school admissions process. Like, for example, the academic screening; students are separated based on their GPAs or their seventh-grade GPAs. So we are curious, like, why do you support this kind of process?

Chancellor David Banks: Well, to the contrary. One of the things that we have been working to do here is, to reduce the amount of separation that happens as a result of these kinds of screens. When you look at the specialized high schools as an example, there’s not a lot that I could do about that. You know, schools like Bronx Science, Stuyvesant, Brooklyn Tech. Their admissions policies are really determined by the state, not by me. And even in the administration prior to my coming here, as they sought to try to change that, tremendous resistance from families who said, “We want to maintain those academic screens”. And you’ve got to understand and appreciate that everybody does not have the same opinion. You know, and sometimes I talk to people and there’s almost a righteous indignation because they have their opinion. It’s strong and they don’t understand why you would see it any way differently than they would. Well, the reality is that this– this is New York City and people have lots of different opinions. I try to honor as many of their voices as I can possibly do. I see that as my role, not to impress upon them what I think, that somehow my opinion is greater than theirs. No, I try to facilitate honest dialogue and honor the voices of everybody.

Shoaa Khan: So I think I’m going to pass it to Jose now.

Jose Santana: We’re going to go to some additional topics we have. One of them is school start times. Last year I reported a story about school start times, and I found that lack of sleep is a major, not just physical, but mental health issue for teens across the nation. And the sleep experts I spoke to all agree that high schools in particular should start later. So would you consider a policy to push start times back as other cities and states have done?

Chancellor David Banks: I absolutely will consider it. I’m making a note of it right now. The research is very solid, particularly for older students like yourself, the high school students. Getting in a little later start, even an extra hour where you get that extra hour of sleep, is important. Now here’s the challenge for it, because there are lots of conditions that are in place. If we start school later for the students, that means we’re starting school later for the teachers as well. Many of them would say, “We think it’s a good idea,” and many of them would say, “That doesn’t work for us.” Because school is not just about the kids. You can’t have a school without students, but you also can’t have a school without teachers. So there are lots of these kinds of things that have, because this has come up before as something for us to look at. The science is very clear. Giving high school kids more sleep time is better for their brains. Thus, the reason I wrote it down again. I want to take another look at this and try to push on this a little bit more. I think every high school student across the city would be thrilled if we said, high schools are going to start like an hour, an hour and a half later than what we typically start now.

Jose Santana: Appreciate that. Yeah, and I’ve also looked at research that shows that the teachers themselves would benefit in terms of sleep from a later start time.

Chancellor David Banks: Send me some of your research, too. I’d like to see what you’ve come up with already. I think what I can do certainly is to share the science with all the schools, encourage folks to try to get started later, start to have conversations with our union partners, our labor partners, and, say, “Let’s see if we can have a framework that pushes back a later start times for high schools.” And let’s see. But we would even then, we would still need to have community hearings. We’d have to hear from other parents as well. A lot of people that that would affect. So there are a lot of issues here, but it’s certainly an issue worth taking a look at for sure, Jose.

Jose Santana: All right. So the mayor has spoken repeatedly about the harms of social media and phones on teenagers. And the health department is recommending that students not have a phone until the age of 14. Are you considering a city-wide policy to restrict phone usage in schools?

Chancellor David Banks: We’re taking a look at all of it right now? I would really love to know what you guys think about that. And so we’re gonna have to create some real forums, with young people to hear directly from them about this, because that’s a huge issue. There’s a lot of research that’s coming in now. It’s still coming in about social media, the access to social media, that the brain almost needs a break from it. Some kids are fully addicted to their phones. The question is, now what can we do about it? I would imagine there would be a tremendous amount of pushback from kids if we were to try to take their phones during the day, but you say, is it a fight worth having if we ultimately look at the science and say, the science says it’s going to be better for you. But I don’t know yet, so I’ve not made any decision on it. I’m just starting to look at it, and maybe you all can help me and think about how we can do a forum with young people and kind of hear their opinions.

Jose Santana: Absolutely. Yeah, I know in my school, from what I’ve seen, students want their phones all the time. And my school actually used to have yonder pouches, but they don’t have it anymore because of the difficulties that were in place in my school. But if you were a principal today, what would be your direct take?

Chancellor David Banks: So I would talk to students, I would talk to parents, and then I would talk to teachers. And collectively seeing what the feedback would be from that, and then trying to make the best decision going forward. I couldn’t tell you right now what that decision would be.

Jose Santana: Yeah. Appreciate that.

Shoaa Khan: Yeah. Thank you. Thank you. Those are all the questions that we have. We hear that you’ve been planning, reporting a podcast, or working on a podcast. So when is that coming out?

Chancellor David Banks: We haven’t really started yet, so they keep telling me it’s coming soon. But we have the studio, we got all the equipment. It’s ready to roll. But this is the best podcast that I’ve done. But I’m hoping that we can get going because I think a lot of people would probably listen and want to know what the Chancellor’s thinking. And it’s not just for me.

More than that, it’d probably be me interviewing and speaking to a wide range of other people. Some students, some teachers, some parents, but some cultural icons who are out here, people in the music industry and hip hop industry. And you know, who’s your favorite teacher and how did school shape you? Business leaders, lots of people. So we have lots of ideas and we have a lot of stuff laid out. We just haven’t started yet.

All right. We’re good.

Santana Roach: Thank you so much.

Chancellor David Banks: Thank you. You’re fantastic. Wow.

Shoaa Khan: Thank you.

Sanaa Stokes: Well, there you have it, our conversation with Chancellor David Banks. Is there anything that stood out to you about the conversation, Santana?

Santana Roach: Yeah. I think when he was emphasizing the importance of student voice and advocacy, it was really powerful and really interesting to hear that, especially coming from Chancellor Banks himself.

Sanaa Stokes: I thought it was really awesome to see how much he supported us and the work that we’re doing through P.S. Weekly. I also thought it was really interesting when he said that he’d look into further research about pushing back school start times.

Santana Roach: I think a lot of students would appreciate later school start times.

Sanaa Stokes: I know I would.

Santana Roach: Before we go, here’s the Chalkbeat bulletin with news you may have missed over spring break.

Alex Zimmerman: I’m Alex Zimmerman, a reporter from Chalkbeat. Here’s a recap of the week’s biggest education stories.

Mayor Eric Adams released a budget proposal that will save several education programs that were on the chopping block. The mayor will maintain funding for hundreds of social workers, an expansion of preschool for three-year-olds, internship and career preparation programs, and other initiatives that were paid for with about 500,000,001 federal dollars. The Education Department’s budget would still be about 2.4% smaller next year because the city is not replacing all of the federal money that is expiring. A final budget must be negotiated with the City Council by July 1st.

Adams will also continue mayoral control of the city schools for the next two years, a deal that was struck between the governor and lawmakers in the state budget.

Finally, a new report by the city comptroller found that 560 public schools took on water during Tropical Storm Ophelia last September, far more than previously known.

