Thousands of migrant students head to school in NYC for 1st time

Thousands of migrant children will file into New York City public schools for the first time on Thursday – and new students keep showing up.

Last week, Adams administration officials said nearly 19,000 students – the vast majority of whom are presumed to be migrants – had enrolled in the public school system since last year. On Wednesday, education officials announced that that number had grown by 2,000. Some 2,500 new students enrolled just this summer.

“I have visited several of these schools that have welcomed these students. It is New York City Public Schools at its finest,” Schools Chancellor David Banks said at a press conference.

But he noted that the new arrivals had caused some “stress and strain” on the education system, and particularly on the city’s finances.

Signs of the challenges were evident at an enrollment center at an auditorium inside the High School of Fashion Industries on Wednesday. Around 100 parents, most of whom did not speak English, waited to enroll their children in schools around the city.

Restless children cried and played with each other as their parents filled out paperwork so their kids could join the roughly 900,000 others headed to school the following day.

An education department employee familiar with the enrollment process said there aren’t enough staff members to process all the new arrivals and added that the department is rushing to find them seats in classrooms. She said not all new students will have a spot in time for the first day of school.

“There are people waiting,” said the employee, who requested anonymity because she is not authorized to speak to the press.

Officials acknowledged that enrollment teams were short-staffed over the summer, but have picked up the pace in recent weeks. They said migrant students are being placed in schools with space near their shelters or are…