School Climate
As students continue to recover from the pandemic, mental health and social-emotional support are critical. We also need inclusive school cultures that prioritize recruiting and retaining educators and school staff of color, which is essential to meeting the needs of New York State’s diverse student population.
As schools continue to recover from the pandemic, mental health and social-emotional support and inclusive school cultures that prioritize recruiting and retaining educators, school leaders, and counselors of color are essential to meeting the needs of New York State’s diverse student population.
Our Equity-Centered Approach
We support policies that increase the number of counselors, educators and school leaders of color in school buildings, provide mental and health services in schools, holistically address chronic absenteeism, implement restorative justice practices, and other positive alternatives that keep students in the classroom. Such policies mitigate disruption in learning and dismantle barriers that prohibit children from attending school and feeling welcomed once there.
Latest Resource
Report: School Leader Diversity in New York State
School leader diversity benefits students from all backgrounds and is an important factor affecting students’ success in schools. Attending a school with a principal of color has positive impacts on academic outcomes for students of color. Yet school leader diversity statewide reveals that more than half of students attend schools without any leader of color.
Featured Reports and Resources Over the Years
Blog: In NYCPS, Brown v. Board remains…unfulfilled
Statement: EdTrust-New York Denounces New Policy on Immigration Arrests in Schools
Report: New York State’s Suspension Crisis
Blog: 5 Things to Know About the Influx of Migrant Students in New York
Data Snapshot
Only
of young adults in New York State said they had access to mental health supports in high school.
In the 2022-23 school year, nearly half of Black (46.4%) and Latinx (43.7%) students were chronically absent, compared to just 24.7% of White students.
More Resources
Testimony for New York City Council Committee on Education Fiscal Year 27 Preliminary Budget – Education
As the largest district in the state and nation, serving nearly 1 million students, New York City Public Schools (NYCPS) is a key focus of EdTrust-New York’s commitment to advancing equity-focused educational efforts across the state. Such investments are even more critical this year due to federal funding cuts and attacks on critical educational equity programs. The following are our top priorities for the FY27 budget.
Statement from EdTrust-New York on NYC Class Size Reduction Implementation Report
EdTrust-New York welcomes this new analysis from the Urban Institute on New York City’s class size reduction law and agrees it highlights critical challenges in implementation. While the city has made progress, reaching 64 percent compliance, this report reinforces our longstanding concerns about equity, funding, and feasibility.
EdTrust-New York Responds to Governor Hochul’s 2026 State of the State with Praise and Calls to Strengthen Educational Equity
Governor Kathy Hochul’s 2026 State of the State address includes several important proposals aimed at advancing educational equity, with a strong emphasis on supporting New York’s children and their families through universal child care, investments in the Statewide Longitudinal Data System (SLDS), higher education emergency aid, high-impact tutoring in reading and math, and professional learning aligned with the science of reading for in-service teachers.
EdTrust-New York: NYCPS Decision on Class Size Law Risks Equity, Fiscal Stability, and Student Opportunity
EdTrust-New York is deeply disappointed that New York City Public Schools (NYCPS) chose not to request a pause in the implementation of the Class Size Reduction Law. This decision puts fairness, fiscal stability, opportunity, and equity at risk for the students and communities the law is intended to serve.
EdTrust-New York Encourages Mayor-elect Mamdani to Prioritize Equity and Opportunity in NYC’s Education Agenda
EdTrust-New York’s Education Platform for New York City outlines steps Mayor-elect Mamdani can take from early childhood through college to close gaps in access, opportunity, and outcomes.
In the Face of Federal Attacks on Education Access, New York Must Lead
As federal actions strip funding and exclude vulnerable students, New York must defend equitable access to public education. Arlen Benjamin-Gomez calls on us to speak out and push back, together and unapologetically.