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New York City Council
Oversight - Seal of Civic Readiness in DOE High Schools and at CUNY
Read summaries and jump into the video at the segment start.
Council staff apologizes for delay and explains that no one may approach the dais. They tell attendees to contact a sergeant at arms for questions and announce the chairs are ready to begin.
Council Member Rita Joseph introduces herself as Chair of the Committee on Higher Education and welcomes attendees to the joint hearing with the Committee on Education. She states the hearing topic is the use of the NYS Seal of Civic Readiness in DOE high schools and at CUNY.
Joseph lists Int 259 on dental care information, Res 418 on CUNY credit for the Seal, Res 451 on the Next Gen Civics Act, and proposed Res 620A on awarding the Seal in all NYC public high schools. She names the sponsors for each item.
Susan Zhuang says young New Yorkers are among the least civically engaged voters and that high-quality civic education increases voting and volunteering. She asks colleagues to support Res 451, which calls on the state to pass the Next Gen Civics Act for hands-on civics in grades 9-12.
Shekar Krishnan cites misinformation about public health and vaccines and says New York City must ensure children get accurate medical information. He explains Int 259 would require DOE to inform parents about the importance of fluoride for dental health.
Joseph says the Seal was implemented statewide in 2022 and recognizes proficiency in civic knowledge, skills, and action. She describes the point system, including social studies courses, Regents exams, research projects, service learning, and a civic capstone project.
Joseph says some NYC public high school graduates have come to CUNY with the Seal for several years. She says the committees want to explore how the Seal is promoted and encourage CUNY to accept it for credit or requirements to smooth the transition and improve timely graduation.
Eric Dinowitz introduces himself as Chair of the Committee on Education and as a NYC public schools and CUNY alum. He warns of deepening polarization and youth detachment from civics, and says the city must re-engage students in civic education.
Dinowitz reports that 8,000 students from 166 DOE high schools earned the Seal in 2024-2025, a 72% increase from the prior year. He notes only 643 seniors from 31 high schools earned it in the 2022 pilot year.
Dinowitz says the State Board of Regents is moving to end specific Regents exam graduation requirements beginning with the class of 2028. He notes the Seal can currently replace the second social studies Regents exam but will no longer count toward a diploma under the state plan.
Dinowitz says more than 60% of DOE graduates who go to college enroll at CUNY, so many incoming students likely have the Seal. He argues CUNY could award flexible Common Core or elective credits to help students meet requirements sooner.
Dinowitz says earning the Seal takes more than basics, including eight social studies credits and at least two civic participation points. He says the Seal should be recognized for the rigorous work students complete.
Dinowitz cites the NYC Campaign Finance Board that civic engagement course offerings vary by school funding and location. He notes only schools that apply to DOE can award the Seal, so a student's chance depends on which high school they attend.
Dinowitz recalls a 2023 joint hearing on the Seal of Biliteracy when CUNY said only Marist automatically awarded credit. He says today 10 CUNY colleges plus two schools award between three and eight credits for that seal, showing what collaboration can achieve.
Dinowitz says the Seal of Civic Readiness has no downside for students. He calls it a win for students, families, DOE schools, CUNY campuses, and taxpayers.
Dinowitz says Res 418 calls on CUNY to ensure all campuses award appropriate college credits for the Seal. Proposed Res 620A calls on DOE to ensure the Seal is awarded in all NYC public high schools to eligible students.
Dinowitz says the early work on the resolutions was done with students he mentored at Hunter College through the Grove Leadership Fellowship. He commends the CUNY students for drafting the resolutions as a civic project.
Dinowitz thanks his legislative director Theo Solter, chief of staff Jenna Klaus, senior counsel Alejandro Carvajal, and several policy and financial analysts. He then turns the floor back to Chair Joseph.
Joseph acknowledges colleagues on both committees who are present, including Dinowitz, Wong, Narcisse, Brewer, Shulman, Lewis, Zhuang, Krishnan, De La Rosa, Wilson, and Lee. She thanks them for attending.
Joseph thanks her chief of staff Giovanni Picquan, policy and budget director Ben Atkinson, senior legislative counsel Amita Kelawan, policy analyst Regina Paul, and financial analyst Ali Stouffer.
Joseph reminds witnesses to fill out a witness slip even if registered in advance. She limits testimony to two minutes per person and member questions to five minutes, and says in-person witnesses will testify before Zoom participants.
Council staff asks witnesses to raise their right hands and affirm they will tell the truth and respond honestly to council member questions. Joseph thanks the witnesses after the affirmation.
