Mayor Adams, Acknowledge Reality — It’s Time to Close Failing Schools Immediately

Last month, Schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos made the decision not to modify the public school budgets in New York City mid-year, which merely postponed an unavoidable outcome: the city has an excess of district schools, and many of them need to be closed.

Since 2016, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the enrollment in the city’s district schools has decreased by 130,000 students, a drop of nearly 14%.

Notably, kindergarten enrollment has dipped by 17%, indicating that the issue is deeply rooted.

The decline in numbers would be even more pronounced if not for the addition of 40,000 migrant students — a trend that is unlikely to persist as President-elect Donald Trump implements his proposed border and deportation policies.

This slump in enrollment paired with a lack of corresponding budget cuts has inflated the city’s education expenditure to about $39,000 per student, positioning NYC as the most lavishly funded urban school district nationwide.

However, this situation is deceptive: The city Department of Education has yet to confront the looming “fiscal cliff” anticipated in 2026, when federal pandemic aid ends, resulting in an estimated loss of $556 million in government funding.

The current state is unsustainable, and the only realistic solution is to close and consolidate schools.

The alternative, maintaining schools’ budgets despite significant enrollment declines, is even worse.

At present, numerous city schools have fewer than 100 students. Their results are abysmal, yet their per-student costs mirror those of the city’s most expensive private institutions.

For instance, MS 514 in West Harlem spends $63,007 per student, yet only 21% of its students are prepared to read at grade level.

This troubling dynamic has altered incentives for school principals.

If principals can lose students while keeping their budgets intact, they lack motivation to persuade families to enroll or remain enrolled in their schools — unlike in the city’s private and charter schools, which see a drop in revenue when enrollment falls.

Encouraging this failure is merely accelerating the departure of families fortunate enough to secure a seat in a charter school, as well as those who can afford to leave the city for private schooling or homeschooling.

During the 2023-24 school year, at least 80 NYC district schools had fewer than 150 students.

While some of these are specialized institutions designed to provide additional support for students with special needs, most are regular neighborhood schools witnessing a decrease in enrollment amid poor academic performance.

At least 13 non-specialized schools with enrollments under 100 students have experienced dramatic declines of up to 67% over the last five years, particularly in The Bronx and Brooklyn, which lost the highest number of students — 32,739 and 24,056, respectively — during this period.

The issue of low enrollment is especially critical for high schools, which require a minimum number of students to offer advanced courses and counseling services.

Maintaining these struggling schools is illogical — the city must make these difficult decisions now, ahead of the imminent 2026 fiscal cliff.

Closing schools during prosperous times, or at least before they deteriorate, will provide the Department of Education with additional time to assist staff and students through potentially painful transitions.

Research indicates that school closures can ultimately benefit students — provided the change grants them access to better educational environments, a possibility with proper planning.

Phase-out closures, which proceed gradually as schools cease to accept new students (instead of immediate shutdowns), prove to be the least disruptive method, yet require a lengthy timeline for execution.

A well-thought-out consolidation plan could also enlist help from philanthropic entities, allowing schools that absorb displaced students to obtain extra funding and support during the transition.

Mayor Adams and the chancellor must be forthright with New Yorkers: we have too many public schools for too few students, and the expenses associated with these schools far exceed the learning outcomes they produce.

Our public school system ranks as the most expensive yet least efficient in the nation, federal support is fading, and consolidation represents the best strategy to adapt the budget while minimizing disruptions for our students.

While school closures are always challenging and will undoubtedly incite backlash — particularly from teachers’ unions and other influential groups —

failing to act will be even more damaging to students, and ultimately to society as a whole.

Danyela Souza Egorov is an elected parent at CEC District 2 and founder of Families for NYC.