| Top Stories New G&T Research What’s Going on With Gifted Education? UConn researchers help steer the field in new publication UConn Today, 1/15/2026 While gifted and talented education programs can be found in most public schools in the country, there is no federal standard for how they are carried out – or how students are selected for them. For educators and education researchers, this presents a problem. How can we be sure that gifted programs are fulfilling their purpose: helping ensure students are adequately challenged and supported in school? This mission is especially critical in today’s era of widespread budget cuts to public education. Missing the Target NYC might miss class size targets, education leaders say Chalkbeat, 1/29/2026 Top state and city education leaders raised serious doubts about whether New York City schools will be able to meet the mandates requiring them to reduce class sizes. New York State Education Commissioner Betty Rosa and New York City schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels testified Thursday at a hearing held by state legislators in response to the executive budget Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed last week. Both officials said that the city would need a significant increase in funds, building space, and teachers to meet targets in a state law that requires schools to limit classes to between 20 and 25 students, depending on the grade. Easy, Peasy Mayoral Control After Mamdani reversal, Gov. Hochul proposes 4-year extension of mayoral control over NYC schools NY Daily News, 1/22/2026 Gov. Hochul on Tuesday proposed a four-year extension of Mayor Mamdani’s control of the New York City public schools, after the mayor backed off a campaign promise to end the much-debated educational reform. The length of the renewal, if approved by the state Legislature, could mean that Mamdani will retain control over the schools, without any significant changes to the system, for at least his full first term as mayor. Math Overhaul Gov. Hochul calls for math instruction overhaul in State of State address Chalkbeat, 1/13/2026 New York Gov. Kathy Hochul wants to revamp the way the state’s schools teach math. Hochul announced the plan in her annual State of the State address on Tuesday, along with several child care and education initiatives she has previewed over the past week. The governor’s broader agenda includes funding a new, free child care program for 2-year-olds in New York City; expanding pre-K and child care vouchers statewide; growing a mental health training program for high schoolers; bolstering the state’s teacher training pipeline; and building on free community college for adults who want to train for high-demand careers. Advocacy Corner PLACE NYC Wants to Hear From You on G&T PLACE NYC Survey on NYC’s Gifted & Talented Programs PLACE NYC, 1/21/2026 Mayor Mamdani said he would phase out NYC’s Gifted and Talented programs, ending Kindergarten entry but preserve programs starting in 3rd grade. Most recently, the Mayor said since the Kindergarten application process was already underway for Sept 2026, he will allow G&T entry this year but will end it for the fall of 2027. Tell us what you think of Mayor Mamdani’s proposed changes to NYC Gifted & Talented Programs by taking our survey here. Manhattan Parents’ Petition Join parents from Manhattan who started this email campaign to advocate to Remove Early Voting From Schools. |
| Schooled Podcast New episode: Is Remote School a Snow Job? PLACE NYC, 1/28/2026 |
Join a Community Board Most community boards in NYC have an Education Committee. Consider joining a community board as a way to stay involved. Applications have opened for the following:BrooklynQueens Other Headlines Parents outraged as DOE quietly pulls preschool plans from posh NYC nabe – and won’t say why: ‘Unacceptable’ NY Post, 1/28/2026 Yale Will Go Tuition-Free for Families Making Up to $200,000 Wall Street Journal, 1/27/2026 In Some Urban Districts, Science of Reading Limits ‘Robust Comprehension’ 74 Million, 1/27/2026 Tax Credits on the Line Hochul refuses to jump on chance to help neediest NY students, critics gripe NY Post, 1/26/2026 Gov. Kathy Hochul has declined to opt New York into a federal tax-credit scholarship program established in President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill…New York students can’t benefit unless the governor agrees for the state to opt into the program. …“By refusing to opt into this program, Hochul is blocking access to tutoring, test