An Elite N.Y.C. Public School Admitted 777 Students. Only 3 Were Black.
New York’s specialized high schools give disproportionately few seats to Black and Hispanic students, continuing a pattern that has drawn criticism.
A disproportionately small number of Black and Hispanic students received admission offers to New York City’s elite public high schools for the upcoming academic year, continuing a pattern of racial and ethnic gaps that has existed for years despite promises by elected officials to address the divide.
About 62 percent of the students in the city’s public schools are Black or Hispanic. But at its eight most prestigious high schools, about 10 percent of the students in the incoming freshman class are expected to be Black or Hispanic, roughly the same as last year. About 80 percent of the seats went to Asian and white students.
At Stuyvesant High School in Manhattan, often considered the most selective of the city’s specialized high schools, three of the 777 offers were made to Black students, and 21 were for Hispanic students, together representing a nearly one-third decline from the previous freshman class. One Black student was admitted to Staten Island Technical High School.
While only 5 percent of high school students attend a specialized school, the annual release of the admission results has stirred debate and scrutiny for decades, especially as the profile of students in those schools stands in stark contrast to the rest of the school system, the nation’s largest. Gaining entrance to the schools has been perceived as a path out of poverty and a gateway to the nation’s top colleges and, perhaps, a flourishing career.
The sole criterion for admission is a 114-question, three-hour exam known as the Specialized High School Admissions Test, a grueling assessment of students’ mastery of math and English that rewards multistep problem-solving skills and time management. Test preparation companies offer middle schoolers years of practice and coaching.
