Your independent guide to NYC public schools

Hurricane Sandy did away with the traditional week long winter vacation that celebrates both Lincoln’s and Washington’s birthday’s and conserves schoolhouse energy at the same time. This year all students get is a four day weekend. Here are some suggestions to make the most of it and take the opportunity to explore some free or very low cost -- and lesser-known -- attractions. Most are closed on Mondays, however, so plan those excursions for the weekend or Tuesday. 

Federal Reserve Bank: Act quickly for a chance for older kids (16 plus) to visit the fabled gold depository and learn more about the institution that has been so much in the news since the economy went south. Call  212-720-6130 for immediate information about ticket availability—a 3-4 week wait for tickets is typical but either you’ll be surprised or you can reserve for a future date. Tours last approximately an hour, and begin on the hour from 9:30 am - 3:30 pm daily.

The Wall Street area and the 9/11 memorial, South Street Seaport, and Chinatown all have charms of their own – you can stroll about or make plans to visit museums and landmarks.

Dear Judy,

Can you tell me when the high school placement results will come out? How does the school tell the kids the news?

8^th grade Mom

Dear 8^th grade Mom,

Results of the high school applications are due out March 15 (alas, for some parents, that date is later than when private schools let their applicants know.) The placement results, in sealed envelopes, are picked up by each middle school from their local enrollment office. Along with the letters comes a list of all applicants and, in some cases, the schools use this list to determine how the letters are distributed.

Schools vary in the way they distribute the letters and the news, so you'll need to ask your 8th grade guidance counselor how your school handles it.

Can they please go back to school already?

Once again this morning, I woke up to a sprawl of sleeping teenagers in my home, their books, music and snowboarding equipment scattered about. They had no school today, due to a "citywide chancellor's conference day for teachers and staff,'' whatever that means.

They had no school last week either. And yet, in the weeks leading up to Regents week, they were buried in finals, while the seniors were simultaneously overwhelmed with essays and college application deadlines.
Not that my gang -- a senior and sophomore -- complained. They were thrilled to have the time off, even if I can't help wondering how once again, how I was caught unprepared for this onslaught of unstructured time.

Filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aide (FAFSA) is the first step for students seeking financial support to go to college.

But completing the form is a perennial headache. Even the first step -- finding the right form online -- is confusing because the Web is populated with imposters. That's why the Center for New York City Affairs and Insideschools released FAFSA: The How-To Guide for Students and the Adults Who Help Them. The illustrated guide was designed to help students and families navigate the sometimes confusing federal financial aid process. 

FAFSA: The How-To Guide was written in partnership with college guidance and financial aid professionals and funded by the Capital One Foundation. It is particularly relevant to students who are the first in their families to be going to college. The guide explains how to prepare for the form, what kinds of questions will be asked, and why the government needs the information on parents, families and income.  

The guide also addresses complicated questions that first generation students might have, such as: how the FAFSA form defines parents and families when students don't live with their parents and how to fill out the FAFSA form if a parent or student is undocumented.

Click here to download a PDF of the guide and visit the Center for New York City Affair's website to order a copy (or copies) for yourself, your family or your students. 

Council Speaker Christine Quinn said she would focus less on standardized tests, give parents a stronger advisory role and extend the school day for low-income children if she is elected mayor.

You can watch her entire speech and Q&A session, sponsored by The Center for New York City Affairs (our parent organization) and Insideschools.org at the New School, here.

Without criticizing Mayor Bloomberg, Quinn implied that, if elected, her administration would depart from some of Bloomberg's education policies. While Bloomberg has focused on standardized tests as a way of measuring progress, Quinn said "testing should not be more important than teaching" and should not define schools. While Bloomberg has fostered competition among schools to outperform each other, Quinn said her administration would instead promote more collaboration by identifiying what is working and encouraging schools to share best practices. She pointed to New Dorp High School's literacy program as an example of something that should be expanded to other city schools. 

Charter schools are here to stay, Quinn said, but she suggested she would not expand their numbers significantly. "They're at a good level right now," she said. She pledged support to large high schools like New Dorp or Truman High School. Bloomberg's Education Department has closed dozens of large high schools in the Bronx and Manhattan, breaking them into smaller schools. Quinn said she supports the small schools, but large schools can be successful as well.

