Assemblyman William Colton (D – Gravesend, Bensonhurst, Bath Beach, and Dyker Heights) is saying that back in September of 2019 the mayor’s clueless advisors came up with an absurd idea, to eliminate gifted and talented programs throughout New York City.

“After a long controversy Mayor de Blasio decided to give the Gifted and Talented program entrance exam this spring before changing it, but the city’s Panel for Education Policy voted against renewing a contract with the test’s makers during a meeting in January. Now last month the DOE announced that instead of establishing admissions for G&T programs on a single exam it will be selecting students via a lottery questionnaire. The DOE decided to completely exclude parents from the process of determining the future of the Gifted and Talented program. Every parent has their interest at heart, this is why their involvement helps to develop success for their children,” Colton stated.

“No city’s Panel for Education Policy knows better than the parents the need of their children. We can’t let them get rid of all the gifted and talented programs. Diversity in schools is a worthy goal, but it must be attained in the context of educational excellence. The educational needs of all children must be met. We must expand all programs including gifted and talented, bilingual and ESL, music and arts, culinary, science, technology engineering, math and language arts, etc. The numbers of children may not always mirror the percentages in the school population, but we should strive to increase the opportunity for every child from every background. All children must be able to participate in the programs and classes that meet their needs and that allow them to grow to their fullest potential. This requires hard educational planning and efforts to achieve. The excellence in education must be led by the Chancellor in the right direction, not the path that is chosen by the city of eliminating standards and testing to blur over the failure to achieve such excellence," Colton continued.

"By eliminating G&T programs we will not accomplish anything except depriving high-performing students of the levels they need to challenge them to achieve their potential. The obligations of Mayor De Blasio and Chancellor Porter are to make sure that every child receives an equal and quality education. We need to bring out the best in our children and to teach them that education is the number one key to success in their future, teach them to strive in order to achieve their best. Therefore, as a former educator and a long-time supporter of quality education, I fully and solely support parents, their petition, and the Gifted and Talented program for the NYC school system,” Colton added.