Socio-Economic Integration, A Moral Imperative

by Anita Skop
Community Superintendent, District 15-NYC 

The New York City public school system is both the largest and most diverse public school system in the world. And for too long, many of our New York City school children have seen too little of this diversity, as many of our public schools are divided by race, ethnicity, and income level. However, in our City and in Community District 15 in particular, we are working to change this.

I began as District 15 Community Superintendent in 2009. Our District, which includes Boerum Hill, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, Fort Greene, Gowanus, Kensington, Park Slope, Sunset Park, Red Hook, and Windsor Terrace, has so much to celebrate. Our students and families come from all over the world and speak scores of different languages; our community includes families who have just immigrated to the United States and families who have been in the neighborhood for generations.

 

Still, the geographic segregation created by income disparities is apparent—families in the northwestern end of the district live in luxury condominiums and gorgeous brownstones, while many families in other parts of the district live doubled or tripled up in partitioned apartments or NYCHA housing. Despite, this disparity, the concerns and desires that parents across the district expressed to me were identical, no matter the language in which they were voiced. Above all else, our District 15 families believe in the power of public education and want the best for their children and schools.

 

Throughout my time as Community Superintendent, Equity and Excellence has been the foundation of all learning and decision making across the district. In summer 2017, we saw an opportunity to take our commitment to Equity and Excellence further as we began the process of developing a plan that would create more diverse and meaningfully integrated middle schools while further supporting school quality in the district. We knew this process needed to start within the community—it could not be simply a top-down approach. Therefore, we worked with the urban planning firm WXY to establish a working group and utilize specific protocols to gather data and opinions from areas across the district. Through a series of public workshops, town halls, and community outreach initiatives, we made sure that all constituencies were represented and their opinions were heard.

 

It was a powerful experience. Some of our families of color expressed that this was the first time they had felt empowered to give their opinion or share their thoughts with the District. Others expressed concerns that proposed changes would lower the academic standards for some schools. Nevertheless, by holding numerous public meetings and forums conducted in families’ home languages and in their local schools, we were able to create a strong and unified voice for change.

 

In September 2018, the Mayor and Chancellor approved the District 15 Middle School Diversity Plan with plans to being rolling out the proposal that fall. Moreover, our grassroots process has inspired a $2 million school diversity grant program for other school districts across the City to develop their own community driven plans.

Throughout this processes, our community was blessed in many ways. We are incredibly fortunate to have the full support of a Mayor and Chancellor who both openly and whole- heartily promote Equity and Excellence for All, and who not only publicly endorsed this work, but provided the resources to encourage it as well. Furthermore, families across the district rallied to promote initiatives that embed integration into the fiber of our structures, especially changes to the middle school admissions process. Without these amazing leaders and partners, this work would not be possible

I am immensely proud of the work we have done as a school district to promote integration, equity and excellence, and tackle issues of implicit bias. This is hard work, but it is necessary to ensuring that each child’s unique needs are met and preparing all of our children to achieve to their greatest potential. Years ago, a girl at a rally held up a sign that said, “Bring us together.” We are preparing our future citizens to work towards that goal.