Overview:
To allow our students to compete in the 21st century, the federal government needs to make bold and targeted investments in local schools. There are several areas where an infusion of federal dollars would go a long way toward setting our students on a path to success. Among the areas where more resources are necessary, include language learning, AP and technology courses, and afterschool programs.
Several public schools in District 6 have made significant strides forward,[1] but students still lack access to innovative dual language programs, ELA courses, and "gifted and talented programs."[2] A dearth of Advanced Placement courses is also a barrier for high school students, particularly students of color; in the 2014-2015 school year over 100 schools went without any AP courses at all. This has caused a significant inequity, where only 44 percent of black and hispanic students are currently prepared to take AP courses compared to 66 percent of their white and Asian peers.[3]
Title III Schools: For the 2015-2016 school year, NYC DOE announced $1 million in federal funding to expand dual language programs. Through the Title III Language Instruction for Limited Proficient and Immigrant Students (LEP), three of the schools receiving funds are in District 6.[4] Earlier this year, Inwood Library launched a pilot bilingual program - the Bilingual Family Literacy Breakfast Program - to bridge the language gap among pre-kindergarten children in the community.[5] The program offers classes and workshops for families and children at the library, and also supplements pre-K classrooms and teachers with materials.
Advanced Placement courses: Mayor de Blasio announced an initiative to bring at least five AP courses to every public high schools by 2020, but at a cost to the City of $51 million by FY 2022.[6] Additionally, this plan outlives his mayoralty, so it could be discontinued by the next mayor.
In Congress, Senator Espaillat will fight for a series of reforms to help local schools.
Increase federal funding for innovative dual language programs, and support initiatives like the Bilingual Family Literacy Breakfast Program. Our world is more interconnected than ever before, and this trend will only continue. Teaching our young students another language at an early age will catalyze cognitive development and promote academic achievement. But today, most public school students in New York City receive no foreign language instruction until high school when it becomes exponentially more difficult to develop language proficiency. Congress must make bold investments toward a multilingual future and create a language learning system for the 21st Century that serves our children from an early age.
National Curriculum on Technology: A fully implemented national curriculum on technology would help harness the full potential of the digital revolution. In order to prepare our children for the jobs of the future, they need to receive instruction in coding, robotics, virtualization, and all science applications.
Expqnd AP courses through the federal Advanced Placement Incentive Program grant.[7] This grant increases the participation of low-income students in pre-AP and AP courses and tests. Grants can be awarded to local school districts or to nonprofit organizations in the community to make AP courses more accessible, particularly to students of color. In order to unleash the full academic talent of our young students, they must have the opportunity to showcase their skills.
Title I Schools: Title I schools should be allowed to extend after school programs to 6pm and provide our students with additional opportunities and resources to succeed.