You'll probably get into this in part 2, but... (and maybe I'm using substack wrong but I assume its for discourse) ----
I wonder about the ontology and aim of public education purported in the context of this definition of "success" (I'm reading it as academic, maybe aligned with a prosperity consciousness)? How might "success" be expanded when describing a public school within the landscape of a city that contains many disenfranchised and oppressed populations? I'd love to see some data about barriers to entry in Bronx Science and average house-hold income and demographics compared to other public schools. (Median house-hold income in NYC in 2019 was $63,799 according to U.S. Census Bureau).
"Success" within a macro-analysis of NYC's public-school system might look like students receiving an education that facilitates the attainment of social capital, cultural capital, healthy relationships, mentorships, enhanced sense of agency, expanded spheres of belonging, and improved health amidst lacking economic capital and other challenges. Some of these elements of success might fall outside of a conventional use of the word. I am sure that many students at Bronx Science represent under-resourced demographics. I am curious what percentage of the student body and how these students fair within a school ecosystem that features more privileged students? What resources are allotted to them? What efforts are schools like Bronx Science and Laguardia doing to broaden their student body? How is primary school 'choice' factoring into which students have the opportunity to attend specialized high schools? (maybe research has already been done on this)
I think it's quite interesting that some of these findings about what facilitates "success" are not curricular or directly in the control of public policy. Alumni funding indicates a historied siphoning of resources that greatly serves some folks, but doesn't offer a blue print to translate to other public schools that don't boast the same "success," other than increased public funding/resources. Some of these findings seem transferrable - the healthy/enriching consequences offered by extra-curricular programming, and the excitement for learning that is embedded in the culture due to like-minded peers. These things can be achieved through subcultural human-centric movements within a school even without huge financing changes.
Yeah -- to preview Part 2, one thing I learned from speaking to alumni is that actually there are a variety of high school options for ambitious and hard working students in NYC; by some measures the best high school in the city isn't even a Specialized High School (Townsend Harris) and even if all those schools rejected you zoned high schools anecdotally still have good honors programs within them. Obviously, I'm glossing over a lot of nuance but if we're talking about increasing prosperity there may not be low-hanging fruit in this area. Which is fine! But other places may be more interesting.
So actually, in regards to finances, if I'm reading this right Bronx Science pupils costs a third less than the district average ($17.5K vs $26.2K, see [1]). Helpful to see the concrete numbers here! The alumni I spoke with all came from working class backgrounds in Queens. So I think this school is still great to have as an (cost-effective) engine of abundance for its students. But, anecdotally many of the Bronx Science students from Manhattan attended private middle schools (implying high SES). So I think you are right -- there is probably a large variation in SES within Bronx Science. I can see if my alumni connections have any additional thoughts here but I would DEFINITELY read a blog post about this topic! I'd encourage you to write one if you're up to it :)
For bonus background: on January 25, 2023, the City Council education committee held a hearing about the city's public school admissions process (among other things). The committee report is a pretty good primer for people looking to get up to speed with how things work, what's changing now, what's being considered, etc.
I uploaded the brief to a Google doc if people want to access it in a single click:[1] It seems like Chancellor Banks is making medium-sized nudges to the admissions process to make it more straightforward (but there is still criticism about how test-focused it is).
I didn't fully understand all the terminology used so I could see how a one-pager ("concreteness brief") on this topic would be helpful!
A video instead of a pdf of the hearing would have been nice. That said, the people listed out at the beginning of the hearing transcript seem like a who's who of organization active in the admissions space: [2]
You'll probably get into this in part 2, but... (and maybe I'm using substack wrong but I assume its for discourse) ----
I wonder about the ontology and aim of public education purported in the context of this definition of "success" (I'm reading it as academic, maybe aligned with a prosperity consciousness)? How might "success" be expanded when describing a public school within the landscape of a city that contains many disenfranchised and oppressed populations? I'd love to see some data about barriers to entry in Bronx Science and average house-hold income and demographics compared to other public schools. (Median house-hold income in NYC in 2019 was $63,799 according to U.S. Census Bureau).
