New York, NY – Parent Leaders for Accelerated Curriculum and Education (PLACE NYC) conducted its 2025 Back-to-School survey to take the pulse of NYC public school families on a broad range topics including academic rigor, the new cell phone ban, upcoming changes to the SHSAT and November’s mayoral election. “While parents are largely content with academic rigor and accelerated offerings in schools, nearly half cited education as their top issue in voting for the next mayor,” said Deborah Kross, co-secretary of PLACE NYC.
The 300 respondents represent a balanced sample of parents with students across the grade bands; approximately one-third in 3K/PreK/elementary schools (33%), middle schools (36%) and in high schools (31%). The majority of the participants are from Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn
Mayoral Election
9 out of 10 respondents said that electing the mayor in the upcoming election is “very important” to them. Under mayoral control, the next mayor will appoint the Chancellor, who will be at the helm of the largest public school in the nation. While the mayoral candidates’ education policy is the top issue for almost half of the respondents (49%), nearly as many (47%) indicated they have “other more pressing concerns” that will drive their votes.
Cell Phone Ban
The state-mandated cell phone and connected device ban enacted at the beginning of the school year was largely well received and smoothly implemented as indicated by 70% of respondents. While approximately 20% of families were concerned with their school’s approach to the mandate, 10% did not support the ban at all.
Academic Rigor
Our survey was fielded at the start of the year (9/10-10/2) so responses may be indicative of overall satisfaction and not just the new school year. The majority of the families were content with the level of academic rigor in their schools (61%), while 30% said they were unhappy. For those families, recurring comments include an excessive emphasis on social & emotional learning and the need to supplement instruction outside of NYCPS with various enrichment and private tutoring companies.
Commute to School
The majority of families remain focused on a short and easy commute, which matters “a great deal” (41%) or “somewhat” (45.5%) when selecting a school. Comments highlight concerns with safety, particularly in the subway, as well as busing issues which continue to plague families relying on the yellow buses. Respondents also highlighted the need for more crossing guards.
Accelerated Offerings and Digital SHSAT
Half of the respondents with middle schoolers reported that their school had at least one Regents exam with Algebra followed by Biology/Living Environment as the most popular offerings. The transition to a digital administration of the Specialized High School Admissions Test (SHSAT) is seen as a non-issue for 40% of the respondents, but 30% expressed frustration. The majority of families are far more concerned with next year’s transition to an adaptive test, on which they lack sufficient information.
Class Size Reduction and New Teachers
Just 37% of the respondents confirmed the hiring of new teachers over the summer and/or some changes in space allocations as their school attempted to comply with the class size mandate. We suspect new parents to a school (K, 6, 9) may not be aware of changes in staff or space allocations. This relatively low number could also be attributable to the scarcity of teachers as well as unsurmountable space limitations in cramped school buildings.
PLACE NYC read every single comment parents shared in our annual surveys so we can advocate for what matters to NYC families. “As we move towards a new mayoral administration, we remain steadfast in our commitment to ensuring public school families have access to appropriately challenging curriculum and high quality instruction, with academics as the core focus of education. Matching students’ learning needs with merit-based opportunities is as important as ever,” said Lisa Marks, co-president of PLACE NYC.
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