Finding the Right School

Finding the right school is one of the most important decisions parents and families make for their kids, but it can sometimes be the hardest, especially in New York City.

The Butterfly Effect: Good and Bad News About Your NYC Public School Waitlist
Blog · Finding the Right School

The Butterfly Effect: Good and Bad News About Your NYC Public School Waitlist

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

Spring is a major holding pattern for New York City families. Middle school placement, Universal Pre-K, and Gifted & Talented scores are due “any minute.” Kindergarten General Education, charter schools, and high school offers are out. But the process is far from over. High schools hold a Second Round for those unhappy with their initial… Continue reading The Butterfly Effect: Good and Bad News About Your NYC Public School Waitlist

How It Really Works: Behind the Scenes of a NYC Public School Waitlist & More Parent Portal Glitches!
Accountability · Blog · Finding the Right School · School Choice

How It Really Works: Behind the Scenes of a NYC Public School Waitlist & More Parent Portal Glitches!

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

New York City families who’d been ripping their hair out for over two months finally learned where their children had been placed for General Education public school kindergarten on March 28th. The results had been posted for nearly a full day before the Department of Education notified anxiously waiting parents that they were available. When… Continue reading How It Really Works: Behind the Scenes of a NYC Public School Waitlist & More Parent Portal Glitches!

The Sorting Hat: How NYC’s Kindergarten Admission Really Works
Accountability · Finding the Right School

The Sorting Hat: How NYC’s Kindergarten Admission Really Works

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

Last week, I received the following email from a parent: I‘m being told by the parent coordinator at our zoned school (PS 11Q) that general ed school choice is not real, and my child will be attending the zoned school no matter what I ranked. The PS 11Q parent coordinator did not schedule any open… Continue reading The Sorting Hat: How NYC’s Kindergarten Admission Really Works

How Sharper Than a Serpent’s Tooth It Is To Have Ungrateful NYC Families!
Finding the Right School

How Sharper Than a Serpent’s Tooth It Is To Have Ungrateful NYC Families!

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

On Monday, March 3, 2019, the Board of Trustees for the State University of New York approved 13 new charter school applications. However, only 7 of those will be allowed to open, due to the charter cap. Among them is a new middle school for Manhattan’s District 3 (Upper West Side and parts of Harlem)… Continue reading How Sharper Than a Serpent’s Tooth It Is To Have Ungrateful NYC Families!

Universal Pre-K Closes Without Warning, Kids Left With Nowhere To Go: Parents Tell All!
Accountability · Blog · Finding the Right School

Universal Pre-K Closes Without Warning, Kids Left With Nowhere To Go: Parents Tell All!

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

I’ve been keeping a close eye on New York City’s Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK) program since Mayor Bill de Blasio first triumphantly announced his signature initiative in 2014. I read every press release about what would happen… and compared it to what actually happened. I explained why, despite posters insisting it was so, UPK was neither… Continue reading Universal Pre-K Closes Without Warning, Kids Left With Nowhere To Go: Parents Tell All!

We Tried The Integration Route — It’s Not Working. Afrocentric Schools May Be a Viable Answer.
Finding the Right School

We Tried The Integration Route — It’s Not Working. Afrocentric Schools May Be a Viable Answer.

Vivett DukesLeave a comment

Here we go again. Yet another teacher in yet another school has assigned yet another assignment pertaining to slavery that is asinine and insensitive. According to The Tennessean, The hand-written assignment, which touched on issues of slavery, immigration and child labor, was given out Wednesday in an eighth grade social studies class at Sunset Middle. One box… Continue reading We Tried The Integration Route — It’s Not Working. Afrocentric Schools May Be a Viable Answer.

A SHSAT School For All Who Want One!
Finding the Right School

A SHSAT School For All Who Want One!

Alina Adams3 Comments

New York City public high school placement letters usually come out mid-March. But expect a delay in 2019. At issue is Mayor Bill de Blasio’s vow to set aside 20 percent of seats in Specialized High Schools for low-income students attending low-income middle schools who just missed the qualifying cut-off score for admission. Asian-American groups… Continue reading A SHSAT School For All Who Want One!

NYC Parents Sound Off On Department Of Education Incompetence! (Part #2)
Finding the Right School

NYC Parents Sound Off On Department Of Education Incompetence! (Part #2)

Alina Adams2 Comments

On January 21, I wrote about Kids Left Waiting In the Cold as NYC Public Schools Cancel G&T Testing – But Don’t Notify Parents! This disaster was hardly the only one of the 2018-2019 admissions season. After my post  ran, more parents contacted me. You can read their Department of Education stories of incompetence below.… Continue reading NYC Parents Sound Off On Department Of Education Incompetence! (Part #2)

The Big Con: Why NYC’s Plan For Raising Student Achievement Isn’t Close To Good Enough For All Kids
Accountability · Finding the Right School

The Big Con: Why NYC’s Plan For Raising Student Achievement Isn’t Close To Good Enough For All Kids

Alina Adams2 Comments

In the January issue of Big Apple Parents Paper, author James Breakwell asserted, “Nobody has secret math. Math at one school will be the same as it is at another school even if the other school has a swimming pool and a polo field.” That is… an astounding amount of privilege. Breakwell (a pseudonym) is… Continue reading The Big Con: Why NYC’s Plan For Raising Student Achievement Isn’t Close To Good Enough For All Kids

Kids Left Waiting In the Cold as NYC Public Schools Cancel G&T Testing – But Don’t Notify Parents!
Accountability · Finding the Right School

Kids Left Waiting In the Cold as NYC Public Schools Cancel G&T Testing – But Don’t Notify Parents!

Alina AdamsLeave a comment

When word of a snowstorm predicted to hit New York City over Martin Luther King Day weekend first surfaced, I sent out an email to my mailing list letting them know that the public school Gifted & Talented testing scheduled for that weekend might also be cancelled, and how to maximize their strategy for rescheduling.… Continue reading Kids Left Waiting In the Cold as NYC Public Schools Cancel G&T Testing – But Don’t Notify Parents!