Essential education reporting across America
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Amy Zimmer

Bureau Chief, Chalkbeat New York

Amy Zimmer is the Bureau Chief for Chalkbeat New York. She is an award-winning journalist who previously covered education for the New York news site DNAinfo. Her writing has appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Metro newspaper, and City Limits, among other outlets. Her book, “Meet Miss Subways,” focused on one of the nation’s first integrated beauty contests. She also led content strategy at the tech startup Localize.city. Amy received her bachelor’s degree in anthropology from Yale and has a master’s in journalism from New York University.

Two parents pose with their daughter for a portrait in front of a banner that reads, “Back to School.”
From Chalkbeat New York Politics & Policy
After frustrating delay, NYC’s 2023-24 school calendar is live
The first day of school is Sept. 7. Spring holidays are spread out next year, with a day off for Good Friday on March 29 and for Eid al-Fitr on April 10, and with a week off for spring break, coinciding with Passover, starting April 22.
By Amy Zimmer
 
A girl sits at a table in a school over a case of essential oils. A pair of scissors, paper, and other materials are on the table.
From Chalkbeat New York School segregation / integration
NYC school admission offers are out. Here’s what the numbers show.
This year’s offer data shows very little change in racial and economic diversity, particularly for high school, despite seeing the biggest admissions changes.
By Amy Zimmer and Julian Shen-Berro
 
A girl in a pink dress holds a card with a boy’s sad face that says “sad.”
From Chalkbeat New York Meeting the Moment
Many schools opted out of a controversial social-emotional assessment. Now NYC is ditching the tool.
Teachers and parents raised concerns about the DESSA, a social-emotional learning tool that schools began using last year.
By Amy Zimmer
 
A colorful ‘Welcome back to school’ sign is posted on a fence in front of a brick building.
From Chalkbeat New York Politics & Policy
NYC’s 2023-24 school calendar delay frustrates families and educators
The first day of school is typically the Thursday after Labor Day, but families want confirmation. Other districts finalized their calendars by March.
By Amy Zimmer
 
Teens sit at tables scattered around a classroom working on different projects.
From Chalkbeat New York Teaching & Classroom
It’s status quo for class sizes next year under new law, according to NYC’s draft plan
For future school years, education department officials are bracing for some big expenses to comply with the law.
By Amy Zimmer and Reema Amin
 
Lots of people sit crowded in chairs waiting to be relocated
From Chalkbeat New York Politics & Policy
What we know (and don’t know) about NYC’s plans to house migrants in school gyms
To house the influx of migrants, New York City might tap up to 20 gyms in public schools to use as shelters, Mayor Eric Adams said Tuesday. Tensions are rising over the plans.
By Alex Zimmerman and Amy Zimmer
 
Find out how what kinds of mental health resources and support your school offers.
From Chalkbeat New York Mental Health in Schools
How well does your child’s school support student mental health?
We tracked dozens of data points on mental health support in NYC public schools. Do they call 911 on students in crisis? Are there enough social workers and guidance counselors? Find out here.
By Sam Rabiyah, THE CITY, Suhail Bhat, THE CITY, and 1 more
 
Two young girls hold up a card as they talk during a social-emotional learning lesson. They sit on a grey carpet, and there is a drawing in front of them on pink paper that says “uncomfortable” with a drawing of a person holding their abdomen.
From Chalkbeat New York Mental Health in Schools
Need mental health help for your child? Here’s how to get support in NYC schools
Schools are straining to keep up with counseling demand as mental health woes mount for young people. If your child needs help at school, here’s how to start.
By Amy Zimmer
 
Parents and children, some in face masks, walk across an astroturf field with brick walkup apartment buildings in the background.
From Chalkbeat New York Student & School Performance
Want to tell NYC how you feel about your child’s school? The annual school survey is your chance.
Does your child feel safe at school? Progressing in reading and math? Do they feel a sense of belonging? New York City’s annual school survey, a massive undertaking, is your chance to share.
By Amy Zimmer
 
