Aspen Ideas fest for teens: Brooklyn students tackle mental health, immigration, and more…
Kimberly Gil knows what it’s like to struggle with mental health and not have a place to turn for support. Gil, a 16-year-old sophomore at the High School for Social Justice in Bushwick, Brooklyn, immigrated to the U.S. as a kid and struggled to acclimate. She often felt like she couldn’t talk to her family […]
N.Y. Education Department hints at big changes to graduation requirements
ALBANY — The state Education Department is embracing the idea of new graduation requirements and plans to release a vision for what it is hinting will be big changes next month. “Rethinking and modernizing education in New York state is not an easy task,” Deputy Commissioner Jason Harmon told the Board of Regents at Monday’s […]
When the Biggest Student Mental Health Advocates Are the Students
With the number of adolescents struggling with mental health rising, student-led clubs have come to provide support amid a dearth of resources. Last October, to commemorate Mental Health Awareness Week, a group of students at Sacopee Valley High School in Hiram, Maine, created the annual Hope Board. Shaped like an enormous tulip and displayed in […]
When schools assign substitutes the wrong status, the error suppresses their pay
When the Queens public school where she was working assigned Antonietta Auriemma to seven classroom sections, she realized something was wrong. Between January and June 2023, Auriemma, a substitute teacher, filled in for two different teachers on long-term leaves of absence, on top of extra classroom periods as needed. According to her handbook, she should […]
A former tutor’s off-Broadway show tackles NYC’s high-stress high school admissions
New York City’s high-stakes high school admissions process is taking center stage in a new off-Broadway production. School Pictures, running through Dec. 3 at Playwrights Horizons theater, draws on playwright Milo Cramer’s experience as a tutor, which often entailed preparing kids for the Specialized High School Admissions Test that determines entry to eight coveted public […]
With influx of migrants, NYC school enrollment ticks up for first time in 8 years
The number of students attending New York City’s public schools increased for the first time in eight years, a sign that enrollment may be stabilizing in the wake of deep declines during the pandemic. About 915,000 children from 3-K to 12th grade enrolled this year, up 0.9% from last year, or roughly 8,000 additional students, […]
NYC launches free online therapy for teens
New York City teens now have access to free online therapy through a city program that launched Wednesday, officials said. City teens, ages 13-17, can text, call, or video chat with licensed therapists through the online platform Talkspace without providing payment, insurance information, or referrals, officials said. The teen telehealth initiative, which Mayor Eric Adams […]
The secret to good teaching? Teamwork.
Twelve years ago, when I left a career as a lawyer to become a history teacher, my vision of what a “good teacher” looked like was shaped in part by movies, such as “Stand and Deliver” and “To Sir, With Love,” which depict teachers who overcome institutional dysfunction to connect with students and inspire them […]
