It's not too late to submit your responses for the 20th Annual NYC School Survey: the deadline has been extended to Friday, April 17! When you share confidential feedback about your child’s experience in our schools with us, you can:
Influence important decisions at your child’s school.
School leaders use survey responses to guide improvements in safety, academics, school climate, communication, and student support for next school year. Your honest feedback highlights what’s working, identifies areas for growth, and has a direct impact on decisions that will affect your child’s experiences at school every day.
Help your school earn Citywide recognition.
We include survey feedback and response rates in our annual School Quality Report Snapshots, which summarize student achievement and the learning environment at your school. Higher response rates help paint a fuller picture of your school community and can even earn your school Citywide recognition: schools with an overall response rate of 85% will earn the NYC School Survey Response Rate Award on their Snapshot and NYC School Survey Report!
Strengthen your school community.
An engaged community is an empowered community! When more families complete the survey, your collective voice becomes stronger and can help drive real, beneficial change. Your responses help schools understand what families and students need and what to prioritize for next year. And because the survey only takes a few minutes, it’s one of the easiest ways to make a meaningful investment in your child’s education.
During Arab American Heritage Month, we're highlighting the stories of individuals who have often been left out of traditional historical records, like Dr. Joanne Chory, a Lebanese American plant geneticist who dedicated her life to research that contributed to the global fight against climate change.
Learn more about Dr. Chory's work on "ideal plants" helped revolutionize botany
April is Arab American Heritage Month! These books honor the achievements, history, and culture of Arabs and Arab Americans in the past and present day. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do!
Early Readers (3-K–Grade 2)
- The Arabic Quilt: An Immigrant Story, by Aya Khalil; illustrated by Anait Semirdzhyan
- Lailah’s Lunchbox: A Ramadan Story, by Reem Faruqi; illustrated by Lea Lyon
- The Librarian of Basra: A True Story from Iraq, by Jeanette Winter
- Loujain Dreams of Sunflowers, by Lina al-Hathloul and Uma Mishra-Newbery; illustrated by Rebecca Green
- My Name is Bana, by Bana Alabed; illustrated by Nez Riaz
Elementary (Grades 3–5)
- Alia’s Mission: Saving the Books of Iraq, by Mark Alan Stamaty
- Deep in the Sahara, by Kelly Cunnane; illustrated by Hoda Hadadi
- Farah Rocks Fifth Grade, by Susan Muaddi Darraj; illustrated by Ruaida Mannaa
- Shad Hadid and the Alchemists of Alexandria, by George Jreije
- The Turtle of Oman, by Naomi Shihab Nye
Middle School (Grades 6–8)
- Escape from Aleppo, by N.H. Senzai
- The Green Bicycle, by Haifaa al Mansour
- Listen, Layla, by Yassmin Abdel-Magied
- Muhammad Najem, War Reporter: How One Boy Put the Spotlight on Syria, by Muhammad Najem and Nora Neus; illustrated by Julie Robine
- Shiny Misfits, by Maysoon Zayid; illustrated by Shadia Amin
Upper Grades (Grades 9–12)
- Balcony on the Moon: Coming of Age in Palestine, by Ibtisam Barakat
- A Game for Swallows: To Die, To Leave, to Return, by Zeina Abirached
- Home Is Not a Country, by Safia Elhillo
- Huda F Are You?, by Huda Fahmy
- We Hunt the Flame, by Hafsah Faizal
You can find these books and many more great reads on Sora, our Citywide Digital Library, which provides free access to thousands of digital e-books and audiobooks for our students. You can also find even more recommendations in the Arab American Heritage Collection on Sora for even more great recommendations.
Missed our previous book recommendations?
Check them out in the "What We're Reading" Archive!
SPOTLIGHT ON OUR SCHOOLS
Last month, NYC Public Schools and Mikva Challenge partnered up to host SoapboxNYC, our annual celebration of youth voice and public speaking for students in grades K–12. Held at the iconic Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan, the event featured outstanding student finalists who courageously stepped on stage to answer the question, "What is the biggest issue facing your community, and what should be done about it?"
Judging from these photos, it's clear that this year's SoapboxNYC will be remembered for years to come! We thank Mikva Challenge for their partnership and ongoing support for our Civics for All initiative!
