New York, NY, April 14, 2022 — Today Mayor Eric Adams and Chancellor David Banks reconfirmed their commitment to improving NYC public school education and meeting the needs of accelerated students by announcing the expansion of Gifted & Talented (“G&T”) programs into more neighborhoods across NYC. Creating G&T programs in districts that did not have these accelerated programs is just a start and will greatly benefit students who have been historically underrepresented.
The expansion of G&T programs by 1,100 seats is the beginning of a new era for NYC public school students and families, and puts more students on the path to an accelerated education that meets their learning needs. Universal screening at Pre-K will lead to far more eligible students being identified particularly in Black, Hispanic and other underserved communities. Since students develop at different rates, the expanded 3rd grade entry point will provide additional access and opportunity for more students to benefit from an accelerated education.
PLACE NYC welcomes the announcement as expanding G&T has been one of the core tenets of PLACE NYC’s advocacy. While the rollout will be ongoing, PLACE NYC will continue to work with parents, CECs and the DOE to support the expansion and evolution of NYC’s G&T programs for the benefit of all students.
“Expanding G&T meets the needs of more accelerated learners, and puts students on a path towards higher academic performance, while also improving the quality of our public schools” said Lucas Liu, CEC3 President and Co-President of PLACE NYC.
With increased access and opportunity to accelerated education, more students will develop and achieve their academic potential, and be better prepared for any academic challenge or opportunity that they chose to take on. It will help build a pipeline of students of all races, ethnicities, and economic circumstances for our most challenging middle and high schools including the Specialized High Schools.