To stay up to date on local education news throughout the week, go to chalkbeat.org/newsletters and sign up for the New York Daily Roundup.

Santana Roach: That’s our show for today. We’re back next week with a special episode in honor of Teacher Appreciation Week.

Sanaa Stokes: Until then, class dismissed.

CREDITS

Sanaa Stokes: P.S. Weekly is a collaboration between The Bell and Chalkbeat, made possible by generous support from the Pinkerton Foundation, the Summerfield Foundation, FJC, and Hindenburg Systems. This special episode was hosted by me, Sanaa Stokes.

Santana Roach: And me, Santana Roach. We were also producers for this episode, along with.

Shoaa Khan: Shoaa Khan.

Santana Roach: And...

Jose Santana: Jose Santana

Santana Roach: With reporting help from Chalkbeat reporter [Julian Shen Barrow] and [Alex Zimmerman].

Sanaa Stokes: Our executive producer for the show is [JoAnn DeLuna].

Santana Roach: Executive editors are [Amy Zimmer] And [Taylor McGraw]. Additional production and reporting support was provided by [Sabrina DuQuesnay], [Mira Gordon], and our friends at Chalkbeat.

Sanaa Stokes: Special thanks to our interns [Miriam Galicia] and [Makenna Turner]. Music from Bluedot sessions.

Santana Roach: Thanks for tuning in.

Sanaa Stokes: See you next time.

Amid growing calls to end legacy admissions, New York considers banning the practice

2024-04-29T15:36:56+00:00

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Some New York lawmakers, students, and advocates are calling for colleges in the state to end the practice of legacy admissions, which grants additional priority to the relatives of alumni.

Proponents of the “Fair College Admissions Act” say giving preference to students whose relatives attended an elite institution overwhelmingly favors white, wealthy families. The bill would prohibit the use of legacy admissions for undergraduates by colleges and universities in New York, while establishing financial penalties for those who refuse to comply with the law.

The push for the bill follows a U.S. Supreme Court decision last year that overturned affirmative action, significantly hindering the nation’s colleges and universities’ ability to consider race during admissions.

State Sen. Andrew Gounardes, a sponsor of the bill, called legacy admissions “a form of affirmative action for students of immense privilege.”

“At institutions that do use legacy, the admissions rate at some of the most exclusive schools is four times greater for legacy students versus non-legacy students,” he said. “And 75% of all legacy students come from the top 10% of wealthiest families in the country.”

Nationwide, nearly 30% of higher education institutions consider legacy status — with that figure rising to over 40% in New York, according to a report by the advocacy group Education Reform Now. And in 2022, a study found a growing number of adults believed legacy status should not play a factor in admissions, including more than 70% of both Democrats and Republicans.

At schools where legacy admissions have long been the norm, opposition has continued to surface on campuses. At Cornell University, students have passed multiple resolutions calling for the university to end the practice.

“It’s a fundamentally wrong and unfair practice,” said Claire Tempelman, a senior at Cornell who helped introduce a 2021 resolution urging the university to end legacy admissions. The Supreme Court’s decision on affirmative action last year only added to the urgency around the issue, Tempelman said.

“It’s ridiculous that even though you’re getting rid of affirmative action, you’re still keeping what is essentially affirmative action for the wealthy,” she added. “It’s this hypocrisy that makes legacy admissions just seem even more untenable.”

Jonathan Lam, a freshman at Cornell, said he’s been particularly concerned about the impact of the Supreme Court’s decision. As a child of Vietnamese refugees, he said he received significant help navigating college admissions from Thrive Scholars, a nonprofit organization that supports students of color from low-income communities.

“If we’re going to overturn affirmative action, and say that these DEI academic programs are problematic and controversial, then it also puts a lot of these organizations that supported students like me at risk,” he said. “It adds this urgency to the need to have a conversation about not just temporary solutions to supporting BIPOC and first-gen students, but also understanding the education system.”

It’s a cause that has earned the support of major advocacy groups in the state. The New York Coalition for Fair College Admissions — which includes the NAACP New York State Conference, the New York Civil Liberties Union, Education Reform Now, and other groups — has repeatedly called for the practice to end.

“The gutting of affirmative action makes ending this practice for New York even more of a racial-justice imperative,” said Jake Martinez, deputy director of NYCLU’s Education Policy Center. “When you think about the wealth that these families have … Low-income students, first-generation students don’t have those same resources.

“So wealthy families have not only the resources for college readiness, but also an upper hand through legacy admissions,” he said.

In May, high school and college students from across the state will travel to Albany, urging lawmakers to pass the legislation as part of a youth lobby day, Martinez added.

Other states are also considering changes to the practice. In Virginia, state lawmakers passed legislation earlier this year that barred public universities from giving preferential treatment to the relatives of alumni and donors. Meanwhile, in 2021, Colorado became the first state in the nation to ban legacy admissions — though the broader impact of that change remains unclear.

And in New York and elsewhere, some institutions have voluntarily stopped considering legacy status in admissions. Last year, NYU removed a question asking whether applicants were the children of alumni from its application — with the college affirming that legacy status does not play a role in admissions.

Under the proposed New York law, colleges that continue to consider legacy status in admissions would face a financial penalty — with the money collected being funneled into the state’s tuition assistance program for low-income students.

“All of these institutions benefit from New York state dollars,” Gounardes said. “We should not be funding exclusionary practices.”

With the state budget now enacted, he is hopeful that lawmakers will move to address legacy admissions. There’s been general support for the bill among colleagues in Albany, according to Gounardes.

“It may seem small, but it strikes at the notion of fairness and justice,” Gounardes said. “To allow a student to get into one of the most elite schools in the country just because their parents went there … That just seems inherently unfair.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Albany extends mayoral control for 2 years, tweaking NYC’s education panel

2024-04-20T19:38:18+00:00

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Mayor Eric Adams is set to retain control of the city’s school system for another two years, as part of a finalized budget deal between state lawmakers and Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Under the deal, Albany officials will have a hand in selecting the head of a city education panel, and New York City officials will enter into firmer commitments on adhering to a state law requiring smaller class sizes. But observers — including a member of the panel — remain skeptical that changes to that panel will have a significant impact on the city’s schools.

For months, an extension of mayoral control in the budget seemed an unlikely prospect in Albany, as lawmakers repeatedly argued that the future of New York City’s school governance structure should be determined outside of the budget process.

But earlier this week, as last-minute negotiations over the late budget ensued, Hochul continued to push for a mayoral control extension. On Saturday, lawmakers in both houses of the Legislature passed a budget bill including the two-year extension.

“I want stability in the city,” the governor said during a Friday press conference. “I want the parents and children and teachers to know that the governance mechanism that’s been in place for many, many years will not be politicized. It will not be a political football for the next few months.

“Sometimes, you just have to step back and say, ‘We want to get this done,’” she added. “And I have a knack for figuring out who to bring together and what has to happen.”

