Overview
On August 29, 1974, the ASPIRA Consent Decree established the right of English Language Learners to receive bilingual education in NYC public schools. 50 years later, we still have work to do to ensure inclusion and access for every student. Currently, 18% of students are identified as English Language Learners ( ELL Demographics At-a-Glance) and 44% of NYC Public Schools students speak a language other than English at home. Since Fall 2022, we have also welcomed over 40,000 school-aged "New New Yorkers."
NYC Public Schools is Boldly Reimagining Multilingual Education in NYC Public Schools by developing a community-informed strategy for:
- Welcoming and Inclusive Schools
- Pathways to Multilingualism
- Preparing Global Leaders
Advisory Council for Boldly Reimagining Multilingual Education in NYC Public Schools
In June 2024, Chancellor Banks announced the creation of an advisory council for Boldly Reimagining Multilingual Education in NYC Public Schools ( press release). NYC Public Schools convened a diverse group of stakeholders to launch the council on December 16, 2024. Composed of current NYC Public Schools students, families, educators, and community members, the council serves in an advisory capacity and voices concerns on important issues in multilingual education.
Goals of the Multilingual NYC Advisory Council:
- Provide every NYC Public School student with a pathway to multilingualism
- Reduce the dropout rate for English Language Learners
- Increase the graduation rate for English Language Learners
2024-2025 Multilingual NYC Advisory Council Members
- Afsana Haque - Parent/Guardian, P.S. X014 Senator John Calandra
- Alan Cheng - Superintendent, Consortium, International, NYC Outward Bound Schools
- Alfonso Guzman - Director, Parent and Family Engagement, INCLUDEnyc
- Ameria Alleyne - Parent/Guardian, Advocate, Good Shepherd Services
- América Cañas Garcia - Parent/Guardian, Senior Vice President, United Way of New York City
- Arlen Benjamin-Gomez - Parent/Guardian, Executive Director, EdTrust-New York
- Carmen Diaz-Malvido - CEO, ASPIRA of New York Inc.
- Chandler Patton Miranda, Ed.D. - Parent/Guardian, Assistant Professor, Educational Leadership for Diverse Learning Communities, Molloy University
- Dr. Darling James Miramey - Parent/Guardian, Multilingual NYC - The Partnership for Multilingual Education in NYC
- Dr. Sabrin Abedin - Bronx ML/ELL Director
- Edward Herrera - Bilingual School Psychologist, P.S. 177 The Marlboro
- Emilia Fiallo - Advocate, Founder of UndocuTeacher
- Erum Hanif - CEO and Board Member, APNA Brooklyn Community Center
- Dr. Fabienne Doucet - Executive Director, New York University Metropolitan Center
- Geyser Rodriguez - Teacher, East Bronx Academy for the Future
- Giovanna Pimentel - Parent/Guardian, P.S. 098 Shorac Kappock
- Hanan Fahmy - Assistant Principal, P.S. 206 Joseph F Lamb
- Israt Nali - Assistant Principal, P.S. 214 Michael Friedsam
- Dr. Jo Ann Benoit - Executive Director of School Support and Operations, Community School District 28
- John Sullivan - Superintendent, Transfer Schools District
- Juan Camilo Trespalacios - Teacher, P.S. 044 Thomas C. Brown
- Juvanie Piquant - Chief of Staff, New York City Council Member Rita Joseph
- Kaitlin Rosario-Rivera - Teacher, P.S. 097 Forest Park
- Dr. Kate Menken - Professor of Linguistics and TESOL, Queens College (CUNY) and NYSABE
- Katie Kurjakovic - English Language Learner Specialist, United Federation of Teachers (UFT)
- Kesi Gordon - Senior Manager of Education Policy, New York Immigration Coalition
- Kristy De La Cruz - Superintendent, Community School District 4
- Lara Evangelista - Executive Director, Internationals Network for Public Schools
- Dr. Laura Ascenzi-Moreno - Professor of Bilingual Education, Brooklyn College (CUNY)
- Lilly Chan - Parent/Guardian, Teacher, P.S. 206 Jose Celso Barbosa
- Longping Wong-Qu - Teacher, Newtown High School
- Maggie Sanchez - Citywide Council for Special Education
- Maimouna Dieye - Program Manager, African Communities Together
- Marisol Castaneda-Salgado - Youth Worker, Beam Center
- Melanie Katz - Principal, Franklin D. Roosevelt High School
- Melissa Scala - District 75 ML/ELL Director
- Naveed Hasan - Elected Parent Panel for Education Policy (PEP) Member, Founding Director of No Limits Learning, Parent/Guardian at P.S. 145 The Bloomingdale School
- Paola Jordan - Parent/Guardian, Director of the Metropolitan Parent Center, Sinergia Inc.
- Rita Rodriguez-Engberg - Director of Immigrant Students' Rights Project, Advocates for Children
- Ron Woo - Executive Director, New York State Statewide Language Regional Bilingual Education Resource Network (RBERN)
- Dr. Rosa Rivera-McCutchen - Professor of Administration and Supervision, Instructional Leadership, Hunter College (CUNY)
- Somia Elrowmeim - Founder and CEO, Women's Empowerment Coalition of NYC
- Sonia Sendoya - Social Worker, Make the Road New York, Community School Director at Bushwick Campus
- Steve Weiner - Teacher, "47" The American Sign Language and English Secondary School
- Tariq Khan - Parent/Guardian, P.S. 135 The Bellaire School
- Dr. Tatyana Kleyn - Professor of Bilingual Education and TESOL, City College of New York, CUNY-Initiative on Immigration and Education and NYSABE (Past President)
- Teresa Arboleda - President, Citywide Council for English Language Learners (CCELL)
- Dominika McPartland - Transfer Schools MLL Services Administrator, Hunter College (CUNY) TESOL Adjunct Lecturer, NYSABE Polish Language Delegate
- NYC Public Schools students and alumni
Meeting Schedule and Materials
The full council will meet every other month from December 2024 to May 2025. Sub-councils will meet monthly. We will publish meeting agendas and materials in this section on an ongoing basis.
Report on Findings from the Council
NYCPS, in partnership with the Columbia University Center for Public Research and Leadership, will publish a full-length report to reflect the findings from the council.
Other Ways to Participate
Participation in this work is not limited to advisory council members. We want to learn from everyone interested in sharing their perspectives.
- Completing surveys: responding to surveys on specific topics or programs and services for multilingual learners and immigrant students more broadly
- Speaking in one-on-one or small group conversations: participating in or conducting interviews or focus groups
- Being an ambassador to the work: spreading the word, sharing resources with your community, and attending events to show support
Email us (multilinguallearners@schools.nyc.gov) if you are interested!
Contact
Email us (multilinguallearners@schools.nyc.gov) with any questions.