Schools Chancellor David Banks and Mayor Eric Adams announced the expansion of New York City Department of Education’s (DOE) Gifted & Talented program for the school year 2022-2023 on April 14. The public school program offers accelerated instruction to eligible elementary school students in New York City.

 

With the addition of 100 kindergarten seats, and 1,000 third-grade seats, both these entry points to the program are being expanded to all 32 school districts for the first time, bringing the total number of available seats to 2,500. Applications for both programs open on May 31.

 

“Expanding our Gifted and Talented program to all New York City districts is about giving every child, in every zip code, a fair chance and making sure no child is left behind,” said Adams.

 

“We’re doubling down on this administration’s commitment to our youngest New Yorkers by adding additional seats and removing inequities in the admission process to allow students throughout this city to gain access to accelerated learning. And thanks to this expansion, for the first time ever, there will be a Gifted and Talented program in every school district in this city. This is how we give every young person an opportunity to grow, to learn, to explore their talents and imagination,” he said.

 

For his part, Banks said, “Today, we move to end the era of scarcity — the era of making families fight amongst themselves for limited Gifted and Talented seats in far off schools.” He added, “Through this expansion, we are providing more opportunities for accelerated learning to more families, while providing an equitable, fair process to identify the students who will excel with accelerated learning.”

 

The expansion is the result of the DOE’s engagement with parents and community stakeholders to establish priorities for this year’s admissions. Specifically, the DOE met with a diverse set of parent representative groups and advocacy groups with a dedicated interest in the topic, and who agency officials said provided thoughtful, nuanced feedback.

 

Even though the perspectives of the stakeholders involved with the program may have differed, City officials said three focus areas became clear this year: 1) the need to expand the number of seats, 2) creating an equitable screening process, and 3) providing an expanded third-grade entry point in every district. 

 

NYC Department of Education (DOE) officials said to fill these seats, every current pre-K student will be evaluated by their current teacher for a potential nomination. According to DOE officials, universal pre-K screening takes the initial burden off families and creates access for more children with a more diverse eligibility pool.

 

First implemented for the 2021-2022 school year, universal screening led to a more diverse pool of students receiving invitations to apply for the program, according to the DOE. Students enrolled in non-DOE programs and those not yet enrolled in school will participate in an interview with DOE staff to confirm eligibility.   

 

Families of eligible, nominated children will receive an eligibility letter inviting them to apply before the application opens. According to the DOE, child development research shows that identifying gifted behavior in later grades may provide a more accurate assessment of gifted ability. 

 

Determined by grades in four core subject areas, the top 10 percent of second graders in each school will be invited to apply to the third-grade Gifted and Talented program. Using grades in the four core subject areas ensures the DOE is using multiple measures to determine eligibility for the program, DOE officials said.

 

In addition, grounding the screening process at the school level will also ensure that district programs are representative of the district’s population, DOE officials added. Families will be considered for placement at all of their application choices, and offers will be made based on district and sibling priorities, as well as seat availability. Grade three programs will grow to grades four and five in subsequent years.

 

DOE officials said a pillar of the Adams administration is authentic parent, family, and community engagement on the issues that matter most to students. They said engagement and conversations about the future of enrollment and admissions in New York City public schools will continue this spring and summer. They added that more information about how families can participate and have their voices heard will be announced soon.

 

Ronald Lauder and Richard Parsons, co-founders of the Education Equity Campaign said the expansion of the program was essential to addressing the inequalities afflicting New York City’s public schools. “While some Manhattan districts currently have as many as seven Gifted programs, some communities of color in Brooklyn and Queens have just one,” he said.

 

“By adding 1,000 new seats for gifted students across the boroughs, Mayor Adams is taking a giant leap forward for our public schools, and we are deeply grateful he answered our call to action. We look forward to continuing to work with Mayor Adams and Chancellor Banks to make New York’s public education system the best in the country.”