The Mayor's Office of Equity and Racial Justice recently released New York City's Preliminary Racial Equity Plan, and gave the public an opportunity to provide feedback that will shape the final Citywide Racial Equity Plan. NY Appleseed submitted our comments on how it falls short of explicitly naming ongoing school segregation, identifying the levers that have perpetuated it, or recognizing New York City's place among the most segregated school systems. We also offered recommendations for the finalized plan so it can remain true to its stated values of acknowledging and addressing historic injustices.

Read our public comments here.

Last spring, the Road to Better Busing Coalition released a platform to guide advocacy and action to improve yellow school bus service for the thousands of students who rely on it every day. The shorter 3-year extension recently approved by the Panel for Education Policy delivers a window of opportunity for the Mamdani administration to look at all viable options to reform school bus service and make long-overdue changes.

With one of our original goals secured (the rejection of a long-term extension), four core priorities remain. The coalition has written an updated 2026 goals document with the option to sign on to support the transition to a modernized, equitable, and accountable system. Join us in demanding change to foster inclusive school communities.

The Integration Coalition met with Chancellor Samuels for a dialogue on school integration and how we can work together to bring forth a shared vision of integration for all students. We discussed capacity for building integration and inclusion, as well as how real integration can be a systemwide goal. We are excited for future collaboration and turning shared values into shared action.

Thank you to Vanessa Leung from Coalition for Asian American Children + Families, Erika Kendall from District 17's Community Education Council, Matt Gonzales, José Luis Vilson from Educolor, Cheryelle Cruickshank from INCLUDEnyc, and Halley Potter from The Century Foundation for lending their voices in this dialogue. Lastly, a big thank you to Chancellor Samuels for providing space for community insight and a mutual exchange of thoughts and ideas.

2026 Peace and Justice Youth Conference

The Circle Keepers, along with NY Appleseed and other organizations, are hosting the annual Peace and Justice Youth Conference! There will be youth-led workshops, performances, and tabling at the intersections of restorative and transformative justice, social justice media making, mental health and wellness, and more. While this event is created for youth, adult allies can participate as well. There will be FREE food, swag, and 7 hours of community service given to students who attend. See y'all there!

Date: Saturday, May 30th

Time: 9:30AM-5PM

Location: Design Works High School

29 6th Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11217

RSVP here

Nyah, Rochelle, and board chair Jonathan Walcoff traveled to Oklahoma for this year's Appleseed Conference! Nyah and Rochelle gave a presentation on NY Appleseed's advocacy, our approaches/strategies, challenges, and promising developments.

We had the privilege of listening to opening remarks from members of the Muscogee (Creek) nation, whose land we were residing on for this conference, as well as other Appleseed centers' presentations on their work. Guest speaker Hannibal Johnson spoke about the Tulsa Race Massacre, and then we took an informative tour of the historic Greenwood District.

Thank you to Oklahoma Appleseed for hosting us at this year's conference, and we can't wait for the next one!

P.S. Weekly is a student-hosted show about pressing issues in the New York City school system, and student producers Rayleen Laloi and Ermione Aleah Raymond released an episode about NYC school mergers as enrollment declines in the city. They explore how these mergers impact students as well as their school experiences, which includes an interview with student Osei Alfred, whose school merged with Laloi’s last year.

Take a listen to the podcast episode here. You can also listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other streaming platforms.

Interested in learning more about school mergers? Read our May 2024 report, in which we explored the successes and challenges of the merger process for Arts and Letters 305 United and then provided recommendations on how to create a more inclusive and intentional merger process for across NYC public schools.