Your independent guide to NYC public schools

Since 2002, under the leadership of Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the city has closed more than two dozen large, unruly high schools and replaced them with small high schools, each enrolling fewer than 600 students. Many hoped the more intimate environment of the smaller schools would allow more students to thrive. A 68-page report released today during a conference at The New School, gives the small schools reform effort mixed reviews.

Small schools offer a more personalized setting, where staff knows students' names and attendance and graduation rates are higher than at large schools, the report documents. It cautions, however, that teachers and principals at small high schools leave their jobs at a higher rate, and that attendance and graduation rates drop the longer schools stay open. The report, the culmination of an 18 month investigation by the Center for New York City Affairs, also finds that the opening of small schools and the closing of large schools,  has "had a harmful impact on thousands of students," who still attend large high schools. Those schools have had to absorb increasing numbers of high-needs students.

Schools Chancellor Joel Klein, who spoke at the meeting, disputed some of the report's findings. He pointed out that, over the past few years, the "graduation rate went up in all schools," not just the new small schools. He defended the practice of closing failing high schools. "[Placing] low-performing students together in large high schools, is impersonal and it's not going to work."

Some large high schools have found success by emulating the small schools model within their buildings. Stephen Duch, principal of Hillcrest High School, in Queens, said his neighborhood school improved by dividing students into seven smaller learning communities.

Duch sat on the panel of education experts who spoke about some of the complex issues underlying large urban school districts and the convoluted high school admission and choice process in New York City. Clara Hemphill, one of the report's authors and former Insideschools.org director, moderated the panel. According to Hemphill, "parents who are well-educated and speak English are better off to navigate the system."

Pedro Noguera, a New York University professor and public school parent said that while middle class parents "will do everything they can to get their kids into a good school," the "poor kids are being left out of the better schools."

He also raised the civil rights issue of segregation in public schools. "Racial integration does not get talked about at all," Noguera said.  "Looking at black and Latino males, not has much changed. They're overrepresented in the failing schools," many of which are large schools in poor neighborhoods, he said.

Eric Nadelstern, Chief Schools Officer at the Department of Education said, "Simply the act of closing those large failing schools made schools less segregated. Our schools have never been more integrated than before."

The report recommends that the DOE do more to help large high schools be successful; create more midsize high schools, which post similar rates of graduation and attendance as small schools; offer more support to special education students and English Language Learners, and not "assume that all 13-year-olds have good judgment" when selecting a high school.

Editor's Note: Insideschools' blogger Helen Zelon was one of the report's authors.

In New York City where about half of the high school students don't graduate in four years, transfer schools, which offer smaller class size, and programs tailored to individual students' needs, are an increasingly important option for students who haven't been successful at a traditional high school.

Since Fall 2005, the city's Department of Education has opened 19 new transfer schools designed to help struggling students earn their high school diploma. While most transfer schools have long waitlists, new schools typically have empty seats waiting to be filled. Four new transfer schools will open in September bringing the total number in the city to 41. Programs fill up quickly, so now is the time to contact the schools and apply.

Here's a rundown on the newest schools. East Brooklyn Community High School will open in a new building in Canarsie. It is targeting students who have been truant or who have dropped out of high school, and will provide intense counseling for students and their families. Innovation Diploma Plus, opening in the Brandeis High School building on the Upper West Side, will accept students ages 16-20. Emma Lazarus High School for English Language Learners is the first transfer school to exclusively serve students who are not proficient in English. The school will accept students with zero credits, and who have attended high school for one year. The High School for Excellence and Innovation is the first transfer school to open to 8th graders who are over-age for their grade and who have failed to graduate from middle school.

Unlike regular high schools which require students to apply through a central application process in the fall, transfer schools accept students on a rolling basis throughout the school year and students apply directly to the school. Transfer schools differ from regular schools, in that class sizes are usually very small, there are more social services to support students, students can enroll and graduate mid-year, and they can earn credits by taking non-traditional courses after school or on the weekend. For example, a student may take bowling on Saturday to earn gym credits. Some transfer schools accept only students who have accumulated a minimum number of credits and coursework, while others accept students with no credits.

A few transfer schools, such as The Urban Academy, James Baldwin School, and Humanities Preparatory help a range of students, including kids who didn't fit the mold at their original high school and are looking for a different environment.

Other special programs assist students who are facing difficult life challenges. Young Adult Borough Centers (YABC) offer evening classes for students age 17.5 and older with at least 17 credits. There are also programs that provide daycare for teen parents, help court-involved youth, and programs for students with substance and drug abuse.