Joseph reminds witnesses to state their name before testifying. She says CUNY witnesses will begin, followed by New York City Public Schools witnesses.
Alyssa Vine, CUNY University Director of Credit for Prior Learning, introduces herself and explains CPL as an academic process for awarding credit for college-level learning outside the traditional classroom. She says CPL is a nationally recognized strategy for recruitment and student success.
Vine says CPL saves students time and money on the path to a degree and validates learning gained on the job, through training, or through lived experience. She says CPL sends a message to recipients that they are college material.
Vine notes CUNY's CPL policy passed in 2020 and implementation work is ongoing. She says Res 418 asks CUNY to award credit for the Seal of Civic Readiness when there is alignment with college-level learning.
Vine says CUNY colleges award CPL for qualifying AP, IB, and Cambridge exams and are developing pathways for industry certifications. She also says 12 CUNY colleges have CPL pathways for Seal of Biliteracy recipients.
Vine says both seals recognize significant high school learning, but Biliteracy aligns with established language proficiency standards while Civic Readiness is broader. She says CUNY must examine evidence from particular pathways before awarding credit.
Vine says the high school capstone project is a promising route for CPL because it may demonstrate advanced college-level learning. She suggests it may align with CUNY general education rather than a specific course or major.
Vine says CUNY faculty would need to review capstone requirements and implementation across high schools. She proposes a possible CUNY-specific civic readiness portfolio pathway and says CUNY wants to continue exploring with NYC Public Schools.
Cordelia Veve, DOE Chief of Curriculum and Instruction, introduces herself and colleagues Jenna Ryle, Chris Kermiet-Hall, and Superintendents Hoa Tu, Marcel Deans, and Anthony Inzerillo. She frames the hearing around implementing the NYS Seal of Civic Readiness.
Veve says NYC Public Schools launched Civics for All in 2018 as part of Democracy NYC. She describes K-12 curriculum, school partnerships, participatory budgeting, student programming, teacher learning, and social studies comic books.
Veve says the goal is high-quality civics education for every student K-12. She measures impact by access to curriculum, annual speeches on community issues, participatory budgeting, and civic action projects.
Veve says NYC Public Schools joined the statewide Civic Readiness Initiative in 2018 and helped develop the definition and capstone. She lists the four domains: civic knowledge, civic skills in action, civic mindsets, and civic experiences.
Veve says students need six points, with two from civic knowledge and two from civic participation. She says schools can develop their own routes to the Seal using 11 criteria worth between 0.5 and 4 points.
Jenna Ryle, DOE Director of Civics, says schools must use pre-accredited projects or submit their own for accreditation. She says this process ensures Seal-related projects meet NYSED requirements and maintain rigor.
Ryle says DOE designed citywide professional learning and intensive school-based partnerships. She says the model shifted to district-based support as participation grew.
Ryle says partner schools grew from 103 in 2019-2020 to 196 in 2021-2022 before shifting to a district model. She says 35 of 45 districts now participate in the Civics for All Partner District Program.
Ryle says Seal-offering schools grew from 31 in the pilot year to 271 in 2026-2027. She reports 12,019 students graduated with the Seal in 2025-2026, a 1,600% increase from 682 in the 2021-2022 pilot year.
Ryle says DOE supports collaboration with the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene on oral health education. She says DOE looks forward to working with the Council on distributing dental care and fluoride information to families.
Joseph asks how many Seal recipients have come to CUNY and for demographic data, and whether CUNY admissions captures the state program service code. Alyssa Vine says CUNY does not currently consider the Seal in central admissions and will look further into it.
Joseph notes CUNY's CPL policy is university-wide but faculty determine equivalencies. Vine says no CUNY colleges have evaluated the Seal of Civic Readiness yet, but CUNY looks forward to engaging faculty.
Joseph asks whether CUNY will create a working group or task force. Vine describes an existing model that brings faculty from about eight colleges together with materials and student work to make a system-wide recommendation.
Joseph asks whether credit awards are publicized to prospective students. Vine says CUNY lists credit awards on a website and in the Transfer Explorer tool, and will do the same for Civic Readiness once colleges award credit.
Joseph asks whether CUNY will publicize the benefits of earning the Seal once credit pathways are in motion. Vine says yes, CUNY is proud to help students save time and money toward degrees.
Joseph asks how many class of 2026 students earned the Seal and how many high schools offered it. Jenna Ryle says 12,019 students earned the Seal across 230 high schools.