The $237 billion state budget finally neared completion on Saturday, nearly three weeks after its April 1 deadline. It allocates roughly $36 billion in funding to the state’s schools — as well as $2.4 billion to help New York City support the recent influx of asylum-seekers and other migrant families. Hochul will still need to sign the final budget into law.

For more than 20 years, the city’s mayoral control system has largely relied on the mayor’s power to select a schools chancellor and appoint a majority of members to the Panel for Educational Policy, or PEP, a city board that votes on major policy proposals and contracts.

As part of the deal struck this week, the board will grow by one member — with the chair of the PEP appointed from a set of nominees selected by Albany officials. Senate and Assembly leaders, as well as the chancellor of the state’s Board of Regents, will nominate candidates to oversee the panel, from which the mayor will select a chair.

The city’s Education Department will also be required to make firmer commitments to meeting a state law mandating smaller class sizes — a major priority for many lawmakers that passed as part of the last mayoral control deal. That means the city will be required to construct more school buildings, as well as maintain levels of funding needed for schools to shrink class sizes.

Despite those changes, some lawmakers were displeased with the extension.

“The proper way to do this is a thoughtful deliberation and hearing more voices in the process — taking into account more opinions from education stakeholders — and that’s exactly what we had planned to do immediately after the enactment of the budget,” said state Sen. John Liu, a Queens Democrat who chairs the Senate’s New York City education committee, on Friday. “As it turns out, the governor was very insistent on including this issue, and the governor has a great deal of influence during the budget making process.

“So this decision making was clearly rushed,” he said. “It’s not best practice, but this is where we are.”

Mayoral control extension follows detailed state report

The agreement comes on the heels of a nearly 300-page state Education Department report on mayoral control, which compiled testimony from five public hearings and detailed the history of New York City school governance.

That report, which City Hall referred to as a “sham,” did not advocate directly for extending or overturning mayoral control. But it noted a majority of speakers at public hearings wanted to see the system reformed, adding they felt unheard and excluded by the current structure.

It also highlighted a series of recommendations that arose during the public’s testimony, including potential tweaks to the makeup of the PEP and a commission to consider longer-term reforms to the city’s school governance structure.

On Friday, Liu hinted that longer-term changes to the system based on the findings of the report could come in 2026 instead, when mayoral control next expires.

“It’s a long-term study over the past 20 years, and the findings and the insight that this report provides are not going to change in the next year or so,” he said. “We are going ahead with a short term extension, so you can read between the lines there.”

Education panel tweak unlikely to have major impact, observers say

The extension comes as a win for Adams, who will now retain control over the city’s schools for the entirety of his first term. In recent weeks, Adams and his administration have made repeated pitches for an extension — with schools Chancellor David Banks lobbying lawmakers in Albany and threatening to resign if the system was overturned.

Still, the PEP will see one change under the deal. Currently, the chair of the panel is elected by its voting members, a majority of which are appointed by the mayor. Under the new system, the panel will grow from 23 to 24 members, though the mayor will still retain a majority. And though the mayor will hold the final decision over who leads that panel, Adams will now choose from a pool of three candidates determined by Albany officials. (If the mayor rejects all three candidates, Albany officials may submit up to two additional sets of three nominees.)

It’s a move lawmakers say could introduce more independence from the mayor to the role.

On Saturday, Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, praised Albany officials “for their work on behalf of the children of New York.”

“Today’s state budget requires New York City to provide every school with the funding it needs to lower class sizes - a critical investment in our public schools,” he said in a statement. “While more work needs to be done on mayoral control, the introduction of independent leadership to the Panel for Educational Policy provides more checks and balances in school governance.”

But some remain skeptical about the potential impact of the PEP change.

Vanessa Leung, who served as chair of the PEP for eight years under former Mayor Bill de Blasio, said having a more independent chair could lead to “a shift in the balance of power.”

But she added it will be especially difficult for that chair to effectively oversee a 24-member PEP, maintaining relationships across its members and with the city’s Education Department.

It’s “a huge lift for one person, who may not have the time and flexibility needed,” she said.

The change to the PEP “in practice is pretty benign,” said David Bloomfield, a professor of education, law, and public policy at Brooklyn College and the CUNY Graduate Center. Though the chair holds some power over the panel’s agenda, he believes it’s likely that state officials would be “accommodating to the Mayor.”

“On the other hand, the Regents & Legislature stepping into a direct NYC school governance role is extraordinary, unique in the state and, as far as I know, the country,” he said in an email.

It’s a move that Jonathan Collins, a professor of politics and education at Columbia University’s Teachers College, noted runs counter to the findings of the state Education Department report.

“The report shows us that NYC parents and stakeholders have major concerns about how accessible and responsive the current local governing board is to their concerns and needs,” he said in a Friday email. “They want more local control, and for the time being, they’re likely getting even less.”

Collins added the shift in chair selection could give Albany leaders some influence over the city’s policy agenda.

But skepticism about the impact of the change was shared even among current members of the panel.

“If we keep the same number of mayoral appointees, at the end of the day whoever picks the chair is not going to impact how votes play out,” said Kaliris Salas-Ramirez, a current PEP member appointed by Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine. “It doesn’t really improve the dynamics of the panel, or respond to the hundreds of people that participated in mayoral control hearings talking about ending mayoral control.”

She expressed disappointment with the rapid nature of recent mayoral control negotiations — particularly in light of the recent state Education Department report.

“It’s just really, really frustrating that folks aren’t looking at the big picture,” Salas-Ramirez said. “Here we had an opportunity to really create some transformative change on how New York City public schools are governed — to create a more democratic structure, to move towards something that people are actually asking for.

“And we’re literally encapsulating it in a one week debate,” she said.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Most NYC high schools lack newspapers. A new journalism curriculum could help change that.

2024-04-18T13:00:00+00:00

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Katelynn Seetaram, a junior at Pace High School in Manhattan, never had much interest in journalism.

But when she was placed in a journalism class her freshman year, she was stunned at just how much the course could teach her. She learned to question narratives that spread on social media. She developed a stronger sense of media literacy. And she became more skeptical and curious about the stories unfolding around her.

Now, it’s a potential career path that Seetaram hopes to pursue after graduation.

“That one class really led me to what I want to do with the rest of my life,” she said.

Seetaram is just one of the many students, journalists, and educators pushing for others to have the same opportunity. On Thursday, the New York City Youth Journalism Coalition will hold a day of action at City Hall, urging City Council members and other city officials to support more journalism programs across the city’s schools. It’s part of their launch of a “Journalism for All” initiative that includes a newly developed high school journalism curriculum that will roll out in the 2025-26 school year.

The day of action — a collaboration with the Council’s Black, Latino & Asian Caucus — will underscore that many students across the city lack access to high school journalism programs, particularly for students who are Black and Latino. And in the afternoon, Council Member Rita Joseph, who chairs the Education Committee, will introduce a resolution supporting the initiative.