Every student in New York City has the right to attend school to obtain a high school diploma through the school year in which they turn 21. To find a transfer school in your area, use the advanced search in our Find a School section.

Only 1,190 PTA officials out of an estimated 4,500 potential voters cast ballots this spring in the election for the 34 Community Education Councils, according to the Department of Education press office. Despite an extensive publicity campaign through the DOE's Powertotheparents.org organizers and website, 18 councils will require another round of elections to break a tie or add an uncontested candidate. The district and citywide councils are considered to be the parent voice under mayoral control.

Only a school's three PTA officials can vote for CEC candidates. During the first round of elections, PTA officials each had two votes to cast; during the second round, they will each have one vote.

Six CECs will hold an election for a candidate who received no votes during the first round of elections. "They were on the original ballot, but they just didn't receive any votes," said Nicole Duiginan, a DOE spokesperson. "[The chancellor's regulation] requires an affirmative vote take place." CECs must have at least six members to hold an official meeting, and several districts operated without a quorum for much of this school year. In the recent election, District 8 in the Bronx and District 16 in Brooklyn only elected five members, so they will each hold a second "election" to obtain one more member, chosen from the candidates who received no votes during the first round.
Eight CECs will have true tiebreakers, where several candidates all received the same number of votes.

All public school parents were encouraged to participate in the process by voting in a straw poll, which the DOE said would advise PTA officials on how to vote. The straw poll results, however, were not released until after the PTA voted. Meanwhile, the CEC candidate forums drew little interest in many districts around the city, and the election deadlines were postponed.

The run-off elections are planned for next week, but the DOE could not confirm the official dates. "They're optimistic that it will happen next week," said Duiginan. The final results will be available "as soon as possible," he said.

Some advocates argue that low participation reflects parents' belief that they have no voice under mayoral control. In the next few weeks, the state legislature will decide whether to reaffirm mayoral control or revise it. Several proposals under review advocate for stronger parent participation.

A big budget hurdle for charter schools was just lowered.

"Despite a prohibition on using state funds to build charter schools, the city has quietly expanded available funding for charter school construction to as much as $3.8 billion," writes the New York Post. The extra money is part of a provision in the capital construction plan.

To date, charter schools have not received public funds for facility expenses. Many charter schools in New York City have been able to survive because Mayor Bloomberg has allowed them to use Department of Education buildings rent-free. Charter school advocates have long lobbied for the ban on state funds to be lifted, since depending on who controls the school system next, charter schools could have to start paying steep city rent prices.

When Lydia Bellahcene’s son "E.E.," who struggles with a reading disability, was picked from a lottery to attend Williamsburg Charter High School, she was elated. “I thought my son could be successful. He would be given the support he needed. I had no red light, yellow light to be cautious because they had an IEP team [a group of administrators who ensure special education students receive services].” Although her son worked with a special education reading instructor every day for 45 minutes beginning in 3rd grade at a regular Department of Education school, when he began 9th grade at Williamsburg Charter in 2007, the specialist was promised, but never appeared. As a result, he failed 9th-grade English, became depressed, and was forced to continue to wear the 9th-grade green uniform the following year, while his friends wore the gold 10th-grade Williamsburg Charter shirt, said Bellahcene.

Charter schools, which operate outside the city Department of Education and select students through a lottery, have become increasingly controversial as their numbers have grown. This fall an additional 24 charter schools are expected to open, bringing the total in New York City to more than 100 schools. As charter schools proliferate, and in many instances, post higher test scores than neighboring regular schools, some parents and advocates claim the schools are “creaming,” enrolling only the best students and ignoring disadvantaged populations.

“Those charter schools are not serving the main population,” said Aixa Rodriguez, a Spanish teacher who worked at International Leadership Charter School in the Bronx. She said students requiring extra services were pushed out. “They’re serving a boutique population…You’re not going to have a whole line of parents on welfare whose kids are PINS,” referring to the warrants parents place on run-away youth.

Charter school advocates disagree. “When somebody says a charter school is creaming, what they’re not telling you is there’s no way on God’s Earth you know who you’re getting,” said Jeffery Litt, superintendent of the Carl C. Icahn charter schools.

Charter schools claim they outperform neighborhood schools while enrolling the same student demographic. Opponents argue that charter schools only attract children whose parents are involved and invested in their education, since the parents had to seek out a charter school and fill out an application by the April 1 deadline. Additionally, because charter schools operate independently of the city DOE, opponents say there is no oversight to protect the most vulnerable students – those who don’t speak English or require special education services.

