Bronx Science parents nix test changes

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“The nation’s elite colleges — from Harvard and Princeton to Columbia and New York University — use multiple measures to evaluate students as part of their admission process,” Mr. Mulgrew said in a statement. “But New York City continues to rely on a single, outmoded multiple-choice test for admission to its top academic high schools.”

Critics including Mr. Mulgrew and Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña have argued the current admission system favors students with access to test preparation courses. They say that as a result, black and Hispanic students have gone underrepresented at the city’s elite high schools, while white and Asian students make up the majorities.

“By factoring in additional criteria with the SHSAT, this legislation represents a real opportunity to attract excellence and achieve a more diverse student body in our city’s specialized school,” a DOE spokesperson said. 

In the 2013-2014 school year, 62.3 percent of students at Bronx Science identified as Asian, followed by 23.1 percent identifying as white, while black and Hispanic students numbered at 3 percent and 6.4 percent, respectively. 

The student body at American Studies had 53.5 percent white students, 22.5 percent Asian students, 15.5 percent Hispanic students and 7 percent black students. While 45.6 percent of the student body at Bronx Science was eligible for free or reduced lunch — a measure based on family income — 27.6 percent of American Studies’ students qualified. 

Along with the DOE and state legislators, the NAACP’s Legal Defense and Education Fund (LDF) has pushed for an expansion of criteria for specialized high school admission. Rachel Kleinman, an assistant counsel at the organization, said LDF has filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education arguing the specialized high school admission process violates a portion of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. 

Bronx Science, The Bronx High School of Science, specialized high schools, Hecht-Colandra, Parents Association, American Studies, High School of American Studies at Lehman College, Shanti Knock, Adam Stern, Adriano Espaillat, Michael Mulgrew, UFT, Carmen Farina, NAACP, Rachel Kleinman, Marvin Shelton, Maya Rajamani
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