Joseph asks how many schools applied for 2026 and how many will offer the Seal. Ryle says DOE accepts all schools that apply and works with them to meet requirements.
Dinowitz asks how DOE tracks the number of students earning the Seal. Ryle says schools submit Seal earners as part of graduate data reporting, and numbers should match ATS discharge records.
Dinowitz says ATS only allows one seal and asks whether numbers are undercounted for students earning multiple seals. Ryle says there are no combination codes, but cumulative records should list all endorsements.
Dinowitz asks whether the transition from ATS to OASIS will allow multiple seals in reported data. Ryle says DOE is building a civic readiness tracker in STARS Classroom and future coding depends on state guidance.
Dinowitz asks whether DOE tracks which high schools offer civic participation opportunities and whether offerings differ by poverty level. Ryle says DOE does not have that data right now.
Dinowitz asks about the content, depth, and rigor of Seal projects. Ryle says the handbook aligns every project to commencement-level standards and the accreditation rubric ensures consistent rigor.
Dinowitz asks whether DOE views the Seal as more rigorous than standard coursework. Ryle says she would not say more rigorous, but it offers multiple ways to demonstrate learning and can substitute for graduation requirements.
Dinowitz asks whether the Seal is a multi-year project. Ryle says the Seal is a portfolio that can start with an eighth-grade capstone and continue through 12th grade experiences and projects.
Carl Wilson asks how civic knowledge can include harder parts of history like racism, homophobia, and sexism. Ryle says DOE curriculum uses multiple perspectives and a hard history series to support teachers.
Wilson asks how DOE ensures civic engagement opportunities are equally accessible to all students. Ryle says DOE built in-house opportunities so the Seal does not depend on external resources that better-resourced students may access.
Wilson asks how DOE engages immigrant students from different civic traditions. Ryle says the curriculum draws on students' lived experiences as assets, and Superintendent Deans will speak to family outreach.
Marcel Deans, Bronx High School Superintendent for Districts 8, 10, and 11, describes parent outreach through a Bronx Museum Civics Fair. He says Seal earners in his district grew from 9 in 2022 to 780 in 2026, and notes over 78% of students are Title I.
Phil Wong asks what the Seal translates to in college credits and how students are informed. Alyssa Vine says no CUNY colleges award credit yet, and Cordelia Veve describes future CPL credit setup. Wong also asks how DOE will reach schools not offering the Seal; Veve says DOE will keep engaging superintendents and principals.
Gale Brewer praises Civics for All programs and asks how the Youth Civic Hub and about 100 youth groups fit into civics education. She complains that the public often believes schools do not teach civics and asks what publicity DOE is doing.
Jenna Ryle says DOE met with Youth Civic Hub organizers and shares the hub with schools. She describes internal awareness-building and external panels, but Brewer pushes for more public outreach.
Brewer asks how groups like Teens Take the City and Generation Citizen fit into Civics for All and whether they duplicate efforts. She requests metrics on how those groups help.
Ryle says DOE encourages schools to collaborate with local civics organizations and sends a newsletter with opportunities. She says external organizations can accredit projects, citing YVote as an example.
Joseph thanks Brewer and says they often discuss how to get the message to families. She notes NYC Public Schools prints many comic books but families, students, and colleagues often do not know, and urges highlighting the best of public schools.
Amanda Farías asks how DOE teaches electoral and governmental civics, including voter pre-registration and understanding the two-party system. She says community members often think young people are not engaged in voting.
Ryle says elections instruction starts in second grade and the high school civics curriculum includes a section called Vote with 18 activities. She says Civics Week in March includes a citywide student voter registration drive.
Farías says she has participated in Civics Week but wants more comprehensive understanding of city efforts. She asks to receive electoral comics and participate more broadly in March; Ryle agrees to share materials.
Joseph asks how many parents know their 16-year-olds can pre-register to vote. She says DOE must engage families where they are, including hair salons and churches.
Mercedes Narcisse asks who decides what counts as civic action. Ryle says civic action projects are process-based and the topic comes from students themselves.
Narcisse asks whether working as a poll worker or running a voter pre-registration drive counts. Ryle says 40 hours of extracurricular activity plus an application of knowledge product can count toward the Seal.
Narcisse says young people need incentives and acknowledgement, and the Seal is a good way to show them college pathways. She suggests engaging parents at parent nights to motivate students.
Joseph asks how Civics for All will play a role with Portrait of a Graduate and how the Black Studies curriculum ties in. She notes the committees want cultural competence and students seeing themselves in curricula.