An analysis of student data involving some of the most challenging students to educate, students who are homeless, special education students, and English Language Learners (ELL), shows that charter schools don’t serve or enroll the same students as local public schools. Homeless students

In New York City, 51,316 public school students are homeless, and only 111 of them attend a charter school, according to Jennifer Pringle, director of NYS-TEACHS, a state-funded group that provides assistance to schools, social service providers, and families about the educational rights of homeless students.

“With many charter schools, you have an application process. It’s not just you can show up at the school on September 1st and register your child,” Pringle said, “and many families in crisis aren’t in a position to see that process through.” Although most city charter schools are located in low-income neighborhoods, 34 charter schools enroll no homeless students. In East New York, Brooklyn, a politically-forgotten neighborhood with decrepit buildings and the infamous Pink housing projects, nine homeless shelters are located near Achievement First East New York Charter School. The school does not enroll any homeless students.

According to Emily Ente, senior external relations associate for Achievement First schools, although homeless shelters are located near their schools, some students living in those shelters attend schools as far away as the Bronx. (The federal government provides free transportation to homeless students if they wish to attend their original school.) “If for whatever reason they’re not showing up in our numbers, that’s certainly a population we’re committed to serving,” she added.

Homeless shelters always fall within the boundaries of a school zone. Charter schools don’t have school zones and instead enroll students by lottery, giving preference to applicants who live in the DOE’s geographic district. Carl C. Icahn Charter School in the Bronx is located on the same piece of property as the Carl C. Icahn family homeless shelter, yet it only educates one homeless student.

“The application period is February and March and the lottery is held in April,” said Litt. “A mother who comes [to the shelter] in June is too late, so their kids go to the neighborhood school.” Homeless families may have priorities other than seeking alternatives to their neighborhood schools, he said. “They have daily survival needs. I don’t know if they have the time to research who we are, what we are, how to get in.”

Regardless of the burdens homeless students encounter, they should have the same right to choose a good school as students with a permanent address, says Pringle. “While I’m sympathetic to the challenges charter school face in attracting these vulnerable students, these students shouldn’t be effectively excluded from charter schools, which is often the case under their admission’s timeline,” she said.

English Language Learners Students who don’t speak English (referred to as English Language Learners or ELLs by the Department of Education) are less likely to attend a charter school. Although between 14-17 percent of New York City public school are still learning English, according to 2008-09 Title III allocations (federal money schools receive for students learning English), they represent just three percent of the charter school population. Twenty-five charter schools don’t educate any students who require assistance learning English, while another 20 charter schools have fewer than five ELL students. Advocates say the low numbers result from a dearth of programs in charter schools dedicated to serving beginning English speakers, parents’ inability to navigate the application process because they don’t speak English, and a misunderstanding of laws that protect students who followed their parents into the country illegally.“I had an issue with one school under the Harlem Children’s Zone that would not admit a student because she did not have a social security number,” said Arlen Benjamin-Gomez, an attorney for the immigrant’s rights project at Advocates for Children, Insideschools’ parent organization. “We were able to resolve the issue for that case, but it’s unclear if other charter schools are similarly unaware of the laws prohibiting this sort of thing.” While the DOE offers three distinct programs for ELLs -- English as a Second Language (ESL), Bilingual instruction, and Dual Language instruction -- charter schools don’t have specific programs. At Democracy Preparatory Charter School in Manhattan, about one-half of the ELLs are placed in Collaborative Team Teaching (CTT) classes, a class that’s taught by two teachers, one of whom is certified in special education. They receive the necessary support, because there is an extra teacher in the room, according to Democracy Prep administrators.“That benefits you, whether you have an IEP, you’re an ELL, or just having trouble managing division,” said Katie Duffy, director of external affairs for Democracy Prep. “Most of them have a working knowledge of English, so you can teach in English. You don’t have to have a separate program or separate teachers for ELLs.”Common sense says a teacher certified in a particular field, such as special education, should teach within that field. Charter schools, however, were created to challenge commonly-held assumptions about the best pedagogy. Charter schools may decide that what works best for ELLs is to have two teachers in one room, regardless of certification.

At New Heights Academy Charter School in Washington Heights, 42 percent of students are ELLs – the largest percentage of any charter school. However, there is only one certified ESL teacher for the 78 students requiring additional support, said Principal Stacy Winitt.

“Some of our ELLs are already receiving CTT services, so we don’t double-up on services,” she said, adding that many of her students are fluent in English but have trouble passing the English proficiency exam because they lack basic literacy skills in their native language. “For the vast majority, they struggle with reading period,” said Winitt. “If you’re struggling in your native language, it’s hard to transfer those basic skills into English literacy.”

