Screened Students Against Screens

A coalition of students at screened schools against the discriminatory admissions screens.

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

Hey Twitter! We are a coalition of students from New York City’s screened public schools working to dismantle the racist and classist public school admission “screens” with the aim of integrating NYC’s schools!

[Toby @T0balicious]

I filed this FOIL request in June for data on the socioeconomic status of applicants and those accepted to high schools in NYC, but I have gotten only delays back. Why hasn’t this data been released yet @NYCMayor @NYCSchools? The public must see it before a screen decision comes.

[Teens Take Charge @TeensTakeCharge]

Be sure to check this out featuring our own @T0balicious 🙌🏾

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

about students in the other schools. It perpetuates segregation, as well as stereotypes in the more white schools and inequities in schools primarily filled with students of color. Unscreen our schools now.”- Sophie Mode screened student at Millennium Brooklyn HS

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

“My school is the third most diverse in NYC, but that bar is so low. My school is 3 times as white as is representative of the city, and has so much more funding and resources than the average school primarily populated by Black and Latinx students. I am in a building with...

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

3 other high schools that are primarily Black and Latinx and we are by far the most resourced and funded. There are extreme divides within the building: the other schools don't like us because we are the privileged school and students in my school have a lot of misconceptions...

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

They are very supportive of the queer community but not necessarily as supportive of minorities. At this point it just feels like Bard is being so fake and putting on a show for prospective students and donors.” ~Alexa David-Lang screened student at Bard High School Early College

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

“Bard thinks that it’s so diverse, and to be fair, it is in terms of NYC schools because they’re so segregated, but it’s just become too much. The school relies on it too heavily as a part of its identity because that’s what it’s known for and that’s why it gets funding (1/3).

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

Even though there are students from many different backgrounds, the white students, speaking for myself as well, are often the loudest and most seen and heard and most friend groups are pretty segregated. Bard is a very accepting community, but only to a certain extent (2/3).

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

This idea damages so many Black and Latinx students’ ideas around their own self worth, which feels nearly impossible to reverse.”   - Chloë Rollock a Junior at Hunter College High School

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

“Ever since I came to Hunter, I have been extremely aware of my status as ‘other.’ I say this because at a school where I am the only Afro-Latina in my grade, my experiences, my culture, and my views have been clearly labeled to our school community as secondary to others: (1/4)

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

These culture flaws stem from the Racial hierarchy set in place by who we admit: our school demographics tell our students that White and Asian students are the most deserving of good education and are simply higher-achieving and smarter than our Black and Latinx peers. (3/4)

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

If you are a student from a screened school sign onto our letter at https://t.co/VCMBdgKS7f

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

3: The obvious inequities and segregation within the schools themselves are clearly visible to all students.

These are not all the themes, just the most prominent ones. The best way to improve everyone’s education is to unscreen NYC public schools now.

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

In the upcoming days we will be posting a variety of testimonies that students who attends screened schools have submitted to us. We have received many of these about their experiences from being in a screened school and from the screening process itself. (1/3)

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

There are a lot of themes that underlying these testimonials but the biggest ones are:
1: Students of color who feel ostracized and discriminated against in school
2: Students who feel the intense competition created by screens destroys and detoriates their mental health (2/3)

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

I can’t say the same for the other school at all. It’s clear to me that screens perpetuate 1) the false narrative that numbers should determine a student’s successes in life and 2) segregation. The numbers and data are out there. We must unscreen our schools.” - Screened student

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

“Attending a screened, segregated middle and high school ruined my self esteem. I have never felt so underrepresented in an environment, and when I was just 12 years old I permanently damaged my hair by straightening it to be more like my white counterparts...

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

My majority white high school is in a co-located building with a majority Latinx high school and the resource disparities are atrocious. We have a wealthy PTA, brand new Macbooks and Chromebooks, and there’s always a substitute to cover any class with a missing teacher...

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

Despite the fact that I am myself half-white, I feel out of place within the intensely white and affluent culture these screens foster. I would be astronomically happier if these screens were removed, which would lead to a diverse environment.” - An anonymous screened student

[Screened Students Against Screens @SSASCoalition]

“Going to a school screened by distract has left me feeling ostracized and out of place, despite the fact that I am a student who resides within a prioritized district. The overwhelmingly white population of my school is suffocating and nearly unbearable...