Parents and students in bright blue and red costumes line up in front of a school mural outside of a brick building.
From Chalkbeat New York Meeting the Moment
Parent coordinators propped up school communities during the pandemic. Many feel undervalued and underpaid.
The role of parent coordinator became more critical and stressful during the pandemic. But salaries for the job, which New York City schools created 20 years ago, have not kept pace.
By Amy Zimmer
 
A man in a gray suit without a tie talks at a podium.
From Chalkbeat New York Politics & Policy
Teachers buck Mulgrew, petition for referendum vote on Medicare Advantage
UFT president feels pressure from members who demand a union-wide vote on the retiree health care cost savings plan he’s championing.
By Claudia Irizarry Aponte, THE CITY and Amy Zimmer
 
A woman in the foreground in a black T-shirt smiles at the camera while a student in the background makes a silly face.
From Chalkbeat New York How I Teach
How to harness social media to build job skills? This Bronx teacher created a curriculum for that
Cheriece White, an art and technology teacher at Metropolitan Soundview High School, shows her students how to create brands for the companies they dream up. White was a grand prize winner of the FLAG Award for Teaching Excellence.
By Amy Zimmer
 
A teacher points to a piece of pink construction paper that has a stick figure drawing and the word “uncomfortable” on it. The teacher is sitting on the rug. Only her feet and hands are visible.
From Chalkbeat New York Meeting the Moment
Telehealth, suicide prevention, social media guardrails: NYC shares sweeping youth mental health plan
The needs are high as data shows worsening mental health among young people, including more students reporting thoughts of suicide.
By Reema Amin and Amy Zimmer
 
The curved facade of Brooklyn High School for Excellence and Equity in Canarsie. There is an NYPD van parked outside, as well as a standard silver SUV.
From Chalkbeat New York School safety
NYC principals to meet weekly with NYPD to address after-school violence
Schools Chancellor David Banks has been raising the alarm about the recent spate of killings and shootings involving young people, calling it a “state of emergency” that requires more intervention.
By Michael Elsen-Rooney and Amy Zimmer
 
Students and parents line up on the first day of classes.
From Chalkbeat New York School Enrollment
NYC schools want to boost enrollment. It might prove a major challenge.
Students could have fallen off school rosters for being homeschooled without registering with the state or skipping kindergarten. Others might have disengaged during remote learning or amid mental health struggles.
By Amy Zimmer
 
A student in a backpack walks up concrete steps toward green double doors at a school.
From Chalkbeat New York School segregation / integration
Brooklyn principal leaves middle school after teacher complaints mount
M.S. 51 principal Neal Singh will leave to work for District 15’s superintendent. Pui-Lam (Jack) Chan, from New Utrecht High School, will take over on Feb. 1 as interim principal.
By Amy Zimmer
 
School administrators speak with a family on the first day of school as other parents walk by them outside a brick school building.
From Chalkbeat New York Meeting the Moment
Tell us: How has your relationship to school changed since the pandemic started?
Chalkbeat wants to hear from you. How has your relationship with your school community changed since the roller coaster ride of campus closures and openings?
By Amy Zimmer and Caroline Bauman
 
A student holds a sign saying “Public space is not for private profit.”
From Chalkbeat New York Charters & Choice
Success Academy school space-sharing proposals put on hold after Queens and Bronx community uproar
New York City’s education department pulled three proposals to co-locate Success Academy elementary schools in shared campuses after locals mounted campaigns to fight the plans.
By Amy Zimmer
 
A man in a red polo shirt and black sweatpants stands in a school gym.
From Chalkbeat New York How I Teach
This award-winning Queens PE teacher has a big YouTube following for his kid-friendly fitness videos
Queens teacher Thomas Gelardi’s YouTube channel took off during the COVID pandemic. He’s garnered more than 4 million views on his videos that help kids stay active in small spaces.
By Amy Zimmer
 
