Students in a largely affluent swath of Manhattan may soon regain special preference when applying to nearby high schools.
Schools Chancellor David Banks said on Thursday night that he was considering granting “some kind of priority” to families in District 2, which runs from the Upper East Side down to Tribeca. If enacted, that would reverse a decision by Mayor Bill de Blasio in late 2020 to undo the unique policy that gave students living in the district a head start in applying to prestigious nearby schools, including Eleanor Roosevelt and Millennium High Schools. Critics had said the priority status for District 2 students promoted segregation by giving kids in wealthier, whiter communities an advantage.
At a meeting of District 2’s Community Education Council, Banks said he had heard “for quite some time” from families who would like to see the policy restored.
“We are committed to granting District 2 some kind of priority and are looking at various models,” he said, adding that more details would be released before the next admissions cycle. High school applications are usually due in early December.
Reviving District 2 priority would be the latest in a series of steps by Mayor Eric Adams’ administration to walk back efforts to reduce selective admissions at city schools. De Blasio’s top education officials had touted those decisions as moves toward equity in a school system long considered one of the most segregated in the country.
In addition to eliminating District 2 priority, de Blasio had said he planned to end the city’s set of Gifted and Talented programs “as we know it,” and to remove selective “screens” for middle schools citywide. But the Adams administration has expanded and tweaked Gifted and Talented programs, and allowed some districts to re-adopt selective admissions at middle schools.
“There were a number of decisions that were made by the prior administration around enrollment,” Banks said. “This is an issue that is a…
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