Brooklyn Elementary School Rezoning Proposal Unveiled

BROOKLYN, NY — A new proposal has been unveiled for how the city will redraw zones for seven Brooklyn elementary schools in the hopes of improving diversity in the district.

The latest proposal — revealed in a draft map at a recent District 15 Community Education Council meeting — recommends expanding the intake zone for some of the schools while shrinking the zone for others and prioritizing admissions for underserved students. One of the schools, P.S. 676, will be turned into a middle school under the plan.

"It's not just about demographics and just moving students around, it's much deeper and much more about ensuring that schools have a holistic approach to both diversity and integration throughout their schools," Department of Education District Planning Office's Max Familian told the council.

The latest draft, which would impact incoming pre-K and kindergarten students in the 2022-23 school year, comes after recommendations from a team convened to research what family members are looking to get out of the remap.

The proposal includes the team's recommendation of prioritizing seats at each of the schools for historically marginalized students, including multi-language learners, students with disabilities, those who qualify for free and reduced-price lunch or those who live in New York City Housing Authority developments and temporary housing. Thirty percent of seats at each of the schools will be prioritized for students in that category, Familian said.

The suggestion to change P.S. 676 to a middle school to help with its enrollment issues also stemmed from the research team.

In terms of new zone sizes, P.S. 15, 38 and 32 will expand their boundaries, P.S. 261 will remain the same and P.S. 58 and 29 will shrink their zones. The new zones were drawn with the space at each school, historic enrollment demands and future residential construction in mind, Familian said.

The schools are part of a subdistrict that stretches across Red Hook, Cobble Hill, Boerum Hill and Carroll Gardens.

The DOE plans to finalize its proposal by the end of the school year. Any plan will need approval from the Community Education Council.

Watch the full CEC meeting and DOE presentation here: