NY State Senate Bill S8847

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

Introduced
In Committee
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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jul 29, 2020	referred to rules

Co-Sponsors

S8847 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A10731
Current Committee:: Senate Rules
Law Section:: Education Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §2590-h, Ed L

S8847 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to admission to the specialized high schools in the city of New York; removes the discovery program admission process.

S8847 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

 
BILL NUMBER: S8847

SPONSOR: SALAZAR
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the education law, in relation to admission to the
specialized high schools in the city of New York

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill repeals the 1971 Hecht-Calandra Act, which required - as a
matter of state law - that the specialized high schools in New York City
utilize the Specialized High School Admissions Test ("SHSAT") as the
sole criterion for admission.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1 Sets out legislative findings to support the necessity of
repealing the Hecht-Calandra Act, primarily that, as a result of the
reliance on the SHSAT, the student population at NYC's specialized high
schools do not reflect the diversity of the City's population, and, in

fact, has resulted in the gross under-representation of Black and Latinx
students.

Section 2 Amends paragraph (b) of subdivision 1 of section 2590-h of the
education law to eliminate the requirement of state law that admissions
to the specialized high schools in NYC be determined based on the laws
that were in effect prior to the enactment of Hecht-Calandra, i.e., that
the test continue to be the sole criterion for admission.

Section 3 Same as section 2, but references another provision to ensure
that there is conformity with eliminating the state law requirement that
the test be utilized.

Section 4 Sets out that the act shall take effect on January 1, 2022.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Since the enactment of the Hecht-Calandra Act in 1971, the New York city
school district has not been able to make decisions about admissions to
its specialized high schools. Instead, as a result of the Hecht-Calandra
Act, the city school district has been required to base admission deci-
sions to its specialized high schools on only one criterion for admis-
sion - a student's performance on a single standardized exam. The
historical background to the enactment of the Hecht-Calandra law makes
clear that the underlying purpose was to make it more difficult to
change the specialized high school admissions process - as it would be
enshrined in state law - and, by doing so, help to maintain or increase
the racially disparate enrollment in these schools, particularly in
regard to Black and Latinx students. As a result of the use of this
criterion, known as the specialized high school admissions test (SHSAT),
the student population of the specialized high schools does not reflect
the diversity of the City's population. Whereas the overall percentage
of Black and Latinx students in the city's public schools is approxi-
mately sixty-seven percent, Black and Latinx students only represent
nine percent of the population of the specialized schools.  This dispar-
ity hurts Black and Latinx students and it also harms the students who
attend the specialized high schools, who do not reap the intellectual,
emotional and social benefits from learning in a more diverse environ-
ment. Furthermore, the city school district is alone in its reliance on
a single metric to make admission decisions.  Universities across the
country consider multiple factors when selecting their incoming student
body; selective institutions do not rely on the results of a single
exam. It is time for the city school district to follow suit and for
admissions to no longer be based on the procedures prescribed in the
Hecht-Calandra Act.  This legislation will allow the city school
district to develop its own admissions criteria for specialized high
schools, as it develops admissions criteria for other schools within the
district, and ensure that all high-performing and talented students
across all five boroughs have the opportunity to attend its specialized
high schools.

This bill removes the state mandate as to how the city of New York will
determine admissions to the city's specialized high schools.

No other school district in the state has such requirements imposed as a
matter of state law.

It is time to repeal this 1971 law that was intended to further school
segregation in NYC and which has, in fact, served that purpose.

Additional background and resources in support of this bill can be found
at https://www.teenstakecharge.com/repeal

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

None.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
January 1, 2022.