Roughly 73% of the city’s high schools do not have school newspapers or student-run websites, according to a 2022 study by Geanne Belton, a journalism professor and director of the high school journalism program at the City University of New York’s Baruch College.

While more than three-quarters of the schools with the highest concentrations of white and Asian American students had student publications, the same was true for just 8% of schools with high concentrations of Black students and 16% of those with large shares of Latino students, according to the study. Schools with higher rates of poverty were also far less likely to have a student publication.

The inequities mirror trends in the broader industry. A 2018 survey found that journalists of color made up just 22% of the workforce.

“This isn’t only a journalism challenge — this really goes to the heart of civics and democracy,” said Jere Hester, the director of editorial projects and partnerships and acting director of the Local Accountability Reporting program at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY. “What we really want to do is institutionalize journalism instruction in New York City.”

With funding from the Charles H. Revson Foundation, the school has been able to develop a new high school journalism curriculum. The class will teach students the basics of reporting, writing, and producing stories, as well as tackling issues around civics, ethics, misinformation, and more, Hester said. It will also offer opportunities for students to experiment with different reporting mediums, including audio, video, and data journalism. (Revson is supporting a CUNY journalism student summer intern at Chalkbeat.)

Hester hopes students who take the class will be inspired to develop student publications at their high schools — or to participate in ones at schools where they already exist.

“I would love to see all these students become journalists someday,” he said. “Realistically, that’s not going to happen. But we do know that the skills and the inspiration that they get through doing this kind of work at the high school level is going to help them in all kinds of careers.

“Beyond all that, this is a way to help empower students,” he added. “To show them from this age the value of getting involved.”

In the months leading up to the day of action at City Hall, student organizers have been busy reaching out to Council members and raising awareness of the city’s youth journalism gap, said Derry Oliver, a senior at Brooklyn’s Cobble Hill High School.

The hope, she said, is to garner support from Council members and government officials, helping to spread journalism programs to districts and schools across the city. It’s a topic close to home for Oliver, who, despite taking an early interest in journalism, has not had access to a school newspaper.

“One of the things that will make me really happy is to see that other students behind me don’t have to suffer like I have,” Oliver said.

For those without access to journalism classes or publications at their school, the experience can be frustrating.

Fredlove Deshommes, a junior at Brooklyn’s Urban Assembly School for Law and Justice, tried to start a publication at her school, but said her efforts repeatedly stalled due to lack of resources.

Camila Sosa, a junior at Uncommon Collegiate Charter High School in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, said the absence of a student publication at her school has limited her opportunities to explore her interests in journalism and writing — and for students to amplify their voices more broadly.

“It’s insane to me that a lot of kids don’t have the opportunity to use publications as a way to express themselves,” Sosa said. “I hope that what we’re doing here actually makes a change.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

A ‘universal FAFSA’ law could be adopted in New York as budget negotiations continue

2024-04-17T17:57:25+00:00

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T’Kai Harvey, a sophomore at the City University of New York’s Hunter College, didn’t see college as an option for most of her life.

“I come from a very low-income community in the Bronx,” she said. “So I wasn’t going to go to college and financially burden my family.”

But in her senior year of high school, Harvey learned about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, through her school, working with a counselor at her school who helped her complete the forms and secure the financial support she needed to fund her education.

Now, Harvey, along with other advocates and some lawmakers, is calling for a “universal FAFSA” law requiring all high school students to complete a financial aid application or submit a waiver opting out by the time they graduate.

The push has gained some traction in Albany, where a proposed law seeking to establish the requirement could be included in the state budget expected later this week. Gov. Kathy Hochul included a universal FAFSA policy in her budget proposal earlier this year, and on Monday, Hochul announced her administration would send letters to high school seniors with tips on completing the FAFSA, while urging principals to ensure students have the resources they need to access financial aid.

But some school districts have expressed concerns about taking on the added responsibility without additional resources, complicating the ongoing negotiations.

To Harvey, the proposed law is critical because she saw peers at other schools who were never informed about the FAFSA and missed out on significant financial aid as a result.

“I know I could have been one of the kids that didn’t have the opportunity to go to college, had I not been told,” said Harvey, a student advocate with uAspire, an organization that advocates for college access for students from underrepresented communities. “There’s a lot of federal aid that gets left behind because students aren’t filling it out.”

Calls for Universal FAFSA in New York follow the adoption of the policy in several other states. They come as recent data has shown local students losing out significant federal funding and as the fumbled rollout of a new version of the federal form this year has spurred headaches for students and counselors across the country.

In 2023, graduating students missed out on more than $225 million in potential Pell Grants by not completing the FAFSA, according to an analysis by the National College Attainment Network. And studies have shown students who complete the FAFSA are far more likely to attend college.

“So many students don’t even fill out the FAFSA, and as a result, they don’t even consider the possibility of pursuing higher education, because they think it’s out of reach,” said state Sen. Andrew Gounardes, a sponsor of the bill. “The data that we saw in NY: Leaving $200 million on the table in eligible financial aid grants … That is a staggering number.”

Financial aid forms can be confusing for families

Under language put forward in a bill earlier this year by Gounardes and Assembly Member Jonathan Jacobson, New York would require all public, charter, and private schools to enact “a universal financial aid policy,” meaning all students would be mandated to submit a FAFSA or Tuition Assistance Program, or TAP, application during their senior year. Students would also be able to submit a waiver opting out. (Those who do not complete an application or opt out would not be prevented from graduating.)

Proponents of a universal FAFSA law note that students can encounter barriers to filling out the complex financial aid forms, especially for those whose parents aren’t able to help.

“Many first-generation college students are navigating the financial aid process on their own,” said Anika Van Eaton, vice president of policy at uAspire. “Embedding this key step towards pursuing college and gaining knowledge of one’s financial aid eligibility within the high school experience is so crucial.”

Jacobson, the Assembly sponsor, noted many households haven’t encountered forms like the financial aid applications before.

“FAFSA is difficult — it’s difficult even if you’re a CPA,” he said. “There’s no question that students need help in doing this.”

For Melody Garcia, a senior at Hunter College who graduated from a public high school in Queens, their first experience filling out the form was difficult. Questions about assets, income, and other aspects of their financial situation quickly became confusing to Garcia and their mother, who does not have a college degree.

“There are so many different things that you need to fill out,” said Garcia, who uses they/them pronouns. “It looks like you’re doing taxes, and I just didn’t understand that.”

Garcia was able to get help from counselors at South Asian Youth Action, a community organization that works with schools in Queens and Brooklyn. But without that support, they would have felt lost, they said.

Still, Garcia is hopeful that a universal FAFSA policy would mean more students could find help at school.

“If it was mandatory, schools would have to set aside time for this, and really make sure that students know where to go,” said Garcia, who is an advocate with Young Invincibles, an organization that works to amplify youth voices and has called for New York to adopt a universal FAFSA policy.

