Proposed Res. No. 417-A
Title
Resolution calling upon the New York City Department of Education to create more district Gifted and Talented programs and classes, including intermediate school programs, and create pathways for admission that ensure equitable access for students throughout the City.
Body
By Council Members Holden, Cornegy, Brannan, Koo, Gibson, Kallos, Vallone, Rodriguez, Moya, Ulrich and Borelli
Whereas, There are two types of Gifted and Talented (G&T) programs in New York City, district and citywide, according to the Department of Education's (DOE) website; and
Whereas, The district G&T program gives admissions priority to applicants who live in their district and offers a few G&T classes per grade, and the citywide G&T program gives no admissions priority based on district of residence and all students in these schools attend the G&T program; and
Whereas, To enroll in any G&T program, students in pre-K through second grade must fill out a request for testing form two months before the testing period begins and take an admissions examination that uses both verbal and nonverbal tests to determine if a child is eligible to apply for G&T programs; and
Whereas, The policy of the Department of Education is that students must score at or above the 90th percentile to be eligible for district G&T programs and at or above the 97th percentile to be eligible for citywide G&T programs; and
Whereas, Due to competitiveness and a limited number of seats, however, students often must score at or above the 99th percentile to gain admission to the citywide G&T programs; and
Whereas, Typically, more students qualify for G&T programs than the number of available seats, as was the case in 2018 when 9,074 received eligible scores and 6,733 applied for programs but just 3,854 were offered seats in G&T programs; and
Whereas, In most schools, after second grade there is no admissions examination or official pathway for entry i...
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