Ryle says the Seal allows students to demonstrate Portrait competencies like global citizen and critical thinker. She says DOE created a crosswalk linking social studies units, Civics for All lessons, and Black Studies curriculum.
Joseph asks how many schools incorporate the Black Studies curriculum and mentions the upcoming Latina curriculum. Ryle says she does not have the number but can get it.
Narcisse asks whether DOE collaborates with the Black Institute and says Haitian and Black students need to feel important amid attacks. She urges DOE to encourage that work.
Joseph jokes with Narcisse about age and then turns the floor to Chair Dinowitz.
Dinowitz asks whether DOE is complying with Local Law 189 of 2025 requiring coded voter registration forms. Ryle says DOE sends every eligible school a box with materials and coded forms ahead of Civics Week.
Dinowitz asks for data on Seal earners and participating schools by race, ethnicity, income, ELL status, disability, borough, and school type. Ryle says DOE has that data and can share it.
Dinowitz asks about the DOE bank of vetted projects and auditing process. Cordelia Veve says the next step is for CUNY faculty to review actual student work products to establish credit pathways.
Dinowitz describes a symbiotic relationship where DOE shows what it is doing and CUNY says what it needs. He asks for a meeting on the calendar, and Veve agrees.
Dinowitz asks how much DOE spends annually on Seal implementation, per school, and per recipient. Veve says the overall civics budget is $3,001,659, with $1.6 million for participatory budgeting and $861,770 for professional learning.
Dinowitz asks how much professional learning funding goes to private for-profit contractors. Ryle says Mikva Challenge is paid for Project Soapbox, while the rest of professional learning is provided by DOE's nine-person civics team.
Dinowitz says teachers appreciate per-session pay and that hiring DOE teachers is less expensive. He urges DOE to keep professional learning and curriculum development in-house as the Seal expands.
Dinowitz searches the DOE website and says he cannot filter for schools offering the Seal of Civic Readiness or Seal of Biliteracy. Ryle says she will follow up on where the list of Seal schools is posted.
Dinowitz asks DOE to work with the website division so the Seal appears on MySchools for parents and students. Veve agrees to work with the relevant department.
Dinowitz asks whether DOE tracks Seal earners into college or career. Veve says DOE does not formally track that yet but it is on their agenda, with data tracking in STARS.
Dinowitz asks how journalism can become part of the approved civics project list. Chris Kermiet-Hall says there is a public accreditation portal where organizations can submit instructional materials for review.
Dinowitz notes new youth journalism funding and says journalism is tied to civics, then turns the floor back to Chair Joseph.
Joseph asks how DOE reaches parents and students whose first language is not English. Ryle says schools must create universal accessibility plans and Seal projects can be completed in home languages.
Joseph asks how DOE supports schools that want to offer the Seal. Chris Kermiet-Hall describes cross-school sharing, and Superintendent Hoa Tu says Queens North doubled Seal schools year over year to 96%.
Joseph asks how DOE measures success and whether students give feedback on projects. Veve says success is measured by access and schools refine projects based on student and district learning.
Joseph asks whether the Seal can substitute for a Regents exam. Chris Kermiet-Hall says it can substitute for the fifth Regents exam as a graduation pathway if students have ELA, math, social studies, and science.
Joseph asks how DOE informs middle school students about the Seal and how many seventh and eighth graders completed a capstone. Ryle says she will get the number.
Anthony Inzerillo, Superintendent for District 26 elementary and middle schools, describes soapbox speeches and civic action projects for all middle schoolers. He says DOE shares opportunities through parent workshops, newsletters, CEC meetings, and district leadership teams.
Joseph asks whether schools talk about the Seal at open houses and whether the old big book of schools still exists. Veve says the big book is gone and information is now on MySchools.
Inzerillo says District 26 has a high school fair on November 9 and he will add a marker or asterisk for schools with strong civics programs. He says families should see civics alongside college courses, CTE, and associate degree programs.
Joseph says information should go out through texts, websites, principals, parent coordinators, and SLTs. She says principals and parent coordinators are the first line of contact with families.
Inzerillo describes students researching a cannabis dispensary near a school and fixing water fountains at PS 173. He says students contact city agencies and hold officials accountable.
Dinowitz asks Inzerillo to confirm he will mark high schools that offer the Seal at the District 26 fair. Inzerillo says yes, the fair will distinguish civics, associate programs, college credit, and CTE.
Dinowitz says the marker should also include the Seal of Biliteracy. He says the website needs an education component explaining what the Seal is so families understand the programs.