Some schools concerned about FAFSA law

Some school districts worry, however, the bill would create an additional burden for them, particularly if it comes without any funding or other support. It’s become one of several issues that lawmakers and Hochul continue to discuss as negotiations over the state budget persist.

Bob Lowry, deputy director for the state’s Council of School Superintendents, said while they have supported voluntary efforts to encourage FAFSA completion, they remained concerned over the specifics of the potential new law.

Proposals from the Senate and Hochul would require school districts to obtain documentation from families that students had completed their financial aid applications or opted out — an added task for schools. Some school districts are also concerned about requirements to notify high school seniors about financial aid applications at least four times during the school year, as well as having to provide access or referrals for additional support in completing the FAFSA.

“Our greatest concern is with the potential expectation that schools will have the capacity to assist students and families with FAFSA completion,” Lowry said in an email.

Lowry instead favored language included in the Assembly’s budget proposal last month that does not make FAFSA completion a requirement, but directs the state to develop additional resources for students, including compiling lists of organizations that offer assistance with the FAFSA. Schools would be required to distribute those resources and conduct an annual presentation to students.

Gounardes said the goal is not to “take a prescriptive approach,” letting school districts determine how to approach the forms with their students.

“A lot of the other states that have done this have not required significant infusion of additional resources,” he added. “Though we are certainly very open to that conversation, were it demonstrated to be a necessity.”

Current FAFSA problems highlight bill’s need, lawmaker says

Gounardes believes the need for the proposed law has been heightened by nationwide issues with the FAFSA this year.

The “Better FAFSA” was intended to simplify the process through which students receive financial aid. But rollout of the new form has been plagued by glitches and errors, stoking fears that a significant portion of the Class of 2024 could ultimately end up not attending college.

Though Gounardes believes the issues will be solved for future application cycles, he added the impact of this year’s problems could be far-reaching.

“This debacle is proof as to why universal FAFSA is so important,” Gounardes said. “How many students are going to hear or assume that because it was a disaster this year, ‘Oh it’s not worth my time anymore. I’m not even going to bother.’

“That could not be further from the truth,” he said.

And while the city’s Education Department did not comment on the proposed law, it emphasized its commitment to ensuring students had adequate postsecondary support — particularly in light of issues this year.

“While there is continued concern about the impact of this year’s FAFSA difficulties, we have bolstered our support for students completing FAFSA,” Education Department spokesperson Chyann Tull said in a statement.

This year, the city has provided additional training to counselors, hosted remote advising sessions for families, partnered with organizations on FAFSA completion events, and distributed multilingual FAFSA guides, Tull said.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

Albany to send $35.9B to NY schools as negotiations over mayoral control continue, Hochul says

2024-04-15T23:41:42+00:00

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Gov. Kathy Hochul said a preliminary budget agreement would allocate roughly $35.9 billion to New York schools — a record high — as state lawmakers closed in on a deal on Monday.

Though Hochul announced “the parameters of a conceptual agreement” on a $237 billion state budget, she said that Albany leaders had not yet finalized negotiations over mayoral control. Hochul told reporters she was pushing to extend New York City’s 20-year-old governance model — a move that would keep Mayor Eric Adams at the helm of the nation’s largest school system.

“There’s still time to see if we can get this worked out,” she said. “There’s a lot of complications with that.”

The city’s school governance structure, which expires on June 30, gives the mayor the power to select a schools chancellor and appoint a majority of members to the Panel for Educational Policy, or PEP, a city board that votes on major policy proposals and contracts. In a budget proposal earlier this year, Hochul had called for a four-year extension of mayoral control.

In 2022, lawmakers struck a deal to extend mayoral control for two years, despite Hochul pushing for a longer extension.

For months, lawmakers have argued the future of the city’s polarizing school governance structure should be determined outside of the budget process. But during last-minute negotiations on the two-weeks-late budget, the possibility of extending mayoral control reentered discussions.

“We have had some very positive conversations, but obviously, the devil’s in the details,” Hochul said. “So that’s why I’m being very careful and saying that this is a conceptual agreement, not the entire budget.”

In a statement, State Sen. John Liu, a Queens Democrat who chairs the Senate’s New York City education committee, said, “The governor is pushing the issue in budget negotiations and a short-term extension of mayoral control may be included along with stronger accountability measures for meeting class size requirements.

“The mayor wants what he calls mayoral accountability,” he said. “So he should agree to being held accountable.”

Adams praised the preliminary budget agreement in a statement and said, “We will continue to fight for New Yorkers on crucial issues, especially preserving mayoral accountability as we advocate to support public school children and families.”

Schools to see $1.3 billion increase in funding

The looming budget agreement would represent a $1.3 billion increase in school aid, allocating roughly $500 million more to New York’s schools than Hochul proposed earlier this year, according to figures she shared on Monday.

It’s the highest level of school aid in history, and comes as the governor and lawmakers have clashed over the state’s funding formula.

Hochul’s earlier proposal included two controversial changes to Foundation Aid, the state formula that calculates how much funding each school district receives and sends more dollars to higher-need districts. The adjustments proposed altering how the formula accounted for inflation and modifying a provision that prevented districts who saw enrollment drops from losing money.

That prompted pushback from some lawmakers and advocates who argued against changing the formulas at a time when the city’s schools and districts across the state face the end of billions of dollars in one-time federal COVID relief funds, which are set to dry up in September.

Hochul noted Monday that the budget deal would include an adjustment to how the formula accounts for inflation, but added the latter of her proposed changes would not go into effect.

“If left unchecked, the formula would have grown roughly 5%,” said Blake Washington, the state’s budget director. “Instead, it’s going to grow approximately 2.8%.

Meanwhile, the state’s Education Department will partner with the Rockefeller Institute to conduct a longer term examination of Foundation Aid with hopes of changing the formula next year, Hochul said.

“State law requires us to keep everybody at the same level every year, regardless of whether they’ve had population loss or whether their needs have changed,” she said. “There’s got to be a better way.”

The state budget will also allocate $19 million to new mental health supports for children and expand the state’s Tuition Assistance Program, according to Hochul.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NY state education officials unveil 300-page report on mayoral control. Here’s what they found.

2024-04-09T21:29:22+00:00

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State education officials unveiled a highly anticipated report on New York City’s polarizing school governance structure on Tuesday — compiling months of public testimony and decades of the city’s history into a nearly 300-page document.

In the report, state officials did not directly advocate for or against extending Mayor Eric Adams’ control of the city’s schools, instead outlining a series of broader findings and recommendations from the public.

Those findings could have major implications for ongoing negotiations in Albany about mayoral control. The report comes as part of a deal state lawmakers struck in 2022 — extending Adams’ control for two years, while giving Albany time to assess the effectiveness of the long-standing system.

Since September, the state’s Education Department has worked with the CUNY School of Law to conduct a study of school governance models. The department also held a series of public hearings across the five boroughs, soliciting feedback from the public. The results of both efforts were included in the report.