A special education teacher helping an ELL is akin to an airline pilot steering a ship, say immigrant advocates.

“Special education and language acquisition services are completely two different things” said Benjamin-Gomez. “Under state and federal law, you have to have, at minimum, an ESL or bilingual program. You cannot put them in a special education program to satisfy their ESL needs.” According to Benjamin-Gomez, it is only permissible to place ELL students in a special education class without help from a certified ESL teacher if  they are “non-verbal.”

Charter schools have found a way to dance around that law, in part, because that is the essence of a charter school: the freedom to create innovative, atypical programs that don’t match DOE guidelines. Before a charter school is approved, they must submit a plan for educating students learning to speak English. According to Democracy Prep Principal Seth Andrew, his plan for servicing some ELLs in CTT classes does not require certified ESL teachers to support them.

Special Education

All special education children in the United States have an Individualized Education Plan (IEP), a formal document that explains a child’s disability and the services schools are obligated to provide. Special education services range from a highly restrictive class with only special education students, called self-contained, to a more inclusive setting, where students sit in general education classes, but receive extra help, such as SETSS (Special Education Teacher Support Services). Although many DOE schools offer self-contained classes, charter schools don’t. (New York Center for Autism Charter School is the exception. It only enrolls students with autism.) Because an IEP is a legal document, and charter schools don’t offer self-contained classes, schools can say: ‘Sorry, but we don’t offer that program.’

The number of students with IEPs in charter schools is a mystery. Although all DOE schools report the number of special education students on their report cards, charter schools don’t.

“We have the data, but it’s not something that we make public on our website,” said a representative of the New York State Department of Education. Despite dozens of phone calls to state and city DOE officials over a four-week period, the numbers were not released. Data from 2006-07, prepared by John Berman of the NYC Comptroller's Office, shows that 15 charter schools did not enroll any special education students.

A few charter schools interviewed for this story released their current special education numbers. The Ichan C. Charter Schools each serve between three and five special education students.

“You have to understand, charter schools don’t make a lot of referrals [to special education],” said Litt. “We refer children only when it’s absolutely necessary.” Icahn class sizes are capped at 18 students, every teacher works with a group of five students daily for 40 minutes, and students attend tutoring and extra classes after school and on Saturdays, said Litt. “Instead of sending a kid to SETSS, I can provide targeted assistance here,” he said. For non-academic special education services, such as counseling or physical therapy, families are referred to Bronx Lebanon Hospital.

In contrast, parents at some charter schools say their children are not getting the targeted assistance they need.

When neighbors told Jamie Evans that the schools were terrible in her Morrisania neighborhood in the Bronx, she immediately searched for alternatives. She found five charters schools, submitted applications, and crossed her fingers. Her luck landed on Harriet Tubman Charter School, the only school that picked her daughter Christina during the lotteries.

But, when five-year-old Christina started kindergarten, trouble began.

“I started getting calls. They told me I had to come to school and sit with her in the classroom, because she was acting out,” said Evans, who at the time thought her daughter was just misbehaving, but now recognizes that her daughter has a disability. After Evans sat with Christina for three days during the school year, she calmed down. But, when 1st grade began and Christina shouted out in class, began fighting with other children, erupted in screaming tantrums, and wouldn’t sit on the rug, the phone calls started again.

“The principal, she gave up on Christina. She said, ‘I wasn’t raised this way, and what’s going on in the household? We don’t tolerate this.’” recalls Evans. “She was just not trying to help me in no kind of way. She wouldn’t give me the time of day. I would call her. I would schedule meetings with her, but she wouldn’t show up.” After a few months in 1st grade, Evans removed Christina and enrolled her at their zoned school, PS 55, where she was evaluated and given an IEP that mandates that she be given twice weekly therapy sessions.

Not all charter schools are alike. While some charter schools tolerate deviant behaviors, others do a pitiful job with children who don’t fit the straight-arrow charter school mold.

“Charters are so focused on the culture of the school, the routine,” said Principal Jessica Nauiokas of Mott Haven Academy Charter School, which reserves two-thirds of its seats for children in foster care. “We have to be okay with Jayda screaming and kicking on the floor,” she said recognizing that most of her students suffer from post-traumatic stress from living in abusive or neglectful homes. “I’m confident if they showed these behaviors in another charter school, they would be referred to [self-contained] special education.”It’s difficult to determine which schools work with special needs families and which don’t, but educators say that something smells fishy when a school has zero special needs students.

“If a student’s IEP says self-contained, they technically can’t come to our school,” said Winitt, of New Heights charter school. However, some charter schools create new IEPs that might suggest an alternative to a self-contained class, such as counseling twice per week, physical therapy three times per week, daily individual reading support, and an aide to sit with the child in class.