S8847 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8847
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               July 29, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sens. SALAZAR, JACKSON -- read twice and ordered printed,
   and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the education law,  in  relation  to  admission  to  the
   specialized high schools in the city of New York
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. Legislative findings. Since the enactment of the  Hecht-Ca-
 landra  Act in 1971, the New York city school district has not been able
 to make decisions about admissions  to  its  specialized  high  schools.
 Instead, as a result of the Hecht-Calandra Act, the city school district
 has  been  required  to base admission decisions to its specialized high
 schools on only one criterion for admission - a student's performance on
 a single standardized exam. As a result of the use  of  this  criterion,
 known  as  the  specialized  high  school  admissions  test (SHSAT), the
 student population of the specialized high schools does not reflect  the
 diversity  of  the  City's population. Whereas the overall percentage of
 Black and Latino students in the city's public schools is  approximately
 sixty-seven  percent,  Black  and  Latino  students  only represent nine
 percent of the population of the  specialized  schools.  This  disparity
 hurts  Black  and  Latino  students  and  it also harms the students who
 attend the specialized high schools, who do not reap  the  intellectual,
 emotional  and  social benefits from learning in a more diverse environ-
 ment.  Furthermore, the city school district is alone in its reliance on
 a single metric to make admission  decisions.  Universities  across  the
 country  consider multiple factors when selecting their incoming student
 body; selective institutions do not rely on  the  results  of  a  single
 exam.  It  is  time  for the city school district to follow suit and for
 admissions to no longer be based on the  procedures  prescribed  in  the
 Hecht-Calandra Act. This legislation will allow the city school district
 to  develop its own admissions criteria for specialized high schools, as
 it develops admissions criteria for other schools within  the  district,
 and  ensure  that  high-performing and talented students across all five
 boroughs have the opportunity to attend its specialized high schools.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD13454-02-0

 S. 8847                             2
 
   § 2. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 1 of section 2590-h of the education
 law, as amended by chapter 345 of the laws of 2009, is amended  to  read
 as follows:
   (b)  all  specialized [senior] high schools. The [special] SPECIALIZED
 high schools shall include the [present] schools known as[:]  The  Bronx
 High  School of Science, Stuyvesant High School, Brooklyn Technical High
 School, Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music [and the Arts in  the
 borough  of  Manhattan]  &  ART  AND PERFORMING ARTS, and such [further]
 ADDITIONAL schools [which the city board may designate] AS MAY BE DESIG-
 NATED BY THE CHANCELLOR from time to time[. The special schools shall be
 permitted to maintain a discovery program in accordance with the law  in
 effect  on the date preceding the effective date of this section; admis-
 sions to the special schools shall be conducted in accordance  with  the
 law in effect on the date preceding the effective date of this section];
   § 3. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 1 of section 2590-h of the education
 law,  as  amended by chapter 720 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read
 as follows:
   (b) all specialized [senior] high schools. The  [special]  SPECIALIZED
 high  schools  shall include the [present] schools known as[:] The Bronx
 High School of Science, Stuyvesant High School, Brooklyn Technical  High
 School,  Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music [and the Arts in the
 borough of Manhattan] & ART AND  PERFORMING  ARTS,  and  such  [further]
 ADDITIONAL schools [which the city board may designate] AS MAY BE DESIG-
 NATED BY THE CHANCELLOR from time to time[. The special schools shall be
 permitted  to maintain a discovery program in accordance with the law in
 effect on the date preceding the effective date of this section;  admis-
 sions  to  the special schools shall be conducted in accordance with the
 law in effect on the date preceding the effective date of this section];
   § 4. This act shall take effect on January 1, 2022, provided that  the
 amendments  to  paragraph  (b) of subdivision 1 of section 2590-h of the
 education law made by section two of this act shall be  subject  to  the
 expiration  and  reversion of such section pursuant to subdivision 12 of
 section 17 of chapter 345 of the laws of 2009,  as  amended,  when  upon
 such date the provisions of section three of this act shall take effect.

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The New York State Senate

senate Bill S8847

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

Your Voice

Actions

Co-Sponsors

S8847 (ACTIVE) - Details

S8847 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S8847 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S8847 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

senate Bill S8847

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Sponsored By

Julia Salazar

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

Your Voice

Actions

Co-Sponsors

Brad Hoylman

Robert Jackson

Velmanette Montgomery

Luis R. Sepúlveda

S8847 (ACTIVE) - Details

S8847 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S8847 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S8847 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments