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Councilmembers make new push to improve diversity at NYC specialized high schools
By
Jessica Gould
Published Sep 13, 2026
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Jessica Gould
Published Sep 13, 2026
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Two New York City councilmembers are proposing an overhaul of admissions at the city’s specialized high schools, citing a persistent lack of Black and Latino students.
Councilmembers Nantasha Williams and Lincoln Restler wrote in a new letter that the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test should no longer serve as the sole determinant for admission to five of the city's eight elite high schools. They also suggest expanding enrollment at those schools by thousands of seats.
“The admissions process for our specialized high schools is profoundly flawed, and the city needs to take action now,” Restler said.
Williams said she would like to see immediate changes, “if not this upcoming admission cycle, definitely the next one.”
The councilmembers sent the letter to Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels on Tuesday.
In July, the city released the most recent admissions statistics for the specialized schools, showing once again that Black and Latino students accounted for a small fraction. Only three Black students and 21 Latino students were accepted to Stuyvesant's incoming freshman class of 777. Data showed 133 white students and 534 Asian students were admitted to Stuyvesant, which is the crown jewel of the specialized high school system.
Williams called the data “a shining example of how New York City Public Schools continues to fail certain students, particularly Black and brown students.”
Overall, about 3.5% of the roughly 4,000 specialized high school seats went to Black students. Black students make up 19% of the overall public school system student body. About 6.5% of the specialized seats went to Latino students, even though they compose 42% of the total student body.
Asian students received 56.5% of offers to the specialized schools, but make up 19% of students. White students got 17% of specialized seats and accounted for 16% of public school students.
The SHSAT is written into state law as the sole determinant for admissions to three of the city’s specialized high schools: Stuyvesant High School, Bronx High School of Science, and Brooklyn Technical High School. The law also states that the test will determine admission to “such similar further special high schools which may be established.”
The education department relies on the exam to determine admissions for eight specialized high schools in the city. Critics have long argued that newer specialized schools created during the Bloomberg administration do not need to be subject to the test.
Williams and Restler said Mamdani can address the lack of diversity immediately by shifting admissions policies at the schools not cited explicitly in the state law. Those are Brooklyn Latin School, High School of American Studies at Lehman College in the Bronx, High School for Math, Science and Engineering at City College in Manhattan, Queens High School for the Sciences at York College in Queens, and Staten Island Technical High School.
The councilmembers recommend using a baseline score on the test along with grades, teacher recommendations, essays, and “applicant background” to decide admissions to the five schools.
They also propose reorienting a preparatory program for the specialized schools so it focuses on the city's poorest areas. The councilmembers suggest making advanced math classes universal in middle schools, and passing a resolution to repeal the state law requiring the standardized admissions test. (Previous efforts to repeal the test have failed.)
The education department did not respond to requests for comment. When the most recent admissions numbers were released in July, Mamdani called for improvements to elementary and middle school education to boost applicants across the city.
“I will say that we know that a single test does not reflect the aptitude of students across the city. We know that Black and Latino students are excelling across the five boroughs as are students in a wide variety of schools. We have to ensure that we're doing everything we can to deliver for those students at the earliest ages,” said Mamdani, who is an alum of Bronx Science.
It’s far from the first time critics of the test have tried to change admissions to the vaunted schools. In an effort to increase the number of Black and Latino students in the specialized programs, former Mayor Bill de Blasio lobbied to replace the test and admit top students from every middle school across the city. He also expanded the Discovery preparatory program.
But alums and advocates for the SHSAT successfully pushed to keep the test.
Defenders of the exam have said that it is an objective measure and strong predictor of success at the rigorous schools.
“We should prepare all NYC students so they can compete and excel at these schools, not tinker with admissions with the explicit goal of changing the racial composition of the student body,” said Yiatin Chu, co-president of Parent Leaders of Accelerated Curriculum and Education.
She said her group supports the expansion of seats at the specialized schools and in other accelerated programs.
Tagged
education
new york city
Jessica Gould
Jessica is the education reporter for WNYC and Gothamist. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Jessica reported on the shutdown and reopening of the nation’s largest school system, highlighting the unprecedented impacts on learning, health and mental health for students, staff and families. Got a tip? Email [email protected]
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