School Improvement Programs

Please click one of the links below to expand the section and learn more about each School Improvement Program.

Every Student Succeeds Act

Currently we are under the NY State Education Department ESEA flexibility waiver through the 2017-18 school year. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) is the law that outlines how states can use federal money to support public schools. In September 2017, New York State submitted its plan for the funding it receives annually under ESSA. Once approved, ESSA requirements will begin in the 2018–19 school year.

For more information, visit the Every Student Succeeds Act page on the NY State Education Department website.

  • Title I—Provides federal funding for the education of low income students.
  • Title II and Title III—Additional information regarding staff development and training for extra academic assistance for low-income students and English Language Learners

School and District Accountability

Schools and districts are responsible for meeting ELA and Math testing and Graduation Rate targets for the following student groups:

  • All Students
  • American Indian or Alaska Native Students
  • Black or African American Students
  • Hispanic or Latino Students
  • Asian or Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander Students
  • White Students
  • Multiracial Students
  • Students with Disabilities
  • Limited English Proficient (LEP) Students (also known as English language learners or ELLs)

Accountability Designations

Accountability Designations are based on the performance of student groups on the English Language Arts and math testing and Graduation Rate results schools are identified by NY State Education Department in the following categories:

Reward Schools

Reward Schools are schools showing high performance or high progress in ELA, Math, Science, and graduation rate.

Schools In Good Standing

Thes are schools l that have their student groups meeting the state testing, graduation rate targets, having failed to meet their testing, or graduation targets for one year.

Local Assistance Plan

Schools are designated as LAP for failing to make progress in English Language Arts, Math, Science or Graduation Rate either:

  • for a subgroup for multiple years; or
  • having large and increasing gaps in performance between specific subgroups of students; or
  • If a school is not located in a low performing district, having a subgroup perform at or below the benchmark used to identify low performing districts.

Focus

Focus schools are Title I schools that have the lowest subgroup achievement in meeting or exceeding the standard on English Language Arts and Math state tests or high schools with the lowest graduation rate for any student group are designated Focus.

Priority

Priority Schools are Title I or Title I-eligible schools based on the following factors:

  • low achievement in the “All Students” group (not meeting performance targets) on statewide ELA and Math and a lack of progress for this group over a number of years; or,
  • high schools with a graduation rate less than 60 percent for a number of years; or,
  • schools carrying out school improvement models using School Improvement Grants (SIG)

For more information and the lists of schools and their designations visit NYSED Accountability page.

School Receivership

On January 17, 2019 the New York State Education Department (NYSED) announced new School Accountability Determinations. Under the new designations, twelve (12) Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) schools will be placed under Chancellor’s Receivership. Nine (9) schools are newly identified and three (3) schools that will remain under receivership as required by New York State’s Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) plan. As in the past each school must make annual demonstrable improvement on specific benchmarks or it will be placed under an independent receiver. Go to NYSED School Receivership to learn more about School Receivership.

For specific questions about School Receivership, please contact us at receivership@schools.nyc.gov.

School Receivership Public Hearings

In accordance with NY State Education Law, the NYC Department of Education is required to a hold public hearing for each of the identified schools. The purpose of these hearings is to explain the process of receivership; discuss the performance of the school, and soliciting input from the public regarding recommendations for improving the school. Hearings are conducted each fall for school that remain identified and in the winter 2019 for newly identified schools.

See the full schedule of public hearing dates and locations.

School Receivership Quarterly Reports

Superintendents, School Leadership Teams (SLTs), Community Engagement Teams (CETs), and the Central Office team are regularly monitoring the progress of schools in receivership. DOE also participates in progress monitoring of these schools with the NYSED. This process consists of quarterly reports, performance review telephone calls, and on-site monitoring.

You can find school receivership reports and more information about these programs on our InfoHub School Receivership page.