FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — June 18, 2026
Parents Demand NYC “Show Us the Plan” Before Six-Year Afterschool Contracts Move Forward
Citywide coalition calls for transparency, disability-access planning, workforce protections, and community-impact reviews
NEW YORK — Parents, afterschool workers, and school communities are calling on New York City to pause disputed DYCD COMPASS and SONYC provider transitions until the agency discloses the school-specific evidence and transition plans behind them.
Public reporting has documented backlash from school communities separated from long-standing providers, including communities in Manhattan, Queens, and the South Bronx. Parents say they are not demanding that any organization receive public contracts forever. They are demanding proof that each provider change makes children better off before contracts lasting through 2032 are registered and implemented.
“This is not simply a vendor dispute. Afterschool is family infrastructure. It is trusted staff, disability support, sports, theater, debate, clubs, safe dismissal, peer community, and the ability of parents to work. DYCD changed the conditions of children’s lives without showing families the plan.”
Families are asking DYCD to release:
- The complete old-provider-to-new-provider crosswalk.
- School-specific scoring and evaluator records.
- Principal rankings and explanations of any overrides.
- The definition and application of “provider diversity.”
- Disability-access transition plans.
- Workforce and community-impact reviews.
- Staffing, licensing, and provider-readiness information.
- Plans for sports, theater, debate, clubs, enrichment, late pickup, and cross-school programming.
- Contract-registration status for each disputed award.
- A meaningful review or appeal process for affected school communities.
The coalition is also gathering parent statements, worker statements, disability grievances, school-choice reliance evidence, and public records for potential legal review.
“For disabled students, the transition plan may be the accommodation. For all students, community is part of the service. Children do not attach to award lists. They attach to people.”
Parents are calling on the City Council, Public Advocate, Comptroller, Mayor’s Office, and DYCD to prevent registration and implementation until the public receives school-specific answers.
About DYCD Parent Action
DYCD Parent Action is a parent-led, citywide effort documenting the impact of COMPASS and SONYC provider transitions on students, families, frontline workers, and school communities. The coalition supports accountable procurement, equitable access, provider quality, and public transparency.
Source notes
Chalkbeat documented the removal of long-standing providers, principal and parent opposition, DYCD’s reliance on scoring and provider diversity, and a lack of public information showing the full turnover. Tribeca Citizen identified the Manhattan middle-school backlash. Bronx Times documented the Renaissance Youth Center protest and workforce/community consequences in the South Bronx. Direct links are available in the Evidence Library.