At a press conference hours before the release of the report, Adams questioned the methods employed by the state’s Education Department. He took particular issue with the involvement of the CUNY School of Law, suggesting the school was biased against him due to an incident last year when graduates turned their backs on him during a commencement speech.

“So I’m concerned: Is this more political?” Adams said. “Or is it about the way we have done it and what Chancellor [David] Banks has done?”

He also questioned whether the testimony at public hearings was truly reflective of a city as large as New York.

In response to the mayor’s comments, JP O’Hare, a spokesperson for the state’s Education Department, said “we believe the report speaks for itself.”

“This report is a thorough, research-based presentation of school governance models in New York City and elsewhere that meets the law’s requirements with fidelity,” he said. “As intended by the legislature, the report provides thoughtful information and testimony concerning mayoral control of schools.”

Later in the day, after the release of the report, Education Department First Deputy Chancellor Dan Weisberg called the report “disappointing” and a “missed opportunity” for failing to adequately highlight the city’s progress in closing achievement gaps compared to the rest of the state during the period of mayoral control.

Here are some of the key findings of the state’s report:

NYC model unlike most others in nation, according to report

Mayoral control, which centralizes power over the city’s schools in the hands of the mayor, has been regularly extended since 2002. The system gives the mayor the power to choose a schools chancellor and appoint a majority of members to the city’s Panel for Educational Policy, or PEP, a city board that votes on major policy proposals and contracts.

That model is unlike most others in the country, according to the state report.

Nationwide, a majority of public schools are governed by elected school boards or superintendents, rather than those appointed by a mayor. But even among cities with similar school governance structures, New York City’s model grants more power to the mayor, according to the report.

In other U.S. cities with mayoral control systems, appointments are in some cases picked from a list of names designated by a nominating panel, or require the approval of a city council. The report looked at school governance structures in Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Los Angeles, and Yonkers — finding New York City’s model granted the most power to the mayor, followed closely by Yonkers’ system.

Calls for reform in public testimony

Over the past two decades, mayoral control has faced both fierce critics and ardent defenders.

In the report, state officials noted that a majority of speakers at public hearings sought reforms to the current system — expressing that they felt unheard or excluded by the current school governance structure. Further, speakers felt that centralizing authority in the hands of the mayor and chancellor resulted in an ill-suited “one-size-fits-all” approach to the nation’s largest school system.

Many members of the public pointed to the PEP, arguing that the disproportionate number of mayoral appointees created a system that lacks sufficient “checks and balances.” Others raised concerns over a lack of continuity in programs and policies whenever a new mayor comes into office.

But the report also acknowledged that few people have called for a return to the local school board model that predated mayoral control. Defenders of mayoral control have argued that the current structure allows for more effective and accountable leadership than the previous school board system.

Research ‘inconclusive’ on school governance

Research, meanwhile, remains unclear when it comes to school governance models, according to the report. While some studies suggest that mayoral control can garner more resources for schools and increase efficiency, others found “persistent issues with inefficiency and the misuse of resources.”

The report stated research has found “no conclusive relationship between school governance structures and student achievement,” as well as “little evidence that any governance structure has reduced longstanding inequities in educational access and attainment among students.”

Still, Adams, Banks, and other officials have pointed to test scores and other metrics in defending the current system.

“Clearly, what you see is sustained improvement in graduation rates and proficiency rates for our students,” Weisberg said Tuesday.

He pointed specifically to shrinking gaps between New York City students and the rest of the state on standardized exams over the past two decades and called it a “missed opportunity that the report didn’t compare and contrast.”

The report does, however, have an extensive section on the test score gaps between city students and the rest of the state’s, which have shrunk significantly since 2005, according to data in the report. But researchers were cautious to draw any kind of causal link between mayoral control and the shrinking gaps, noting that there are a number of other factors that influence test scores and that it’s nearly impossible to distinguish the effects of a specific education policy from the effects of mayoral control as a whole.

Weisberg countered that it’s valid to compare the results of city students to kids in the rest of the state taking the same test as long as you take demographics into account.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for City Hall also emphasized graduation rates and test scores had risen in the years since mayoral control was adopted and called the report a “sham.”

After report, debate over mayoral control will continue

In recent weeks, as lawmakers continued deliberations over the state budget, Banks ramped up his arguments for extending mayoral control. In meetings with lawmakers and public comments, he argued that his track record over the past two years warranted an extension.

But lawmakers have repeatedly pushed back on efforts to include an extension in the upcoming state budget. Some had also refrained from weighing in on the future of the city’s school governance structure before the release of the report.

In a statement Tuesday, State Sen. John Liu, a Queens Democrat who chairs the Senate’s New York City education committee, noted the report would be “invaluable in legislative deliberations and decision-making.”

“We are highly appreciative of Commissioner Betty Rosa and her team of educational professionals at the State Education Department and look forward to thoroughly digesting their findings and recommendations as we take up the important matter of school governance in NYC once the state budget is enacted,” he said.

In addition to its findings, the state report highlighted a series of recommendations from the public’s testimony — including potential tweaks to the makeup of the PEP, and to the roles of Community Education Councils and School Leadership Teams, in order to strengthen the input of local communities in the city’s decision-making process. Members of the public also called for a commission to consider longer-term reforms to the city’s school governance structure.

David Bloomfield, a professor of education, law, and public policy at Brooklyn College and the CUNY Graduate Center, called the report “a mild reprimand of the current system,” adding it “is careful to couch its recommendations as what came out of the hearings, rather than some sort of independent consensus for what should be done.”

Still, “the three-word summary of the report is: ‘We want change,’” he said. “What that change is, is left out.”

Meanwhile, the recommendation to establish a commission to study longer-term reforms could actually offer mayoral control “a reprieve,” Bloomfield said, noting “it has the effect of extending mayoral control in the near term.”

And as discussions over the future of the city’s school governance structure continue, the precise impact of the report remains unclear, said Jonathan Collins, a professor of politics and education at Columbia University’s Teachers College.

“If you were looking for a clear referendum on the impact of mayoral control, you’re looking for the wrong thing,” he said, adding the report showed widespread feelings of a disconnect between the needs of kids and the city’s decision-making processes. “But, if you read this report as a clear rejection of mayoral control, I would temper expectations. While we can see at-length the issues with public engagement, there isn’t clear evidence that NYC schools are doing poorly as a result of being under mayoral control.

“Ultimately, though, Governor [Kathy] Hochul and the state legislature will have to decide if the juice is worth what’s been a major squeeze,” Collins added.

Michael Elsen-Rooney contributed reporting.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

As eclipse arrives, NYC students and families share in once-in-a-generation learning experience

2024-04-08T22:24:41+00:00

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New York families flocked outside Monday afternoon, eager for their kids to take part in a once-in-a-generation learning experience.

Across the state and other parts of the country, a total solar eclipse darkened the sky, offering a momentary opportunity to engage directly in the science behind the cosmic event.

