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Proposed move of Upper West Side schools presents early test for new NYC chancellor
By
Jessica Gould
Published Feb 4, 2026
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Spencer Platt/Getty Images
By
Jessica Gould
Published Feb 4, 2026
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Parents are mobilizing against the potential relocation of an Upper West Side middle school, creating an early test for the new schools chancellor who took over the education department with a reputation for deftly navigating controversial school mergers.
Education officials raised the possible relocation of the Center School on West 84th Street last month at a District 3 town hall. Parents responded with a barrage of complaints that touch on some of the most polarizing issues in New York City education, including the influx of migrant students, integration, effects of a class size law, and the importance of parent engagement under mayoral control.
City officials are weighing moving the Center School from the building it shares with elementary school P.S. 9 to another building that currently houses P.S./I.S. 191 on 61st Street and “truncating” the middle school that exists there now.
Many parents angered by the proposal point the finger at Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels, who previously served as superintendent of the district covering the Upper West Side.
“I blame Kamar,” said P.S./I.S. 191 parent Tiffany Rodriguez-Noel, who opposes the idea of moving the Center School to the building. “I do hold him accountable for this, and I'm asking him to rectify.”
Samuels has touted his experience merging schools to address enrollment issues while making segregated school communities more diverse. Integration advocates have applauded school mergers Samuels oversaw in Brooklyn, particularly the one that created Arts & Letters 305 United in Bed-Stuy.
Both P.S. 9 and the Center School are majority-white, whereas the majority of students at P.S./I.S. 191 are Latino.
School relocations, mergers and closures tend to be emotional and divisive. While enrollment at the public schools is declining, it’s spread unevenly across the city — with some popular schools crunched for space and others straining to maintain programs. That’s led education leaders to consider more mergers.
At the January meeting with parents, Deputy Superintendent Mariela Graham said the idea to move the Center School grew out of “working group” conversations across Manhattan’s District 3 that began years ago to address “two key structural priorities” of enrollment and class size.
“We really come with a sincere and deep appreciation of what the Center School is,” she said. “Center School for all its special qualities exists within this broader system. … There are some challenges that schools, school communities and neighborhoods face that are bigger than just one school. It actually requires a community of schools and a community of people to be able to address.”
The Upper West Side building shared by PS 9 and the Center School.
PS 9
She added that the building housing P.S. 9 and the Center School has been overcrowded for years.
Parents at P.S. 9 said it has been working to comply with the state's class size law but needs more space.
“The idea that meeting class-size requirements could require pushing [special education] services into hallways or eliminating dedicated spaces for art, music, science, technology, or the library is deeply concerning,” said parent Frani Chung.
But some parents at The Center School said relocating them to the P.S./I.S. 191 site to make more room for P.S. 9 is not the right solution.
They said the Center School has a special program designed to give fifth through eighth graders a gentle transition from elementary to high school by mixing students in the middle grades together in classes, lunch and a schoolwide recess. The Center School also has a beloved theater program.
“Moving Center School into that space would by necessity strip Center School of the facets of its curriculum that make it unique and successful,” parent Olivia Greer said.
Parents opposing the relocation noted that P.S./I.S. 191 does not have a theater and holds recess on the roof.
They have circulated a petition, and came out in force to testify at last week’s meeting of the Panel for Educational Policy against a move.
“The [education department] is rushing behind closed doors to a crippling relocation resolution and has failed to engage and listen to our community,” Center School parent Max Miller said at the meeting.
Adding to the rancor, some parents at P.S./I.S. 191 said they do not want to absorb the Center School.
P.S./I.S. 191 parent Rodriguez-Noel, who also testified at the panel meeting, said the city should focus its efforts on improving the middle grades that are currently at the school.
She said the school has struggled in recent years with an influx of 300 migrant students, contributing to challenges in classrooms as teachers struggled to translate for new pupils. She said the difficulty integrating newcomers without sufficient support from the Adams administration led to lower test scores and an exodus of dozens of educators.
Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels has a reputation for effectively navigating school mergers.
NYCPS
“I love the school. I love the community that we have here. I hate the obstacles we have had to face and what was done to us,” Rodriguez-Noel said.
She said the city wants the “optics” of P.S. 191 and The Center School’s communities coming together. But she is skeptical.
“It’s not mixed together, it’s in place of,” she said. “It’s a replacement. A swap out.”
Rodriguez-Noel was among the parents who hoped that Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s administration would heed her concerns. She noted that Mamdani emphasized the importance of input from parents while campaigning for mayor on a platform that included opposition to mayoral control of schools.
Mamdani embraced mayoral control after taking office.
“It's still a fairly new administration, right? So I want to give [the mayor] the benefit of the doubt. And I hope that he's listening to every single constituent because that's what he ran on. So now is the time to prove that you are listening to us,” Rodriguez-Noel said.
Education department spokesperson Chyann Tull emphasized a decision on The Center School had not been made.
“Authentic community engagement is a cornerstone of any thriving school system,” Tull said in a statement. “While we have begun early conversations with families and school leaders about how best to support long-term planning, no formal proposal has been issued at this time. We will continue to consult closely with families, educators and local partners.”
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manhattan
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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