By Forum Staff
Mayor Eric Adams on Wednesday announced the completion and opening of 24 new school buildings, including 11,010 new seats, across the city, each set to welcome students for the first day of the 2024-2025 school year.
This marks the most new K-12 seats opened by the SCA since 2003 and comes in addition to over 20,000 student seats previously added over the course of the Adams administration. Additionally, the newly adopted 2025-2029 Capital Plan provides funding for another 33,417 seats. This significant expansion will provide students with state-of-the-art facilities and resources essential for their continued academic success and overall development.
“Our administration is committed to giving our children a first-class education, and a crucial part of a great education is having access to great facilities,” Adams said.
New school buildings have been completed in four boroughs, with six in Queens, nine in Brooklyn, eight in the Bronx, and one in Manhattan. With a commitment to fostering an enriching educational environment, the new school buildings feature modern classrooms, advanced technology, and versatile learning spaces to ensure that they meet the diverse needs of New York City’s student population. They are also constructed with green spaces and environmentally-friendly materials, promoting sustainability and environmental stewardship. Key features of the new school buildings include:
Innovative Learning Spaces — Classrooms equipped with the latest educational technology, flexible space and furniture, and collaborative workspaces, including:
- Reading and speech resource rooms
- Art and music classrooms
- Science lab and prep rooms
- Special education classrooms
- Libraries
- Gymnasiums and auditoriums
Community Integration – Multi-purpose spaces designed to serve students, staff, and the surrounding community, fostering stronger community ties and support networks, including:
- Medical, guidance counselor, and administrative suite
- Parent and community room
- Indoor and outdoor play space
- Staff lunch and conference rooms
SCA will continue to invest in creating new seats, not only in areas of current overcrowding and projected growth, but also to help schools comply with state legislation requiring smaller class sizes. SCA will also continue its work promoting healthier school environments, advocating for better health and nutrition, and broadening opportunities for physical education, as well as investing in existing infrastructure to provide better facilities for New York City’s students, teachers, and staff.
“Education opened every door for me, and now I am a proud champion of the largest school system in the nation,” said Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar (D-Woodhaven). “Working with Mayor Adams, we have made unprecedented investments in education, and I passed the historic Diwali School Holiday bill so that our children could celebrate the day without missing school. Today we embark upon a new school year with 24 new school buildings to accommodate over 11,000 young scholars—in addition to the 20,000 seats we have already built in this administration. I am proud to partner with the mayor, Chancellor Banks, and SCA President and CEO Kubota, providing them the resources from the state to continue building more schools and meet the educational needs of all our children.”