preparation, transportation, and tuition assistance for New York students, sending education dollars to other states, and telling New York families they get nothing,” Blakeman said …But Hochul’s office said the governor simply still has not yet made a decision on whether to join the program and is awaiting more guidance from the Trump administration. Why ‘remote learning’ is a lie no matter WHAT the weather is NY Post Editorial, 1/26/2026 Columbia University Names UW-Madison Leader as Next President Wall Street Journal, 1/27/2026 UWS Middle School Meets With DOE Reps To Discuss Possible Move: ‘We Want to be Heard’ West Side Rag, 1/23/2026 Read Alert America’s Reading Crisis That No One Wants to Talk About Mother Jones, 1/23/2026 A little girl stared at a list of test questions in her science class, unable to answer the majority. Resigned, she wrote at the top, “I failed badly”—although she misspelled it, instead writing, “I felled bedly.” She was not in a lower-level grade or even elementary school. She was a student of Laurie Lee’s sixth-grade class, more than two decades ago. I’m an NYC public school mom and I’m furious our kids can’t write in cursive — why we need to fix it now NY Post, op-ed by Natasha Perlman, 1/22/2026 How to prevent “gifted kid burnout” and help every student at the same time Advance, 1/20/2026 Education Department Delays Wage Garnishment of Student-Loan Borrowers Wall Street Journal, 1/16/2026 Falling Behind Chinese Universities Surge in Global Rankings as U.S. Schools Slip NY Times, 1/15/2026 Until recently, Harvard was the most productive research university in the world, according to a global ranking that looks at academic publication. That position may be teetering, the most recent evidence of a troubling trend for American academia. Harvard recently dropped to No. 3 on the ranking. The schools racing up the list are not Harvard’s American peers, but Chinese universities that have been steadily climbing in rankings that emphasize the volume and quality of research they produce. How Will the New Chancellor Change New York Schools? NY Times, 1/14/2026 Schools are getting worse in most red states Slow Boring, 1/14/2026 Can’t Sit Still The schools where even young children change classes Hechinger Report, 1/13/2026 About two dozen second graders sat on the carpet at the front of Jacquelyn Anthony’s classroom, reviewing how to make tens. “Two needs eight!” the students yelled out together. “Six needs four!” …At the end of the hour, the second graders slung on their backpacks, gathered their Chromebooks and lined up at the door before heading to English and social studies class across the hall. While most schools wait until middle school to transition students from one class to another, kids at Louisiana’s Baton Rouge Center for Visual and Performing Arts do so starting at age 6 or 7. It’s part of a strategy known as departmentalizing, or platooning. What Seniors Are Writing About in Their College Admissions Essays NY Times, 1/13/2026 Book Review: The Lie That Elite Colleges, and a Nation, Wanted to Believe NY Times, 1/13/2026 Laying it Out NYC schools chancellor lays out vision for public schools Spectrum, 1/12/2026 Mayor Zohran Mamdani has been busy forming an administration tasked with delivering on his ambitious promises. One position that is regarded as the second most influential education role in the country is the New York City public schools chancellor. Kamar Samuels joined NY1 political anchor Errol Louis on “Inside City Hall” Monday to discuss his plans as the new chancellor and his thoughts on Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s free child care plan across the five boroughs. How Mississippi Transformed Its Schools From Worst to Best NY Times, 1/11/2026 Book Review: Can American Children Point to America on a Map? NY Times, 1/10/2026 Parent Intuition How I helped my 12-year-old son to read books again The Times, 1/10/2026 My eldest son used to be an avid reader. Or at least he begged to be read to every night and was willing to do his part. We alternated pages at bedtime, and in this way tore through many of the classics from Greek myths to Roald Dahl. He devoured football annuals, dinosaur encyclopaedias, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, and never wanted for books. Then something happened to Teddy while we were busy looking the other way. Gen Z are arriving to college unable to even read a sentence—professors warn it could lead to a generation of anxious and lonely graduates Fortune, 1/9/2025 |