"Success" within a macro-analysis of NYC's public-school system might look like students receiving an education that facilitates the attainment of social capital, cultural capital, healthy relationships, mentorships, enhanced sense of agency, expanded spheres of belonging, and improved health amidst lacking economic capital and other challenges. Some of these elements of success might fall outside of a conventional use of the word. I am sure that many students at Bronx Science represent under-resourced demographics. I am curious what percentage of the student body and how these students fair within a school ecosystem that features more privileged students? What resources are allotted to them? What efforts are schools like Bronx Science and Laguardia doing to broaden their student body? How is primary school 'choice' factoring into which students have the opportunity to attend specialized high schools? (maybe research has already been done on this)
I think it's quite interesting that some of these findings about what facilitates "success" are not curricular or directly in the control of public policy. Alumni funding indicates a historied siphoning of resources that greatly serves some folks, but doesn't offer a blue print to translate to other public schools that don't boast the same "success," other than increased public funding/resources. Some of these findings seem transferrable - the healthy/enriching consequences offered by extra-curricular programming, and the excitement for learning that is embedded in the culture due to like-minded peers. These things can be achieved through subcultural human-centric movements within a school even without huge financing changes.
Thanks for the comment, GM!
Yeah -- to preview Part 2, one thing I learned from speaking to alumni is that actually there are a variety of high school options for ambitious and hard working students in NYC; by some measures the best high school in the city isn't even a Specialized High School (Townsend Harris) and even if all those schools rejected you zoned high schools anecdotally still have good honors programs within them. Obviously, I'm glossing over a lot of nuance but if we're talking about increasing prosperity there may not be low-hanging fruit in this area. Which is fine! But other places may be more interesting.
So actually, in regards to finances, if I'm reading this right Bronx Science pupils costs a third less than the district average ($17.5K vs $26.2K, see [1]). Helpful to see the concrete numbers here! The alumni I spoke with all came from working class backgrounds in Queens. So I think this school is still great to have as an (cost-effective) engine of abundance for its students. But, anecdotally many of the Bronx Science students from Manhattan attended private middle schools (implying high SES). So I think you are right -- there is probably a large variation in SES within Bronx Science. I can see if my alumni connections have any additional thoughts here but I would DEFINITELY read a blog post about this topic! I'd encourage you to write one if you're up to it :)
[1] https://data.nysed.gov/expenditures.php?year=2020&instid=800000045625
For bonus background: on January 25, 2023, the City Council education committee held a hearing about the city's public school admissions process (among other things). The committee report is a pretty good primer for people looking to get up to speed with how things work, what's changing now, what's being considered, etc.
Anyone can find the committee report (the City Council staff's brief for council members about a hearing subject matter), the transcript, and public testimony via Legistar, and this particular hearing's docs are here: https://legistar.council.nyc.gov/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=5986179&GUID=350EEE56-40D7-4BC1-B742-78B5D429B437&Options=&Search=
Wow, thanks!
I uploaded the brief to a Google doc if people want to access it in a single click:[1] It seems like Chancellor Banks is making medium-sized nudges to the admissions process to make it more straightforward (but there is still criticism about how test-focused it is).
I didn't fully understand all the terminology used so I could see how a one-pager ("concreteness brief") on this topic would be helpful!
A video instead of a pdf of the hearing would have been nice. That said, the people listed out at the beginning of the hearing transcript seem like a who's who of organization active in the admissions space: [2]
[1] https://docs.google.com/document/d/1r1F8W1DL4XZuWCtNfRYoHfA4jrEXrn_K/edit#heading=h.gjdgxs
[2] https://legistar.council.nyc.gov/View.ashx?M=F&ID=11612014&GUID=1C796D91-62F0-4BC8-8B29-C75A60BB6ED7