#DOE announces 3,608 new gifted and talented program placements for next year

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The Anderson School PS 334 in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York.

REUTERS

The Department of Education announced 3,608 new placements for its embattled gifted-and-talented programs Monday.

Officials said 60 percent of eligible kids were given offers for next year – down from 65 percent this year.

Critics have called for either a retooling or outright abolition of the accelerated programs, arguing that they promote racial separation in city schools.

Applicants become eligible if they score high enough on a standardized test given to kids as young as four.

Opponents assert that the system benefits families with superior resources and access to test prep, and that the exam is an insufficient measure of student potential and talent.

There were a total of 15,979 kids enrolled in gifted-and talented-programs in 2018. Asian kids had the highest rate of enrollment at 40 percent, followed by whites at 33 percent, Hispanics at 12 percent and blacks at 9 percent that year, according to the DOE.

Backers of the program says that academically advanced kids should have an opportunity to learn in more rigorous environments.

Some proponents contend that admissions need reform but that the programs should remain intact.

They’ve also called for more gifted-and-talented seats in low-income areas where their availability has contracted sharply in recent decades.

The DOE said 30 percent of eligible applicants landed their top choice, 49 percent won admission to their second choice and 60 percent received at least one choice. Currently, 41 percent of kids in the city school system are Hispanic, 25 percent are black, 16 percent are Asian, and 15 percent are white, according to DOE data.

All of those percentages were down slightly from last year. Officials attributed the dips to fewer seats and more eligible applicants.

The DOE said that several gifted-and-talented schools participating in diversity initiatives successfully met new benchmarks for next year, including the highly regarded Anderson School in Manhattan.

Pressure to shutter gifted-and-talented options led to the dissolution of the program at PS 9 in Brooklyn last year.

“We are proud to offer many high-quality elementary school choices across the city for our students, including our Gifted and Talented programs, and we’re excited for the families that received their offers today,” said DOE spokeswoman Katie O’Hanlon.