Joseph says young people see career pathways through civic engagement and thanks the agencies. She says she wants CUNY and DOE to be besties on civics, and Dinowitz jokes about karaoke after their meeting.
Joseph opens public testimony and reminds attendees this is a formal government proceeding requiring decorum. She explains witness slips, two-minute speaking limit, and rules against video recording from the witness table.
The first public panel is called, including Renata Caldeira, Elizabeth Shattuck, Susie Gomez, and Victor Medina. Renata Caldeira describes a school fundraiser vote involving young students and asks for DOE guidance, parent notification, and release of OSI findings.
Elizabeth Shattuck leads social studies curriculum at New Visions for Public Schools and says the organization supports expanding Seal access. She offers instructional materials and professional learning, and recommends more approved project structures and rubrics.
Victor Medina, Civic Science Leadership Program Manager at Futures Ignite, describes student-led environmental justice work. He cites a student movement that created a permanent open street on 182nd Street and supports Seal credit.
Jeffrey Rehm, executive director of Runway Green, describes a planned education campus at Floyd Bennett Field serving up to 50,000 students yearly. He urges the Council to adopt all three resolutions and support educator preparation and community partnerships.
Susie Gomes, chair of the City Affairs Committee at the League of Women Voters of New York City, says civics concepts appear everywhere and should be taught explicitly K-12. She supports Civics for All and the Seal, and suggests studying whether Seal participants are more civically engaged.
Dinowitz asks whether New Visions tracks how Seal students do later. Elizabeth Shattuck says the portal worked on tracking during Seal development but she does not know if it still does, and will find out.
Joseph asks what is driving low youth participation. Susie Gomes says the League hopes to study why people do not vote with Baruch and lacks empirical data now, but offers to discuss further.
The second public panel is called, including Davia Willis, Hazel Praise Aqua, Jared Fajardo, Ashley Pagaro, and Alan Sherman. Davia Willis, CUNY University Student Senate Chairperson-Elect, supports Seal credit and expanded access, citing student advocacy that secured $700,000 for an Omnicard program.
Hazel Praise Aqua, a Lehman College political science graduate from Ghana, says she had to relearn how government works in the U.S. She supports Res 620, Res 451, and Res 418 so all students can access civic education and recognition.
Jared Fajardo, a Lehman College undergraduate and civic engagement workshop facilitator, says hands-on civic learning teaches students to analyze budgets and execute community actions. He urges passage of Res 418, 451, and 620 to create a seamless pathway from high school civic action to college success.
Ashley Pagaro, a Lehman College junior and first-generation college student from the Bronx, says she learned government only after returning to CUNY at 25. She supports the resolutions and asks CUNY to set one clear credit standard published before students apply.
Alan Sherman, a NYC resident since 1961, says respect for people who think differently is disappearing from political culture. He urges civics education that teaches independent thinking, respectful debate, and compromise.
Dinowitz asks the Lehman students whether student government experience would have been easier with earlier civic training. Ashley Pagaro says she had to learn basic terms in college and wishes training had started in high school.
Jared Fajardo says many students do not know what the city council is or does. He explains that he has to teach that local officials have more power in communities than the president.
Dinowitz says most adults may also not know what city council does, given low voting rates. He says this reinforces why civic education must start in schools.
Alan Sherman says first graders should learn how government works and how to respectfully disagree. He argues compromise is essential and that indoctrination should not be part of education.
Hazel Praise Aqua says she learned Ghanaian civic education from grade one to grade nine. She says U.S. students often lack historical and political context, leaving professors to teach basics in college.
Ashley Pagaro says student government taught her to work with people she disagrees with. She describes an AI policy workshop where no students had experience with community boards, showing the need for early civic tools.
Joseph recalls running a student government as a teacher and how students met with the principal to request a salad bar and water fountains. She encourages students to join SLTs and school campaigns, and thanks the panel.
Joseph concludes in-person testimony and moves to remote witnesses. Staff manages unmuting, and Andrew Wilkes is called to testify.
Dr. Andrew Wilkes, Chief Voice and Policy Officer at Generation Citizen, supports Res 620, 418, and 451. He says universal implementation and college credit can bridge inequities and give civic engagement post-secondary value.
Joseph asks if anyone else in the room wishes to testify. Seeing no one, she prepares to adjourn.
Chair Joseph declares the hearing adjourned.
After adjournment, attendees have an informal conversation about civic education, respect, and baseball. The discussion includes reflections on teaching compromise and listening to people with different views.