“I don’t think self-contained classes have been proven to work. I also don’t want to see a charter school send these kids away,” said Dr. Arthur Sadoff at the New York City Charter School Center, an independent organization that supports charter schools. “I’m more concerned about charter schools that don’t have any special education students. They counsel the kids out when they arrive…without doing what I’m saying.” Dr. Sadoff suggests schools work with parents, special education coordinators, and teachers to create comprehensive IEPs that allow a child with special needs to learn among general education peers. Special education advocates say that Sadoff’s approach may work for some students but not for all of the estimated 180,000 New York City students with an IEP.

“There are some kids who have needs that require more support, a small class ratio, and a school with more training and expertise and they may not be able to be in a mainstream environment,” said Kim Madden, director of legal services at Advocates for Children. Fed-up with underperforming neighborhood schools, many parents agree to IEP changes, just to secure a seat, she said.

“A parent is really scared, because it’s not a given virtue to be there, as it is at a zoned school…parents are just scared about where their child is struggling” said Madden. “They know this school can say ‘sorry, you can’t stay here,’ and that’s just a reality parents face all the time.” For charter schools to truly be inclusive, advocates say, more charter schools should be opened to meet the needs of special education students.
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Charter school authorizers “just need to require that every school has an array of special education programs,” said Madden.

Tough choices for families With the help of an advocate, Lydia Bellahcene’s son E.E. received 60 hours of free compensatory tutoring for the time he had lost with his reading specialist. He finally passed 9th-grade English, but is now struggling with 10th-grade English. He was prohibited from playing on the school baseball team, a devastating prospect for E.E., who loves the sport. The family is searching for a new high school next year.Jamie Evans blames herself for Christina’s downward spiral and wishes she had pushed harder for the charter school to serve her daughter properly, rather than allowing them to push her daughter out. After enrolling at PS 55, Christina was suspended three times for kicking her teacher and throwing chairs. Christina is now in the 2nd grade, and the school informed Evans they will not promote her to 3rd grade next year. Evans believes that Christina would have been served better at the original charter school, only with the right special education support.

“Me pulling Christina out of Harriet Tubman was my fault as a parent,” said Evans. “By pulling her out, I cheated her out of a good education. I now know better. I should have reported [the principal]. I could have found out if public schools have paras [para professionals assigned to work one on one with some students], and I would have asked, ‘does charter schools have this type of thing’.”

Although Evans thinks that both schools have done a poor job serving her daughter’s special education needs, she misses the charter school’s small size, tough discipline, and weekly spelling tests. She’s currently on the waiting list at Icahn Charter School and Girls Preparatory Charter School. “I’ll just keep trying to put her in charter schools,” she said. “I know it’s hard, but I’ll just keep trying.”

UPDATE: After this story was published, the DOE released the percentage of special education students at individual charter schools. Opportunity Charter School in Harlem educates the highest percentage of special needs students at 55 percent. The school also holds two lotteries, one for students with an IEP and one for general education students. Bronx Charter School for Better Learning does not educate any special education students. 

CORRECTION: Since initial  publication, the embedded chart was revised to reflect the 2008-09 enrollment numbers. It was previously reported that New Heights Academy Charter School served the largest percentage of English Language Learners. The school that has the largest percentage of ELLs is Family Life Academy Charter School in the Bronx.

Thirty Bronx parents gathered in a small Riverdale office suite on Monday evening to discuss the gifted and talented admissions process, following the Department of Education announcement that 45 percent more students qualified for kindergarten “gifted” programs this year. The chatter quickly highlighted the logistical and moral challenges of where to place gifted programs in a socio-economically disparate district.

District 10 is home to Riverdale, a quiet, secluded neighborhood that borders the Hudson River and Westchester County. Residents live in comfortable apartments and large estates hidden by a canopy of tree-covered, lush green lawns. District 10 also includes neighborhoods such as Fordham, Kingsbridge, and Tremont, where there are few trees, public housing, and noisy, congested streets.

This year, District 10 parents can choose among three district-wide gifted programs: PS 24 in Riverdale, PS 7 in Kingsbridge, and PS 54 in Fordham. Some parents say PS 24 is the only logical choice, others disagree.“I clearly would not go to [PS] 7, and definitely not [PS] 54,” said one mom, who asked to remain anonymous. “It’s dangerous. It’s a bad neighborhood…a lot of kids don’t speak English there [at PS 7],” said another PS 24 parent, who did not want to be identified.

