City Invites More Schools to Try Diversity Initiatives

The city's Department of Education is inviting all public school principals to develop new admissions requirements to promote greater student diversity.

"It's important because we believe that leads to greater success for all our students," Deputy Chancellor Josh Wallack said, calling diversity a "top priority" of the administration. "And so we're looking for more opportunities to expand these efforts as we go."

The announcement was first reported by the Daily News.

The city already launched a pilot program for seven elementary schools to set aside seats for low-income kindergarten students and English language learners starting this fall. But other schools have asked to make similar changes because they're worried gentrification will lead to a whiter and wealthier student body, or because they want a greater mix of kids.

Wallack said every school can submit a Diversity in Admissions plan for every grade level, pre-k through high school. But principals must demonstrate buy-in from parents and teachers. The deadline is July 8. If approved, the changes would affect incoming students in the fall of 2017.

The city has come under heavy criticism following a UCLA report that found its schools are among the most segregated in the nation. Hundreds of city schools have almost entirely low-income black and Latino students. But others are disproportionately whiter and wealthier, sometimes because of their catchment zones or because they have special programs.

Wallack suggested diversity could be accomplished in numerous ways. For example, schools could incorporate dual language programs, or set aside seats for students with autism.

But several observers have said the city's segregation problem is so large that changing admissions systems at individual schools won't go far enough. "There needs to be a balance between schools so we can stabilize them," said Amy Stuart Wells, a professor of sociology and education at Teachers College at Columbia University.

Wells called for more centralized planning that takes into account neighborhoods that are rapidly gentrifying, because that's where there's a greater potential for mixing students of different income levels. Numerous studies have found low-income students do better academically when they're in classrooms with students of different backgrounds.

David Goldsmith, president of the community education council in District 13, applauded the chancellor for encouraging local initiatives. His district is home to one of the seven pilot schools. But speaking for himself, he said he's "looking for the unified vision." He added that the city could do more to inform school communities about solutions to de facto segregation that are working in other parts of the country. "Why reinvent the wheel?" he asked.
 
But bigger solutions may require a heavy political lift. A zoning change for two schools in DUMBO met with controversy before it was finally approved. One Brooklyn parent leader has written that Park Slope parents are so reluctant to send their students to a school with more students in poverty (and lower test scores) than another nearby school with a wealthier population, that the city should consider randomly assigning kids to both schools.

There are also some who say that diversity itself is merely cosmetic without deeper programming to make all students feel included. David Kirkland, who runs the Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools, noted that students of color are disproportionately given suspensions.

"I am interested to know how D.O.E., once its schools have become more diverse, will transform those schools into spaces responsive to the unique needs of students across a broad range of differences," he said. "This is the real work."

Deputy Chancellor Wallack acknowledged changing admissions criteria at a few schools will not solve segregation. But he said it's "part of the suite of strategies that we're trying to deploy." He said Mayor Bill de Blasio and Chancellor Carmen Fariña are really focused and "want to push on this issue."