Though the city was not in the direct path of totality, New York City families could still see the unique phenomenon unfold as the moon passed over the sun. The next total eclipse in the state will not occur until 2079, according to state officials.

On a grassy field behind the New York Hall of Science in Queens, hundreds gathered to view the eclipse. Kids enjoyed museum activities like “astronaut training,” which had them completing tasks while wearing thick gloves that mimic real-life astronauts’ gear. Others played on the lawns, tossing Frisbees or slotting in pieces on giant Connect Four boards while upbeat music blared from a DJ station.

Kamilah Jemmott, left, and her 9-year-old son, Kori, traveled from Suffolk County to view the eclipse on Mon., April 8, 2024 at the New York Hall of Science in Queens, New York.

By the late afternoon, the festive spirit gave way to quieter observation as families put on their protective glasses and turned their gaze toward the sun. The eclipse, which began just after 2 p.m., reached its peak by roughly 3:30 p.m. and faded by the evening.

Tanya Keitt, a Brooklyn mom, said she rushed from Flatbush to her 8-year-old daughter’s school in Williamsburg, whisking her away right as classes let out.

As huge astronomy buffs, Keitt said they’ve tried their hand at engaging with space before. Recently, she got a telescope from her local library to watch a meteor shower with Mahalia, her daughter, on their roof. But to their disappointment, it was blocked by light pollution.

“We’re so excited to see something today,” Keitt said. “Me and my dad were really into the stars. I shared stars with him, and he shared them with me, so I’m really excited to do this with my daughter. It’s just really special.”

Kamilah Jemmott brought her two kids to Queens from Suffolk County to experience the eclipse.

An avid science fan, 9-year-old Kori had been planning the trip for more than a year, Jemmott said.

“First, I heard that the sun can go dark,” Kori said, explaining his excitement. “Then I found out shadows can grow sharper.”

He purchased his eclipse glasses in 2023 and brought them to Queens on Monday, and he wore a homemade eclipse shirt.

“It’s super cool,” he said. “I’m literally going to tell everyone when it’s full.”

As the eclipse neared its peak, parents sang along to Bonnie Tyler’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart” and families watched the phenomenon unfold.

From left, Joseph, Elijah, and Melissa Matias pose for a photograph while viewing the eclipse on Mon., April 8, 2024 at the New York Hall of Science in Queens, New York.

Elijah Matias, a fourth grader at P.S. 108 in Queens, said “his favorite thing is science.” Though he had an idea of what the eclipse would look like from online clips and video games, he was thrilled to see it firsthand, bouncing with excitement as he talked about what he was seeing.

Joseph Matias, his father, said he pulled Elijah out of school early to make sure he got to witness the eclipse.

“It’s once or maybe twice in a lifetime,” he said. “And it’s a good family experience to share.”

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

After 4.8 earthquake shakes New York, schools continue operations as normal

2024-04-05T15:54:52+00:00

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New York City schools were sent reeling Friday morning as a 4.8 magnitude earthquake reverberated through the city and other parts of the region.

As of around 12 p.m., no injuries had been reported in the city’s schools, and officials had received no indication that any school buildings were compromised, according to the city’s Education Department.

Schools across the city were continuing operations as normal following the 10:23 a.m. incident, officials said.

Many schools sent messages to families Friday morning, assuring them that students remained safe. At some schools, recess was moved inside, as a city emergency alert advised residents to remain indoors. (A later alert warned aftershocks may be felt, but said New Yorkers could continue usual activities.)

At a press conference with other city agencies, schools Chancellor David Banks said he was attending an event at Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts when the earthquake struck.

“We’ve instructed all of our school principals to continue operations and dismissal as normal,” Banks said. “We ask the schools, staff, and families to remain calm and to model that for all of our students, all of our children.”

Parents do not need to pick up their child early, and after school programming will continue as normal, he added.

Education Department officials noted building response teams were assembled shortly after the earthquake “out of an abundance of caution,” and that the department had been in close collaboration with other city agencies to ensure student safety. Schools would communicate with families if any conditions were to change, officials added.

Classes briefly disrupted across the city

In the immediate aftermath, some schools, students, and educators were left rattled by the earthquake.

“Kids are freaked, staff is freaked,” said Kiri Soares, principal of the Urban Assembly Institute of Math and Science for Young Women in Brooklyn. “We’re sending out messages to families, staff, and kids to check in with them and reassure that we are stable and physically OK.”

But Soares said the school remains “mentally stressed from all the disruption,” adding a broken pipe that occurred prior to the earthquake had flooded several classrooms, ramping up the chaos.

Anna Nelson, an assistant principal at Bronx Latin, said she was in a ninth grade algebra class when the desks started shaking. The school uses Yondr pouches to lock up cell phones during the school day, but Nelson said they let students un-pouch their phones after the earthquake to text their families and let them know they were safe.

The school notified parents that recess and lunch had been moved indoors, but that otherwise school operations were continuing as normal. Though classes were disrupted for about 15 minutes, Nelson said students quickly regained focus.

Still, she added, there was little immediate communication from the city’s Education Department in the aftermath of the earthquake. And while her school remained indoors, a neighboring school evacuated their building, according to Nelson.

“I think there was just a wide variety of directives happening across schools,” she said. “A very quick message to everyone and all schools — like key stakeholders — would be really helpful.”

Around 12 p.m., the city’s Education Department sent a text notification to parents, assuring them students remained safe and that school dismissal would proceed as normal.

The earthquake was felt across parts of the East Coast Friday, with its epicenter just north of Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. In Philadelphia, for example, schools were continuing operations as usual, with no reported injuries or building damage, said Monique Braxton, spokesperson for the Philadelphia School District.

Alex Zimmerman and Carly Sitrin contributed reporting.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC to open 9 new schools this fall. Here’s what to know.

2024-04-04T23:11:41+00:00

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Nine new schools will open this fall in New York City, aiming to provide families with more choices on where they enroll their children, schools Chancellor David Banks said Thursday.

The new schools will offer a mix of elementary, middle, and high school programs across three of the city’s boroughs. They include a Brooklyn outpost of the successful Bard Early College High School, a Queens high school for careers in film and television, a project-based elementary school modeled on the progressive Brooklyn New School, and the city’s first Montessori-inspired public school.

Banks said the new schools are a way to address the “serious hemorrhaging” of students in recent years, with enrollment falling by more than 100,000 students, despite ticking back up slightly last year.

“Parents and families are looking for a wide range of special schools that are appealing to them, and that’s what we’re delivering,” he said. “My goal here … is to provide school experiences that will draw more families to our schools.”

But the announcement comes as officials grapple with myriad complex, interlocking issues — expiring federal relief funds, dwindling enrollment in some of the city’s smallest schools, and a state law mandating smaller class sizes that will demand significant resources to implement.

While celebrating the launch of the new schools, Education Department officials said they were designed to fulfill the needs and desires of local communities.

