Pre-K for all? NYC’s universal preschool push leaves behind students with disabilities, report finds
The crowning achievement of former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration is uncontested: universal pre-K. The program guarantees free pre-K for 4-year-olds and has grown to include 3-year-olds in a dozen districts with plans to expand citywide. But the city’s preschool programming has poorly served many students with disabilities, according to an analysis of 2019-2020 city […]
NYC parents: Was your child exposed to COVID? Here’s what to do next
Once again, New York City parents are facing questions about when to keep their children home from school or get them tested for COVID as they learn of possible exposures. Though the omicron variant appears to be slightly loosening its grip, nearly 2,200 students and school staffers reported positive coronavirus cases last weekend, according to […]
This urban farming teacher is helping Bronx students connect to the earth and each other
A new horticulture program is blooming at a Bronx high school, and environmental science teacher Vanessa Spiegel is helping tend it. Bronx International High School — a progressive, project-based school that serves recent immigrants — launched its urban farming program this year at the five-year-old Morris Campus Farm, adding it to its roster of career […]
NYC school COVID testing is falling short, some educators say
As city officials investigated whether a slew of positive COVID cases should close down Millennium Brooklyn High School, science teacher Mike Stivers tried to get swabbed on Tuesday during the school’s weekly testing visit. Stivers and other teachers were turned away. They hadn’t filled out the newly required consent forms three days earlier — before […]
Special education tuition hearings shift to NYC trials agency to address backlog
From Chalkbeat December: The de Blasio administration is transferring oversight of a backlogged special education complaint system — where filings typically take months or years to resolve — from the education department to a city entity that operates administrative trials. The shift was codified earlier this month in a memorandum of understanding between the city […]
Albany 101: Here are the big NYC education issues to watch in the new legislative session
When New York state’s legislative session begins this month, don’t expect to see the familiar rallies of advocates, union leaders and lawmakers pressing the governor to boost money for schools. That’s because state lawmakers passed a budget last session that, for the first time, committed to fully cover Foundation Aid, the formula that provides the […]
Porter to step down as NYC school chancellor, clearing the way for Adams to make his pick
Meisha Porter will step down as New York City schools chancellor when Mayor Bill de Blasio’s tenure comes to a close at the end of the year, she announced Wednesday morning. Porter, who rose up through the ranks of city schools, stepped in to lead the nation’s largest school system in March following the sudden […]
NYC schools to allow on-site COVID tests for teachers once again
With children ages 5 to 11 getting vaccinated, New York City schools may soon see a drop in the number of students participating in their on-site weekly COVID testing program since the program is only supposed to test unvaccinated students. But the swabs might not go unused. The city’s education department plans to change its […]