The meeting, sponsored by a few active PS 24 and PS 81 parents, was advertised as a G&T informational session, but as one parent pointed out: “It sounds like a lobbying effort against the G&T effort because it’s not at the schools we want…and I find this troubling. Are we ultimately saying we’re not happy unless it’s in our school?”The answer for many parents is yes. “There’s more than 25 percent of the student body [at PS 24] that comes from outside the zone,” said Annmarie Dodd Hunter, a PS 24 parent who helped organize the meeting. “We are trying to establish a local G&T program. Our children live here, and they should go to the school where we live.” As for where high-achieving District 10 kids, who don’t live in Riverdale should go to school, Riverdale parents lacked a clear answer. “What do we do with bright kids in Fordham? Here’s the problem,” said one parent.“They can be bused over here. Their parents want them to come over here,” interjected another parent.

“But I don’t want them to take seats away from kids zoned for 24,” the parent responded. All incoming kindergarteners who score at or above the 97th percentile are eligible for citywide gifted programs located in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens. Those who score at or above the 90th percentile on the tests are guaranteed a space in a district-wide gifted program. Placement is based on a student’s score and how families rank programs – not where a student lives. Details about the application process are spelled out in the DOE’s G&T handbook. Parents complain that because there is no citywide G&T program in the Bronx, many Bronx students who score at or above the 97th percentile opt for district programs instead. “PS 24 could be all children who get 99s and that’s not really equitable,” said Hunter. Parents also mentioned their concern about schlepping a five-year-old across the district to far-away schools, and the dilemma a parent faces when one child qualifies for a gifted program at an out-of-zone school and a sibling doesn’t.Others at the meeting said parents should try to improve all district schools, not just their zoned schools. “I know there are concerns about [PS] 7,” said Tony Cassino, a community activist who has been principal-for-a-day at PS 24 and PS 81. “But, I have no doubt this parent group could form a phenomenal G&T program wherever you put it.”

Ultimately, it is parents who decide whether a G&T program survives. Last year when not enough parents selected PS 54’s gifted program, it did not take in a new gifted class. Some parents at the meeting said they preferred to send their children to a general education program at a high performing school such as PS 24, rather than to a gifted program at a lower-performing school, such as PS 54. In 2008, 44 percent of students at PS 54 passed the state English exams, compared to the 83 percent pass rate at PS 24. This year PS 54 is back on the list of gifted programs offered next fall.“They are offering [PS] 54 as an option again and that’s insulting,” said Damian McShane, whose child qualified for NEST +M, a citywide gifted program, last year. He opted to keep his son in Riverdale because of the three-hour daily commute from the Bronx to the Lower East Side where NEST is located. The DOE does not provide busing for out-of-borough students who attend a citywide program. The ultimate goal for the group of active PS 24 and PS 81 Riverdale parents, who sponsored the forum, is two-fold: they want a citywide gifted program in the Bronx and more gifted programs for the Riverdale community. According to the DOE, a citywide Bronx program is slated to open in 2010.

Kids in foster care from across the city gathered Friday afternoon in the Lewis Auditorium at Hunter College to watch Speak for Yourself, a passionate documentary which describes the challenging lives of New York City foster youth and clarifies their legal rights. The film, produced by Friends of Foster Youth, will be publicly released within the next two weeks.

The film emphasizes ten of the basic rights afforded to foster youth. For example, foster youth can request to go home to their biological parents; they can suggest who should be their foster parent, such as a family member, a friend’s mom, or neighbor; they can fire their attorney; and they cannot be discharged to a homeless shelter at age 21.

After the film concluded, audience members were able to question a panel of attorneys, advocates, and an Administration for Children Services worker, Dominique Jones, who appeared in the film. The overwhelming concern of the foster youth in the audience was housing. Many youth were worried that they would become homeless when they turn 21, the year they age out of the foster care system.“We cannot discharge a person to a homeless shelter when they turn age 21,” said Dominique Jones from ACS. “There are a range of housing opportunities.” At age 18, students can begin to apply for Section 8 housing subsidies. Students must have a part-time job to qualify. There is also “supportive housing,” which provides extra resources for youth who are not ready to live independently. Lastly, students have the right to remain in the foster care system until age 23 if they are attending a post-secondary college and live on-campus.To obtain a copy of the film, check out Friends of Foster Youth’s website. Information regarding distribution will be up soon. To learn more about foster youth and their rights, check out youthsuccessnyc.org or call Alice Rosenthal, at Advocates for Children 212-822-9539. In June, Rosenthal will release a report focusing on education and foster youth. “Only 50 percent of students in foster care graduate high school,” she said. “For those that do graduate, one to eight percent graduate with a four-year-college degree.”

