We work hard to advocate publicly on behalf of New York City students. Read more below about our latest initiatives.
[AWARD] Transit, housing, and education app teams scoop prizes in NYC BigApps 2017
StateScoop | May 25, 2017
"Improving quality of life for residents of New York City was the goal of four apps that were named winners of NYC BigApps 2017 on Tuesday. The competition... concluded with a presentation to judges and the presentation of three grand prizes to the developers of Nesterly, PASSNYC Opportunity Explorer, and On Board." Read more...
Episode 98: PASSNYC Opportunity Explorer
TechBites | May 25th, 2017
The winners of the 8th annual NYC Big Apps competition were announced this week. The civic tech competition had 150 app start-ups trying to solve challenges facing NYC. In-studio guests Ryan Baxter and Akil Bello, of winning app PASSNYC Opportunity Explorer, and Matt Bishop of Open City Labs, discuss the competition and how they’re solving real city live problems with tech. Listen to the episode...
Tech for New York: Mayor de Blasio Announces 2017 NYC BigApps Winners
NYC Office of the Mayor | May 24, 2017
“NYC BigApps is about New Yorkers helping New Yorkers. Every year, we ask our tech and creative talent to help solve pressing challenges. They step up and consistently exceed our expectations with innovative ideas for New York,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said. Read more...
City Efforts Fail to Boost Offers to Blacks and Latinos at Top High Schools
DNAinfo | March 9, 2017
Rhea Wong, executive director of Breakthrough New York (a PASSNYC partner), said: "Test prep on its own doesn’t make up for unequal schooling... the rush to implement test preparation ignored the larger issues of an unequal system of education quality among different kinds of kids.” Read more...
[VIDEO] Elite High Schools Still Serve Mostly White and Asian Students, Despite Efforts to Diversify
NY1 News | March 8, 2017
PASSNYC Founder Ryan J. S. Baxter on the 2017 results: "I'm hesitant to say awareness and test prep alone can solve the problem, however they are critical in any effort to solve the problem." See the video...
De Blasio's SHSAT test changes: Too timid to improve diversity at Stuyvesant, Bronx Science, Brooklyn Tech and other schools
NY Daily News | March 8, 2017
PASSNYC Board Member and resident test prep expert Akil Bello coauthors this op-ed: "This past September... the Department of Education announced the first changes in 20 years to the Specialized High School Admission Test... Yet the upcoming October 2017 SHSAT will be unlikely to achieve de Blasio’s stated aim..." Read more...
Diversifying the Specialized High Schools
NYN Media | January 24, 2017
"It has recently been announced that starting this fall, as a result of changes some 20 years in the making, New York City middle schoolers will be taking an SHSAT or Specialized High School Admissions Test that does not include scrambled paragraphs." Listen to podcast...
Changes Are Coming to the City's Specialized High Schools Test
WNYC | September 21, 2016
"Some panel members questioned whether the test could get easier if it's aligned with seventh grade standards, because the current test is thought to be harder than the state tests." Read more...
City to Recruit More Blacks, Latinos for Specialized High Schools
WNYC | June 9, 2016
"'It's a critical first step,' said Ryan Baxter, founder and chairman of the group Promoting Access to Specialized Schools in New York City (PASSNYC). He said too many middle school students don't know about the specialized schools, or learn too late to prepare well for the entrance exam." Read more...
Advanced Placement Expansion Means Opportunity for All
Gotham Gazette | June 13, 2016
PASSNYC Founder Ryan J. S. Baxter authors this op-ed on the “AP for All” initiative: "Unfortunately... many students lack access to AP classes and support for AP exams. Citywide, there are still over 100 schools that lack AP courses, and many more that don’t offer a full slate of APs, especially in the all-important STEM subjects. These schools disproportionately serve low-income and black and Latino students." Read more...
New York City Announces New Initiatives to Increase Diversity at Specialized High Schools
NYC Dept of Education | June 9, 2016
Ryan Baxter, Founder and Chairman of PASSNYC: “The specialized high schools are some of the most transformative opportunities for students from all socioeconomic backgrounds. I’m thrilled that the Department of Education is spearheading these initiatives, and PASSNYC looks forward to partnering with the City in this critical step forward to bring equity for New York City students.” Read more about the new initiatives...
