Contact DOE
Contacting the Department of Education is like calling any huge bureaucracy: You have to follow a lot of prompts before getting to a real person. Once you do reach someone, we’ve found that the operators are knowledgeable and helpful. Our advice: pleasant persistence. Keep trying and you will eventually get the information you need. We've compiled a list of telephone numbers and emails that may be useful.
Main switchboard
The Department of Education website is schools.nyc.gov. The main switchboard number is (718) 935-2200. Open Monday–Friday, 8 am to 6 pm.
311
For general information about your school zone, enrollment, 3-K or pre-kindergarten (pre-K) registration and gifted and talented programs that you can’t find on the DOE’s website, call 311 and say “schools”, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The operators are unfailingly polite and try their best to answer your questions.
Enrollment
Routine enrollment issues should be resolved at one of the city’s 14 Family Welcome Centers. It’s difficult to find the phone number for a particular center but calling the Parent Support Line should get your through to one of them. If you have a problem that the Family Welcome Center can’t solve, email
- 3-K, pre-K and Elementary school: ESEnrollment@schools.nyc.gov
- Middle school: MSEnrollment@schools.nyc.gov
- High school: HSEnrollment@schools.nyc.gov
3-K and pre-K
For information about 3-K and pre-K, learn more on the Early Childhood Learning page of the Department of Education's website.
Special education
Your child’s teacher or principal should be able to answer most questions about special education, but many schools also have dedicated staff members, often called “special education coordinators” who oversee special services and can answer parent questions. If you are new to New York City, or if your child attends a private or parochial school, contact one of the city’s 10 Committees on Special Education. For children applying to pre-kindergarten, families may need to work with a Committee on Preschool Special Education. Parents of children on the autism spectrum and with serious disabilities may contact District 75, call (212) 802-1500 or email D75info@schools.nyc.gov.
To resolve an issue, learn more here. Also, call the Special Education Hotline at 718-935-2007 or email SpecialEducation@schools.nyc.gov.
English language learners
Call the Division of English Language Learners at 212-323-9559 or email ELLfamilies@schools.nyc.gov.
Students in temporary housing
The Department of Education has an office dedicated to help families who live in temporary housing. Learn more and find out your district contact here.
Court-involved youth
Learn about programs for court-involved youth and contact information for Department of Education court liaisons here.
How to file a complaint or appeal
For parents or legal guardians of current students, there are formal complaint and appeal procedures availalbe to you if your concerns have not been resolved at the school level. Learn more about your rights and next steps on the DOE's website.
How to request student records or transcripts
Student records and transcripts can be requested electronically, by mail, or in-person if you are a current or former student at a school from the DOE. To request student records or transcipts, check out the DOE's website here or call (718) 935-2399.
Office of Pupil Transportation (OPT)
Find out about bus eligibility, bus routes and metro cards on the DOE's website. You can also check out the Transportation Overview which has a brief insight on current updates. Open Monday–Friday, 5:30 am to 7:30 pm; (718) 392-8855 as well as OPT 'Create a ticket' to get more support.
Office of Food and Nutrition Services
The New York City Department of Education Office of School Food and Nutrition Services provides menus and applications for free and reduced-price meals. For questions or comments, email SFWebsitesuggestion@schools.nyc.gov.
District offices
Each district has a superintendent, family support coordinator, family leadership coordinator and elected members of a Community Education Council (CEC) who are there to answer questions and address parent concerns.
District Contacts
Follow the links below to find contact information for your local school district.
Don’t know your district? Type your address into our school search to find out!