On the topic of closing schools, Quinn said she would like to see earlier intervention and mentioned a "red alert" system she would put in place to support "failing schools." "Instead of treating schools closings as a good in and of itself, we will treat it as a last resort," she said.

In another departure from Bloomberg, parents under the Quinn administration would have a stronger advisory role. She would like Community Education Councils to be elevated to the status of Community Boards, which advise city government on land-use. She said she's undecided on the topic of school networks, and welcomes parent input. The Bloomberg administration dismantled school districts based on a geographical area and replaced them with "networks" that may include schools from a number of boroughs. 

Notably absent from her speech were mentions of the teacher's union, except to say both sides should "lower the temperature" on the debate over teacher evaluations. She also was mum on special education, which the city has begun to overhaul.

After weeks of back and forth, the yellow school bus strike will officially begin on Wednesday, Jan. 16, Mayor Bloomberg announced this afternoon in a press release.

Officials from Local 1181 Amalgamated Transit Union, the school bus drivers' union, confirmed that the strike is happening during a press conference, according to Schoolbook.

Yesterday, the city posted information online detailing what to do in the event on a strike and says it will hand out metrocards to all children who normally ride yellow school buses to school. The Mayor's office is also posting fairly up-to-the-minute news via official NYC.gov Twitter account and Tumblr blog. Or call 311.

The Education Department announced the start of the selection process for the city's Community Education Councils and vows to run the bi-annual elections more smoothly this spring. They could hardly be worse than the last elections in 2011, parent leaders say.

Two years ago, the Community Education Council elections were fraught with SNAFUs and confusion. Some qualified candidates’ names were mysteriously left off ballots and parents were unable to log on to a website to vote in the election’s first round.

“It was chaos and total disaster because the DOE didn’t do proper outreach,” said Shino Tanikawa, the president of District 2’s CEC.

The process was such a mess that even schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott admitted it was mismanaged and ordered a do-over.

On Tuesday, Jan. 15, Insideschools and the Center for New York City Affairs will co-host a conversation with City Council Speaker Christine Quinn on the future of schools in New York City.

Quinn will discuss her vision for "building a 21st century school system," including college and career readiness. She will also participate in a Q & A with Insideschools' founder and senior editor, Clara Hemphill. This event is one of a series of events with potential 2013 mayoral candidates sponsored by the Center for New York City Affairs at The New School.  (See a write-up of a 2012 event with mayoral hopeful Tom Allon here.) 

Quinn also spoke about city education policy, along with other potential mayoral candidates, at a GothamSchools event in November. See a rundown of that event here.

The Jan. 15 forum will be at The New School, at 65 West 11th Street, from 8:30 am to 10 am. Tickets are free but you must reserve a seat; RSVP here: http://strongerschools.eventbrite.com/. Do it soon! It's a small venue and seats are going fast.

What to do with your children once the presents have been opened, the holidays feasts consumed and the kids -- and you -- have had enough of games and computers? How about a visit to one of New York City's "more than 500 galleries, 375 nonprofit theater companies, 330 dance companies, 150 museums, 96 orchestras, 40 Broadway theaters, 24 performing arts centers, five zoos, five botanical gardens, and an aquarium."

That rundown is from the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs which compiled a list of city venues with free or "suggested" admissions, perfect for families looking for something to do over the holidays. (Thanks to DJ Sheppard, District 3 family advocate for forwarding it to us!). Here they are, in alphabetical order.

• Alice Austen House Museum
• American Folk Art Museum
• American Museum of Natural History (permanent collection only)
• BRIC Rotunda Gallery
• Brooklyn Museum
• Bronx Museum of the Arts
• Flushing Town Hall: Gallery by suggested donation.
• Goethe Institute
• Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning: Gallery is free at all times.
• Kentler International Drawing Space
• King Manor Museum
• Lefferts Historic House
• Longwood Art Gallery at Hostos Community College
• Metropolitan Museum of Art / The Cloisters
• MoMA PS1
• El Museo del Barrio
• Museum of Biblical Art
• Museum of the City of New York
• National Museum of the American Indian
• Old Stone House
• Queens County Farm Museum
• Queens Museum of Art
• Sculpture Center
• Snug Harbor Cultural Center and Botanical Gardens
• Studio Museum in Harlem
• Staten Island Museum