“These nine schools really push the boundaries of traditional education models,” said Shawn Rux, senior executive director of the Education Department’s Office of New School Development and Design. “They are cutting edge. They are unique. And they are directly responsive to what we know and continue to hear from our students and communities about what they need.”

Five of the schools will be housed in new buildings that will open this fall, with another joining a school on a site that opened last September, said Nina Kubota, president of the NYC School Construction Authority. It’s part of a total 24 new buildings opening for the city’s schools this year, adding 11,000 seats citywide, she added.

The city had proposed more than $7 billion to expand school capacity and fund the construction of more than 80 buildings, according to the Education Department’s 2020-24 capital plan. The latest capital plan calls for nearly $5 billion to address capacity issues, including class sizes, overcrowding, and “infusing fresh resources into schools, communities, and neighborhoods.”

The development of the new schools in some ways runs counter to the recommendations of a working group tasked with advising New York City’s public schools on complying with the state law capping class sizes. In December, that group unveiled its 55-page report, which advised the city against opening new schools in shared buildings — instead suggesting that resources be directed to existing, underutilized schools to provide new programs and services.

In recent years, shrinking enrollment at some schools has pushed the city to consolidate, merging communities to shield them from the effects of their dwindling size.

On Thursday, First Deputy Chancellor Dan Weisberg said the department was working to revamp existing schools and introduce new programming, in addition to its development of new schools.

“It isn’t just about new schools, but they’re an important piece of the puzzle,” he said. “All of this has to happen within the context of the law around class size. We’re going to have to comply, and believe me, we are keenly focused on how we are going to do that.”

Here’s a look at the nine new schools coming to the city this fall:

Motion Picture Technical High School, Queens

Motion Picture Technical High School in Sunnyside will offer ninth-12th grade students a chance to explore potential careers in the film and television industry. The school will provide students with immersive training in video production, post-production, and production-design — aiming to broaden access to the industry and empower diverse filmmakers, according to the city’s Education Department.

Bard High School Early College, Brooklyn

Bard Early College is poised to launch a new campus in East New York, offering families in the borough access to the network of coveted public high schools that allow students to earn an associate degree by the time they graduate.

The Bard model allows students to take courses with college instructors, and engage in small, writing- and discussion-based seminars. It has highly sought-after sites in Manhattan and Queens with a new site in the Bronx that opened in September.

M.S. 644, the Bronx

M.S. 644 will offer a middle school education focused on debate, multilingualism, and experiential learning in the south Bronx. The school will push students to question and challenge what they learn.

M.S. 428, Brooklyn

M.S. 428 in Sunset Park will offer middle school students a dual language program in both Chinese and Spanish, according to the city’s Education Department.

M.S. 407, Brooklyn

M.S. 407 will offer a medical and STEAM focused middle school experience in District 20, allowing students to immerse themselves in curriculum across disciplines.

P.S. 413, Brooklyn

P.S. 413 will offer an inclusive learning community for elementary students in Bay Ridge, with students “on track to enrich their local and global communities in different careers, including law and medicine,” according to the city’s Education Department.

P.S. 331, Brooklyn

P.S. 331 will offer elementary students in Bay Ridge an education with an emphasis on “empowering graduates with a profound understanding of entrepreneurial pathways, sensible financial knowledge, and proficiency in strong communication and technology skills with a dedicated focus on a world language,” according to promotional materials.

P.S. 456, Brooklyn

P.S. 456 in Downtown Brooklyn will follow the model of the Brooklyn New School, offering “inquiry-based curriculum centering on exploration, problem-solving, and becoming change agents,” according to the city’s Education Department.

P.S. 482 Albee Square Montessori Public School,Brooklyn

P.S. 482 Albee Square Montessori Public School in Downtown Brooklyn is the first Montessori-inspired public school in the city, according to the city’s Education Department. It is designed to provide an equitable learning experience, allowing children to explore subjects in multi-age classrooms.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.

NYC 5th graders receive middle school offers, as city considers changes to admissions process

2024-04-03T22:26:22+00:00

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Amanda Rinzel, a parent and educator who lives in Brooklyn, spent her spare moments on Wednesday nervously refreshing her MySchools account, waiting for the news of where her fifth grade son would attend middle school in the fall.

It was the family’s second time going through the middle school admissions process, but in some ways, this year felt different from her first experience. Her older son, a seventh grader at the Professional Performing Arts School, had always been interested in musical theater — making the Hell’s Kitchen school, which accepts students from across the five boroughs via audition, “an obvious choice.”

Stanley, her younger son, is “more well-rounded” in his interests, said Rinzel, who lives in District 17. They ended up ranking the Brooklyn Green School, a boroughwide program in nearby District 16, as their top choice. It drew them in with an administration that seemed especially receptive to student needs, as well as its strong arts and athletics programs, she said.

On Wednesday, Rinzel was elated to learn Stanley had been admitted to his top choice school.

“Middle school can be so hard,” said Rinzel, who teaches at a middle school in the Bronx. “It just seems like a happy place, and I’m so excited for him to be in a school that is uplifting.”

For many families, the Wednesday placements marked the end of the city’s middle school admissions process. In December, fifth grade families across the city ranked as many as 12 middle schools as they submitted their applications.

Over the next week, the city’s Education Department will host three virtual sessions for families to learn more about offers and waitlists.

Unlike the city’s notorious high school admissions process, many middle schools across the city feature district programs that are open only to students who live in the area — with some zoned schools only allowing applicants from within a smaller subset of the district. Other programs offer boroughwide admissions, allowing all students who live in the borough to apply, while other schools allow any student in the city to apply.

Some middle schools also use academic screens to determine admissions, sorting students as young as nine based on their grades. Those screens were initially paused during the pandemic, then brought back in some districts at the discretion of each of the city’s 32 local school district superintendents.

Further change to the admissions process may be on the horizon.

For months, the city’s Education Department has been floating a potential change to the process at parent leader meetings — soliciting feedback on a possible shift that would allow students to apply widely outside of their district. Students applying to schools in their own district would still have priority for seats, according to discussions at various meetings.

Still, it may be some time before any changes are enacted.

In a statement, the city’s Education Department confirmed its Office of Student Enrollment was considering possible changes.

“One of the potential changes we are exploring with parents, advocates and educators is allowing students to apply to middle schools outside of their districts,” a spokesperson said. “Conversations are ongoing and no decisions have been made.”

For Rinzel, a citywide process would have meant more options for her and Stanley to consider. She added they may have looked at more schools beyond their district and borough.

More options for students could also mean a more equitable system, opening up seats at schools that may have more resources than those close to home, Rinzel said. But still, she noted that traveling outside of the borough to attend school each day could add potential safety concerns for young students.

“There are a lot of factors that parents and kids have to take into account if they’re applying citywide,” she said.

Julian Shen-Berro is a reporter covering New York City. Contact him at jshen-berro@chalkbeat.org.