Hearing on city school segregation

Fireworks are expected at a Wednesday City Council hearing on the hot-button issue of racial segregation in the city’s public schools.

Council Education Committee Chairman Mark Tregyer invited students, school officials and families to the public discussion of a half-dozen bills and several resolutions aimed at easing racial division in the city’s public schools, which are among the most segregated in the country.

Tregyer, a former city teacher, said the hearing at City Hall is chance for everyone involved in the public schools to have their say about a topic that’s caught fire since Mayor de Blasio unveiled a plan to desegregate a group of elite specialized high schools in June.

“We need solutions, and this requires critical conversations about integration, inclusion and equity,” said Treyger (D-Brooklyn). “For far too long, systemwide segregation has persisted because of intransigence and lack of political will.”

Treyger said the meeting will kick off with testimony from students who will share their experiences with racial segregation and ideas for next steps.

City Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza, an outspoken backer of de Blasio’s integration push, will also testify. “The chancellor is excited to discuss the work we’re doing to integrate our schools and advance equity now,” said Education Department spokesman Doug Cohen. De Blasio and Carranza seek to lessen segregation through a number of efforts, including a plan to replace the admissions test used by famed specialized high schools.