Town Hall Confronts Stark Racial Gap in NYC Specialized High School Admissions

A town hall held in Harlem focused on recent Department of Education data revealing deep racial disparities in admissions to New York City's eight specialized public high schools — including Stuyvesant, Bronx Science, and Brooklyn Tech. Black students received approximately 3% of admission offers; Latino students about 6%; while Asian students received about 57%. Admission to the schools is determined entirely by a score on the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT). The event was hosted by the podcast "The Beacon and the Blueprint" and co-hosted by former schools chancellor David Banks, who said the numbers indicate a problem "beyond just everyone can go and take the test." Banks added that he urged former Mayor Eric Adams to change admissions criteria for the five schools under mayoral authority, but was rebuffed — calling it "one of my great regrets." Panelists called for holistic admissions criteria and better alignment of public school curricula with test material. State Sen. John Liu pushed back on scrapping the exam, comparing it to a thermometer: the problem is what the test reveals, not the test itself. Changing admissions criteria for Bronx Science, Brooklyn Tech, and Stuyvesant specifically would require a change in state law — a path that proved politically costly for former Mayor Bill de Blasio, whose similar effort drew significant backlash.