The day before the 2024-25 school year begins, Mayor Adams’ administration announced the opening of 24 new school facilities across the city, including four additions and four newly-constructed schools in the Bronx. Adams said the offerings will add 11,010 seats, the highest number since 2003.
The new additions and schools in the Bronx are:
- Addition to P.S. 195/196 in the Soundview neighborhood
- Addition to P.S. 87 in the Wakefield neighborhood
- Addition to P.S. 108 Philip J. Abinanti in the Pelham Parkway neighborhood
- Addition to P.S. 138 Samuel Randall in the Castle Hill neighborhood
- Aurelia Greene Education Campus in the Highbridge neighborhood
- Academy for Personal Leadership and Excellence Elementary in the Fordham neighborhood
- Leaders of Excellence, Advocacy and Discovery in the South Bronx
- P.S. 163 The Arthur A. Schomburg Educational Campus in the Tremont neighborhood
Adams, along with Schools Chancellor David Banks and the SCA, said this year’s expansion will add modern classrooms, special education classrooms, community spaces and play areas to their respective neighborhoods.
The city’s schools also feature 21 new pieces of public art specially designed for each site, including Chris Bogia’s “The Sun Over the Bronx,” a colorful installation that hangs in the entryway at Leaders of Excellence, Advocacy and Discovery.
“These new schools are more than just buildings; they are vibrant, dynamic spaces where young minds can explore, create, and grow,” said SCA President and CEO Nina Kubota.
In the years ahead, new school construction will generally focus on promoting equity across the boroughs by way of smaller class sizes, according to the SCA capital plan.
In 2022, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a law capping class sizes in New York City public schools — but the teacher’s union has said that the reduction in class sizes isn’t happening quickly enough. A 2023 analysis by the United Federation of Teachers showed that overcrowding was a significant issue in New York City’s high-needs schools, affecting more than 300,000 students.
Local elected officials celebrated the new facilities, which will serve Bronx children in Pre-K through eighth grade.
“The opening of these new school buildings is great news for families in our district,” said state Sen. Nathalia Fernandez, who represents parts of Parkchester, Pelham and Morris Park. “With more middle schools now available, our kids will have the chance to learn in modern, well-equipped classrooms right in their own community.”
Assembly Member Landon Dais, who represents the Grand Concourse and Highbridge areas, applauded the naming of the new campus in his district after former longtime Assembly Member and Deputy Borough President Aurelia Greene, who died in 2021.
“During her 27 years of dedicated service to our district, she made a significant and lasting impact on our district,” said Dais. “This school stands as a testament to her legacy, ensuring that her greatness continues to inspire and uplift the students of our community for generations to come.”
Council Member Rafael Salamanca, Jr. said the new construction will help relieve overcrowding in his district in the South Bronx, which has added the most affordable housing of any area in the city.
“The necessity for new educational centers to accommodate our community’s needs has grown exponentially,” he said. “Now, not only will this new elementary school serve as a beacon for countless generations of Bronxites, but the expanded educational amenities will guarantee that Bronx youth will no longer be left behind.”
What exactly the future holds for increased school capacity in the Bronx is not yet clear. The SCA’s newly-released capital plan for 2025-2029 currently includes no specific dollar amounts in the borough for building replacement, major modernizations and rehabilitations, new schools, building additions, education enhancements (i.e., library or science lab upgrades) and safety and security.
But a spokesperson for the SCA told the Bronx Times that there will be money for each school district in the borough — but it has not yet been allocated to specific projects. Once sites are determined, the document will be amended several times with dollar amounts plugged in.
The spokesperson also said there are new school sites currently under construction and scheduled to open in 2028. In all, the city will add more than 33,000 more seats in the coming five years, including an as-yet-undetermined number in the Bronx, said the spokesperson.
For more information on all the new facilities opening this school year, click here.
Reach Emily Swanson at eswanson@schnepsmedia.com or (646) 717-0015. For more coverage, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @bronxtimes