FREE HOURS AT CULTURAL VENUES

• Brooklyn Botanic Garden: Free admission on Saturdays from 10AM–Noon, all day Tuesdays, winter weekdays, and Fridays for seniors
• Asia Society and Museum: Admission is free to all Friday 6-9 pm
• Brooklyn Children's Museum: Free every third Thursday from 4–7 PM and the first full weekend of every month from 2–5 PM, except holiday weekends.
• Bronx Zoo: Every Wednesday is free.
• Children's Museum of the Arts: Pay what you wish on Thursdays, 4-6 pm.
• Guggenheim Museum: Pay what you wish on Saturdays, 5:45-7:45 pm
• Historic Richmond Town: Free on Fridays, 1PM–5PM.
• International Center of Photography: Voluntary contribution every Friday, 5 – 8 pm
• Jewish Museum: Free every Saturday.
• Lincoln Center David Rubenstein Atrium: Free performances every Thursday at 8;30 pm
• Morgan Library and Museum: Free on Fridays, 7–9 pm
• Museum of Arts and Design: Pay what you wish Thursdays 6–9 pm
• Museum of Chinese in America: Free every Thursday, 11 am –9 pm
• Museum of Jewish Heritage: Free every Wednesday 4–8 pm
• Museum of Modern Art: Free Friday Nights, 4–8 pm
• Museum of the Moving Image: Free Friday Nights, 4–8 pm
• New Museum: Free Thursday Evenings, 7–9 PM.
• New York Aquarium: Suggested donation Fridays after 3 pm
• New York Botanical Garden: Free all day Wednesdays, and Saturday from 10 am to noon
• New York Hall of Science: Free Fridays 2–5 PM and Sundays 10–11 am
• New-York Historical Society: Pay what you wish on Fridays, 6–8 pm
• Noguchi Museum: Pay what you wish the first Friday of every month.
• Staten Island Children's Museum: Grandparents Free Wednesdays 5-8 pm
• Staten Island Zoo: Free Wednesdays 2–4:45 pm
• Van Cortlandt House Museum: Free Wednesdays.
• Wave Hill Cultural Center: Free Saturdays and Tuesdays, 9 am–Noon.
• Whitney Museum: Pay what you wish Fridays 6–9 pm

For more events, see the NYCulture Calendar.

And, as always, it's best to call or check online before you visit to confirm the details.

All schools should offer a "safe place" for children who wish to talk about last Friday's tragedy at Sandy Hook elementary school, Chancellor Dennis Walcott wrote in a letter to school communities and families today.

The letter, signed also by UFT President Michael Mulgrew and Ernest Logan, president of the principal's union, encouraged teachers to "give solace and support to your colleagues so we can be strong enough to take care of our students."

Included were suggestions of resources that teachers, school staff and families can refer to when helping children try to comprehend Friday's horrific acts such as Resources for Dealing with Traumatic Events in School, published by the University of Maryland's Center for School Mental Health.  

Ever since news of the school shootings in Newtown on Friday, parents have been sharing resources and suggestions on how to speak to their children about what happened. Here are a few resources to consider:

• The National Association of School Psychologists -- Talking to Children About Violence: Tips for Parents and Teachers
• American Psychological Association - Helping Your Children Manage Distress in the Aftermath of a Shooting
• American Academy of Pediatrics - Resources to Help Parents, Children and Others Cope in the Aftermath of School Shootings
• The National Association of School Psychologists -- A National Tragedy: Helping Children Cope
• American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry - Children and Grief
• Massachusetts General Hospital for Children - Talking To Children About A Shooting
• Child Mind Institute - Caring For Kids After A School Shooting
• NYU Child Study Center: Talking with Children About Difficult Subjects: Illness, Death, Violence and DisasterHow can parents talk to children about community tragedies?
• American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry: Children: Firearms, Grief and Violence

And, after the jump, here are some tips from a social worker accustomed to treating victims of crime. Thanks to Park Slope Parents listeserv for sharing them.