wnyc.org / 93.9fm / am 820

Students who are still learning English are being shut out of many of New York City's small, new high schools, according to a new report. WNYC's Beth Fertig has more.

The Bloomberg administration has created almost 200 small schools with the goal of raising graduation rates through a more supportive learning environment. But a new report by Advocates for Children and the New York Immigration Coalition found many of these schools aren't taking on enough English Language Learners, who make up more than 10 percent of the city's student population.

This is because many immigrant students are concentrated in the few small schools that specialize in working with newcomers. But most of the other schools have English Language Learner enrollments of less than 5 percent. Deputy Chancellor Andres Alonso says he'll review the report. He says the Education Department has increased the number of small schools with a focus on English Language Learners and will continue to do so. For WNYC I'm Beth Fertig.