When Community Education Councils (CEC) candidates walked into school cafeterias and auditoriums across the city this month to declare why parents should vote for them, they got a shocking reality -- few parents showed up. During the past two weeks, public school parents were invited to meet the CEC candidates who would represent them as the parent voice within the Department of Education bureaucracy .“Who are we talking to? Nobody’s here,” said District 12 CEC Candidate Winifred Coulton, looking out at only five parents in a large school auditorium. This sentiment was echoed at a District 13 meeting in Brooklyn, attended by about 12 parents. “Are there any PTA presidents, secretaries, or treasurers here? They ain’t here. We don’t see any of them here. That’s a problem,” said the Rev. Robert Townsley. Only votes from PTA officers count toward electing a CEC member, however, this year, all public school parents can vote at an online straw poll, April 6-22, to advise their PTA officers on how to vote.

In 2002, when Mayor Mike Bloomberg took control of city schools, he abolished community school boards. One year later, he created the Community Education Councils to be the new parent voice. Critics say they have far less authority than the old school boards. “The word out there is that the CEC has no power,” said Carmen Taveras, a District 12 CEC member appointed by the Bronx Borough President. “They think, ‘for what? Why would I go out there [to a CEC meeting]?’”

Turnout varied from district to district

A few of the more active districts saw a bigger turnout at the candidate forums; Manhattan’s Districts 2 and 3 each attracted about 40 people. In District 2 there were about 24 parents in an audience of 40, according to Michael Markowitz, a CEC member. “We have a pretty good sense of what’s fluff and what’s real. The CEC candidate forums and process looks like such as sham from the get go,” said Markowitz, who added that District 2 parents go directly to their elected political officials for change, not the CEC.

According to Julie Androshick of Grassroots Initiative, which organized and publicized the candidate forums under the name powertotheparents.org, it is not accurate to say attendance was low. “When you say low turnout, you’re looking at the turn-out relative to what,” said Androshick. She noted that, if during the last election, only two parents attended the forums, and this year 20 parents came out, then that amounts to about a “900 percent increase.”

In District 13, Family Advocate Precious Jones-Walker moderated the meeting, which was attended by 12 people. “I would like to have had representatives [at the forum] from all schools in my districts. That’s about 46. I don’t think that’s unrealistic,” she said.

District education councils are composed of nine elected public school parents, two borough president appointees, and one high school senior. This year, 11 district elections will be uncontested, which means they have nine or fewer candidates running. In contrast, in the last election in 2007, only seven CECs had nine or fewer candidates.

Vacant seats

Many districts across the city have vacant CEC seats. District 13 had just two members serving this year; District 28 in Queens, had six members, which is just enough to hold an official meeting. With only five candidates running for the upcoming election, District 16, which covers Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn, has the lowest number of candidates of any district.

Long criticized for excluding parents from decision-making, Chancellor Joel Klein is now cheering the effective role of the CECs. In a press release issued on April 6, he points out that “more than 500 parents applied to be candidates for their CECs.” Applicants and candidates, however, are not the same. Many parents, who initially expressed interest in running, dropped out.

“Comparing candidates to applicants can be a bit like apples and oranges because a significant number of applicants are deemed ineligible or withdraw from the ballot during the application process because they don’t want to step down from their PA/PTA officer position or have some kind of conflict of interest,” writes Jeff S. Merritt, president of the Grassroots Initiative in an e-mail message. Of the 500 plus applicants, 428 candidates are eligible for election – a drop from the 690 candidates in 2007.

Candidates’ experience varies widely

Of the eligible candidates at the forums, some appeared ill-informed while others expressed clear ideas on changes they would like to see in schools. In District 3, candidates clearly articulated the desire for more math and science instruction, less test prep, and smaller classes. In District 28, Tami Ruiz, a former journalist, plans to use her contacts and knowledge to further the cause of the CEC. “I know who the people are to tip; I’m the one they used to tip off! Am I gonna open up my Roladex? Sure,” she said. Ruiz also said she would like to examine the “under-utilized” position of parent coordinator to see how the PC can better help parents.

In other districts, some candidates were unsure of their role on a CEC. “I'm really gonna be honest. I do not know much about the CEC. As a CEC representative, I really don't know,” said Suzanna Figeroa, a District 12 candidate. In several districts charter schools were a topic on which candidates were not well- informed. District 12 candidate Winifred Coulton said she would like to “get rid of charter schools,” because they only accept students with 3 and 4 on state exams. District 5 candidate James Hunt said “I’m not a fan. [Charter schools] are more lenient. There is not a lot of structural education being taught at them.” In fact, charter schools cannot admit students based on test scores and many tend to be more structured and traditional than neighborhood schools.

