{"id":6389,"date":"2023-07-31T22:35:25","date_gmt":"2023-08-01T02:35:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/multi.nycnewsnetwork.com\/nyceducationnews\/op-ed-two-students-from-east-new-york-and-bushwick-prepare-for-the-challenges-of-stuyvesant-high-school\/"},"modified":"2023-07-31T22:35:25","modified_gmt":"2023-08-01T02:35:25","slug":"op-ed-two-students-from-east-new-york-and-bushwick-prepare-for-the-challenges-of-stuyvesant-high-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nycnewsnetwork.com\/nyceducationnews\/op-ed-two-students-from-east-new-york-and-bushwick-prepare-for-the-challenges-of-stuyvesant-high-school\/","title":{"rendered":"Op-Ed: Two Students from East New York and Bushwick Prepare for the Challenges of Stuyvesant High School"},"content":{"rendered":"
(L-R) Mariela Garcia-Ramirez and Jada Halsey. Photo: Provided\/Diallo Hall.<\/span><\/div>\n
Article provided Courtesy of<\/strong><\/em> BK Reader<\/strong><\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Two Brooklyn high school students \u2014 Jada Halsey<\/strong> and Mariela Garcia-Ramirez<\/strong> \u2014 succeeded against the odds and got into a competitive high school with the help of a free test prep program, writes local editor Diallo Hall.<\/div>\n
\n

By Diallo Hall<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Summer is in full swing, and it won\u2019t be long until Brooklyn\u2019s 300,000 students return to the classroom. Two high school students, in particular, will be among the fortunate few who have the unique opportunity to attend Stuyvesant High School, one of New York City\u2019s most competitive high schools. Not only is their accomplishment noteworthy for what they\u2019ve been able to accomplish, they represent the small minority of Black and Latinos who gain access to New York City\u2019s specialized high schools.<\/p>\n

The New York Times recently published an article,\u00a0Stuyvesant High School Admitted 762 New Students. Only 7 Are Black<\/i>. By some accounts, Stuyvesant High School\u2019s student body is approximately 1% and 4% Black and Latino, respectively.<\/p>\n

But these two young ladies from Brooklyn are hoping to change that.<\/p>\n

Jada Halsey and Mariela Garcia-Ramirez both attended Bedford Stuyvesant New Beginnings Charter School. During the seventh grade, both Jada and Mariela enrolled in an innovative, free test prep program,\u00a0Navigate the Maze to Achievement<\/a>, which is specifically designed to help motivated Black and Latino seventh graders who are interested in attending one of the city\u2019s specialized high schools.<\/p>\n

Jada, who lives in East New York<\/strong> and one day hopes to become a surgeon, describes her journey: \u201cMy mom and teacher both encouraged me to challenge myself, and I just saw this whole process as an opportunity to attend a really great school.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mariela lives in Bushwick<\/strong> and also has dreams of becoming a surgeon or possibly discovering a cure to a life-threatening disease. As she reflects on her own decision to apply to Stuyvesant, she recalls, “I wanted to show that Black, Brown and Latino kids are capable of doing what other kids are doing. Also, my family is originally from Mexico, and I\u2019m the first one to attend such a unique high school. I want to make them proud, and I\u2019m just so grateful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their achievements are remarkable not only because they are bright, talented young ladies. This dream may not have become a reality had it not been for their families and the adults in their corner who were encouraging them every step of the way.<\/p>\n

Allison Shillingford<\/strong>, Executive Director of Navigate the Maze to Achievement and fellow Brooklynite, explains that kids like Jada and Mariela have the deck stacked against them. For starters, admission to schools like Stuyvesant is based solely on the three-hour Specialized High Schools Admissions Test.<\/p>\n

The schools don\u2019t consider other factors, such as grades, attendance, or extracurricular activities. This may sound like a level playing field. But there have been concerns that this test doesn\u2019t reflect what New York City students are actually learning in the classroom. Instead, many of the applicants take expensive test prep classes.<\/p>\n

\u201cOver the years, I\u2019ve seen a lack of representation at Stuyvesant,\u201d says Shillingford. Most students are not prepared for the test, but it\u2019s through no fault of their own.\u00a0 They simply don\u2019t have access to the concepts in their schools. However, when students are provided with access, they are better prepared to compete \u2013 much like Jada and Mariela.<\/p>\n

When describing their experience preparing for the test, both Jada and Mariela spoke about the importance of determination, and the adults in their lives agreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a lot of work,\u201d says Shillingford. \u201cI tell the kids all the time, it\u2019s not easy to learn two years\u2019 worth of math in a matter of months. Their parents really support them, but only the students can do the work.\u201d<\/p>\n

For families that may be interested, beginning this September, Navigate the Maze is accepting applications\u00a0here<\/a>\u00a0for seventh graders who are interested in attending one of New York\u2019s specialized high schools.<\/p>\n

Diallo Hall is a Brooklyn-based editor and content strategist. Article provided Courtesy of BK Reader<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(L-R) Mariela Garcia-Ramirez and Jada Halsey. Photo: Provided\/Diallo Hall. Article provided Courtesy of BK Reader Two Brooklyn high school students \u2014 Jada Halsey and Mariela Garcia-Ramirez \u2014 succeeded against the odds and got into a competitive high school with the help of a free test prep program, writes local editor Diallo Hall. By Diallo Hall […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5858,"featured_media":6390,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"pmpro_default_level":"","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[176,174],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6389","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-charter-school-news","category-for-parents","pmpro-has-access"],"yoast_head":"\nOp-Ed: Two Students from East New York and Bushwick Prepare for the Challenges of Stuyvesant High School - NYC Education News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nycnewsnetwork.com\/nyceducationnews\/op-ed-two-students-from-east-new-york-and-bushwick-prepare-for-the-challenges-of-stuyvesant-high-school\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Op-Ed: Two Students from East New York and Bushwick Prepare for the Challenges of Stuyvesant High School\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"(L-R) Mariela Garcia-Ramirez and Jada Halsey. 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