Zhuang presses DOE on G&T and special education data gaps

Okay, I have questions.

So who can answer the questions?

Myself and my colleague Liana will support with that.

Okay.

Only 12.5% of children with disability in New York City schools are white.

What percentage of tuition payment for students with disability are...

Oh, this is not for you guys.

Right.

What effect does participation in elementary GNT program have on getting into specialized high school?

Do you guys have information?

We don't have that information at this moment.

Okay.

But I did the research.

I have the information.

They have 12% more chance kids getting to a specialized high school.

And also, that program really benefited low-income students in New York City.

And next question, what effect does being a gifted and talented program have on those children later in their life?

We don't have that information at this moment.

Okay.

Have being in different talent program increased expected wage by 9%?

Do you know, do you have information about what current different talent program in

black and the brown community.

Do you guys have any data or you can help me to get some data?

Council members Wang, do you have data for us to share?

I don't want to, I was just going to say we did not bring the team prepared with data specific to gifted and talented today.

We brought the team to speak to AI and screen time more so we can accept your questions and note them and also follow up for the spaces that we're not specifically ready to answer you.

But it is in the hearings agenda, right?

About two bills I have today.

But you guys did not prepare to answer my questions.

A lot of family depend on the answers.

They want to know the answers.

This is how, this shows again why those special needs family get ignored.

And the gifted and talented program get ignored, especially in black and the brown community.

And now even doesn't have people come here to testify.

This is how we're going to respect those families.

We do have data publicly available on our website that shows the demographics of students enrolled in gifted and talented programs.

And by neighborhood, too?

By district, we have the number of students from every district who apply to gifted and talented and receive offers every year.

Can you tell me for the record what's the ratio in Manhattan, what's the ratio in Brooklyn?

I'm sorry, as you answer, please state your name for the record.

Yeah, my name is Leanna Wright from the Office of Student Enrollment.

I don't have all of the numbers in front of me, but we can share the links to where they're posted on the website.

If no one comes here to prepare, then why come?

I think some of the bill that you were asking about also is from the mayor's office who provided some written testimony in response to your bill as well.

The response is...

That's my understanding.

It said there's no purview.

Over the gifted and talented.

Yes.

Said the no purview.

That's it.

didn't say why, where, who has the purview.

If they don't have the purview, we don't know which department can answer my question.

Well, we run the gifted and talented screening and admissions process.

It is housed within the Division of Early Childhood, and then it is for our children entering kindergarten currently.

If we don't have the data to speak specifically to that's not necessarily publicly available, we will follow up and get that.

And that's the reason I asked on my bill.

We need to have that data available.

And everyone says it's not in their purview, no one in charge of this data.

I don't know which department is going to work on this issue.

And also, for the disability students,

Special needs students, no one come to testify.

Just said, we agree on your purpose, but that's no information at all.

You got support or not support?

Who gonna answer the question?

Council Member Joann, I'm just gonna ask the DOE, there's a lot of you here.

All with tons of data.

And I think before you leave today, I think you can testify to what the data

and answer her questions.

I understand you don't have it in front of you now, but before you leave, you should have that and testify to that.

Thank you.

And then this will be the last, and then we'll move on to Councilmember Aviles.

Councilmember Suzanne Sanchez, Chief of Special Education, and I am here to answer any questions around students with disabilities that you may have.

Okay.

We're going to go on to the next member, but any of the questions that she had previously asked, before you leave today, we'll testify to.

I think you could find it between now and then.

Okay?

Thank you.

Councilmember Aviles on Zoom.

I will come back.