August 2, 2025
The eye-opening racial disparities in the admissions process to some of New York City’s most prestigious public schools has resulted in a call to a change to the admission process.
Eight out of 781 students admitted to Manhattan’s Stuyvesant High School being Black showcases the vast racial disparities students face in some of New York City’s most specialized and selective schools, the New York Times reports.
Specialized schools, including Stuyvesant, offer high-value education to roughly 5% of Manhattan’s high school students and are described as being the key to students from immigrant households and low-income families being admitted to the nation’s most prestigious colleges and universities. However, the low representation of Black and Hispanic students in the selective public high schools, including Brooklyn Tech and The Bronx High School of Science, has resulted in a brewing debate over race and segregation in the largest school system in the U.S.
According to Spectrum 1 News, Black students make up 19.5% of NYC’s public school population, but data from the U.S. Department of Education revealed that only 3% of them receive acceptance letters into schools such as Stuyvesant, compared to just under 7% of Hispanic students. While the numbers appear low, they have decreased since 2024. Only 27 students admitted into the elite NYC school for the upcoming school year identify as Hispanic. One hundred and forty-two students are white, while 509 admitted students are labeled as Asian.
Students hoping for admission study for months and sometimes years for a test called the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT), which challenges their skills in English and math. Hopefuls are admitted based on the results of that exam. Approximately 26,000 eighth-graders took the exam during the fall 2024 semester, and a little over 4,000 students received acceptance letters. Black students make up over 44% of all test-takers.
Admission numbers are typically shared with the public by mid-June while classes are still in session. However, this year’s announcement was delayed by Mayor Eric Adams’ administration without any rhyme or reason as to why.
Bronx Science only offered admission to 21 Black students and 55 Hispanic students out of a freshman class of 738. The combined number decreased from 97 combined offers in 2024.
While school integration has become a hot-button political issue in the city since 2020, Adams’ former Education Department spokesperson Nathaniel Styer was confused as to why the data was delayed and expressed his concern on social media. “They should’ve had this data out at least a month ago,” he wrote on Bluesky.
The eye-opening racial disparities in the admissions process to some of New York City’s most prestigious public schools have resulted in a call for a change to the admission process. Proposed changes include ending SHSAT as the only criterion for admission. However, efforts fell short following pushback from the Asian American community, who allegedly felt they were being targeted as a way to diversify the schools.
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