A group of kindergarten children at a graduation ceremony, the girls wearing pastel-colored princess dresses.
From Chalkbeat New York Higher Education
NYC gives $100 in college funds to all kindergartners: Here’s how to get or give more money
Kindergarten families can activate their NYC Scholarship Accounts in January. Here’s how to grow the $100 seed money and how communities can raise more money to help kids go to college.
By Amy Zimmer
 
A woman in a black dress stands at a chain link fence around a school buildings as children, some masked, stream onto the sidewalk.
From Chalkbeat New York COVID and Schools
NYC schools shift COVID response: No more ‘Situation Room’ or family letters about positive cases
The education department told principals the Situation Room will close Dec. 23. Schools will no longer have to send families letters about positive COVID cases.
By Amy Zimmer
 
Elementary students with and without masks sit around a table with a green plastic bin in the middle of the table.
From Chalkbeat New York COVID safety
As COVID, flu, and RSV cases spike, NYC school officials recommend masks indoors
As winter approaches, education department officials are recommending that students and staff wear masks inside school buildings, according to a message to families on Tuesday.
By Amy Zimmer
 
Students walk past white lockers in a school hallway
From Chalkbeat New York Charters & Choice
NYC’s middle and high school application deadline extended after application portal crashed
The education department extended the deadline for middle and high school admissions to Dec. 5 after MySchools crashed the night before applications were due.
By Amy Zimmer
 
Four people sit in chairs on a stage in front of a projected image
From Chalkbeat New York School segregation / integration
A Queens integration plan derailed: Join us to hear more from the ‘School Colors’ podcast creators with special guest Chancellor David Banks
Be part of the Dec. 15 discussion at Queens Public Library.
By Amy Zimmer
 
A woman wearing a face mask, a man in a white button-down shirt and a teen in a yellow T-shirt stand in a classroom with a school-made robot.
From Chalkbeat New York Diversity & Equity
‘They won’t take the first steps’: How to get more girls, Latinos, and Black students into NYC’s computer science classes
Just 17% of New York City schools were meeting the education department’s Computer Science for All equity goals of reaching girls, Latinos, and Black students, according to a recent report from NYU’s Research Alliance.
By Amy Zimmer
 
A woman in a winter coat and snow cap stands on a boat near the coast of Antarctica.
From Chalkbeat New York How I Teach
Through climate education, this Brooklyn teacher helps students ‘see how to save their own communities’
Sarah Slack, a science teacher at Brooklyn’s I.S. 223, won the prestigious Math for America Muller Award for her work on bolstering climate education across New York City.
By Amy Zimmer
 
A woman stands in the doorway of a home with blue tarp hung on the wall next to her and fallen wooden beams in the foreground.
From Chalkbeat New York Community & Wraparound Programs
‘I’m an activist now’: How Hurricane Sandy inspired educators and parents to improve their communities
Chalkbeat talked to educators and others in schools about the storm’s other lasting legacies — from strengthening bonds to creating community to efforts to improve safety.
By Amy Zimmer
 
Teens wearing puffy coats and masks walk by a fence in front of a school.
From Chalkbeat New York Diversity & Equity
NYC has about 700 high school programs. Here’s what to know before you apply.
“Focus on selecting a school that is a good fit for your student and not whether it’s a ‘good school’ or not,” one expert said.
By Amy Zimmer
 
A man in a suit stands at a podium flanked by other adults in business attire.
From Chalkbeat New York Diversity & Equity
NYC overhauls high school admissions, leaves middle school changes up in air
Eighth graders with course grades in the top 15% of their class last year will have priority in scoring seats at some of NYC’s most selective high schools.
By Amy Zimmer and Michael Elsen-Rooney
 
Parents in January 2020 applaud a speaker during a contentious meeting to discuss middle school integration plans for District 28 in Queens. Fights how to make New York City schools more representative of student demographics have filtered down to the races to elect Community Education Council members.
From Chalkbeat New York Politics & Policy
As NYC school board meetings return in person, will parent voices dwindle?
Under New York’s Open Meetings Law, school board meetings must return in person, with an option for hybrid.
By Amy Zimmer