On the evening of December 5th, Melissa Aviles-Ramos, the Director of Education for New York City, alongside her team participated in a Town Hall meeting organized by the District 21 Community Education Council in Brooklyn Bay Ridge. They engaged with educators and parents to discuss various hot topics concerning school resources, student services, the implementation of small class teaching, as well as issues related to school buses and shelters.
In District 21 of Brooklyn where there is a large population of Chinese students and campuses are overcrowded, Emma Vadehra, the Deputy Superintendent of the Department of Education, mentioned that the city is actively promoting small class teaching strategies. Approximately $6 billion in capital funds are being invested to construct new schools and classrooms to address the issue of overcrowding. These efforts are aimed at meeting the legal requirement to reduce class sizes within five years. So far, around 33,000 additional seats have been identified.
One major challenge highlighted is the uneven development among districts. While some districts have nearly 80% of classes close to the required standard, District 21 only has 36% of classes meeting the standard, necessitating more substantial efforts. The Department of Education is closely collaborating with the School Construction Authority (SCA) to identify the most overcrowded districts and schools, ensure funds are allocated where needed, and locate suitable construction sites to address the most urgent needs.
Furthermore, schools are being asked by the Department of Education to come up with plans for reducing class sizes for the next year and to provide necessary support. The focus areas include exploring the conversion of non-classroom spaces into classrooms, allocating funding to hire more teachers, and assessing if existing teachers can take on additional courses. Schools are required to submit their plans by December 20th, and the Department of Education will review and provide funding support in January next year to ensure schools can progress in compliance improvement.
Some parents have raised concerns about the distance between male shelters and schools posing safety challenges for students. The Education Department has pledged to work with relevant city government departments to ensure that male shelters are adequately distant from the schools to avoid any safety or societal impacts on students and families. School safety measures include holding regular weekly meetings between principals and local police commanders to address potential issues inside and outside the schools, as well as collaborating with the NYPD School Safety Division, the Department of Buildings, and shelter-related personnel to create safe corridors and prevent shelter residents from interfering with students. The Education Department emphasizes that despite challenges, they will continue to ensure the safety of students during school hours.
Regarding the trend towards moving away from standardized tests and exploring alternative methods for evaluating student admissions, the New York City Department of Education states that they will adhere to the admission standards as required by the state educational regulations. Additionally, they are committed to collaborating with the community to expand high-quality innovative schools such as the Bard School, the Bronx STEAM Center, and the Northwell Health School to provide students with more educational opportunities. The Education Department stresses that education is mandated by the state government, and any future changes in admission assessment methods will continue to comply with state law requirements.
Council Member Wen-Yi Zhuang inquired about the reasons for the cancellation of some school dream projects and the allocation of funds, expressing concerns over community project reductions. Danika Rux, the Deputy Superintendent of School Leadership at the Education Department, responded that due to limited funds, the project has been concentrated in District 20, while other locations have been consolidated. The relevant work has been transferred to the Division of Pathways, and future optimizations will be based on feedback to ensure it becomes part of a larger project supporting students and families.