More training for CEC members

Recognizing the diminished parent voice, and the watered-down training for CEC members, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer recently proposed legislation to give more power to the CECs. “Community Education Councils must be reformed and empowered to be the voice that public school parents and school communities need and deserve,” said Stringer in a press release. Currently, CEC members receive training from the DOE. Stringer believes training should come from the Borough Presidents’ offices. Additionally, he proposed that specific guidelines be created on how the DOE gathers input from CECs.

To be a real parent voice, some CEC candidates said they need more training. "It's not that we’re not willing to learn. We need people who are willing to teach us, and when it's convenient for us, not for them,” said Aida Colon, a District 12 candidate. “We have the power, but we don’t know how to use it yet.”

Parents have until April 22 to participate in the online straw vote. The results of the straw poll will be made public before PTA officers vote between May 12-14. (Reporting contributed by Insideschools staff)

Most 6th-graders aren't yet thinking about high school, but students who aspire to attend the city's most selective high schools, should start planning now. The Specialized High School Institute, a free 16-month, tutoring and test-prep program geared to help kids prepare for the specialized high school exam, is accepting applications for its 2009-2010 program. Eligible students should have received an application from their school guidance counselor. The application due date is Monday, March 23.

To be eligible for the program, which is sponsored by the city Department of Education, students must be in the 6th grade, qualify for free lunch under the Federal Title 1 program, have scored a level 3 or 4 on the 5th grade state ELA and math tests, and have at least a 90 percent attendance rate. Last year 2000 students participated in SHSI. Sandy Ferguson, executive director of middle school enrollment, said he anticipates that about the same number will enroll this year.

The DOE pre-selects students based on the above criteria, and applications for those students are sent to the student's school, said a Bronx middle school guidance counselor who asked not to be identified. At his school, where more than 90 percent of the nearly 900 students are poor enough to qualify for free lunch, only four 6th graders are eligible this year.

Admitted students will attend five-week summer sessions in 2009 and 2010. Breakfast and lunch are included, although the schedule is still being finalized, Ferguson said. During the school year students will meet on Wednesday afternoons and Saturdays.

In past years, some parents have complained that their school's guidance counselor was unaware of the Specialized High School Institute application and thus their children missed the deadline. When asked if parents could submit their application directly to his office, Ferguson replied, "No, there's a process and they should follow it." Parents who haven't received an application but think their children are eligible should contact the school's guidance counselor. Non-public school students should mail their applications to the Office of Student Enrollment.

Got a question about the process? Contact Paul Shapiro, SHSI program director at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

In April, just a few weeks away, all charter schools in New York City will hold lotteries to select their students for the 2009-2010 school year. Most of the new charter schools, however, still don't have a building. Of the 24 charter schools expected to open in fall 2009, only seven schools have an address, four of which cannot disclose their location until March 12.

The last-minute rush to find space for a new charter school is not new. When Voice Charter School opened in Queens last year, they didn't find a home until ten days before their lottery. "Everything was tentative. We really couldn't say where we would be," said Principal Frank Headley. "It did confuse parents."

Charter schools are approved one year prior to their opening in September, but the Department of Education doesn't determine whether DOE space is available until January, said Mike Duffy, executive director of the city's charter school office. Although charter schools can choose to obtain private space and determine their location sooner, most decide not to for financial reasons.

In New York State, charter schools do not receive money for operating expenses, such as facilities, but in New York City, charter schools housed in a DOE facility reside rent-free. "They don't pay a dollar," said Duffy. As a result, charter schools play the waiting game and often amend their charters to fit their new location. "A charter is applied for a specific neighborhood... if they end up getting sited in a different district they need to amend their charter," said Duffy. "The law requires them to admit kids in their district."

Girls Prep of East Harlem planned to serve English Language Learners in District 4. They recently learned there is no space in East Harlem, and they will be moved to the South Bronx. Equality Charter School asked to be in District 12, but will be placed in District 11. Duffy says some schools don't care where they are located, while others are "so focused on the neighborhood they get private space because it's so integral to their mission," he said.

Still others may end up not opening at all if they can't find adequate facilities. Principal Jeffrey Litt at Carl C. Icahn Charter School says he needs 10 classrooms and an office in order to open Icahn #4 in September 2009. The space would be temporary. Icahn is currently building a "multi-million dollar facility," to house both Icahn #3 and Icahn #4, but it won't be ready for a few years, said Litt.

When will the locations be announced? Stay tuned to Insideschools.org for updates.