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Page Archive
On the record · June 2026

Official + Provider Responses

What DYCD, elected officials, displaced incumbents, incoming providers, and school leaders have said — collected in one place so families, press, and oversight can see the full picture.

From school communities · live, sourced

5 verified

Statements published by the affected schools themselves — official school news posts, principal statements, and PTA-attributed quotes. Auto-collected from the school directory.

Principal / PTA statement2026-05-21
“The Computer School had identified Manhattan Youth as the best fit — another provider was selected.”
Jessica Shalom — Principal, The Computer School · Chalkbeat
The Computer School (M.S. 245) page →
Official document2026-05-20
“Lab Middle and other middle school communities across D2 unexpectedly lost their contract with Manhattan Youth afterschool — our beloved and trusted afterschool provider for over a decade. The process by which this happened is very unclear and families were not given any opportunity for feedback.”
NYC Lab Middle School — Official school news, posted May 20, 2026 · labmiddleschool.com
NYC Lab Middle School page →
Official document2026-05-20
“The Director of the Middle School Athletic League, which Lab Middle sports teams participate under, has learned that the YMCA will not fund the sports teams next year.”
NYC Lab Middle School — Official school news, posted May 20, 2026 · labmiddleschool.com
NYC Lab Middle School page →
Official document2026-05-20
“It is unclear if the YMCA will be able to offer all the same clubs, theater, debate and sports teams that Lab Middle students love and depend on for next year.”
NYC Lab Middle School — Official school news, posted May 20, 2026 · labmiddleschool.com
NYC Lab Middle School page →
Parent reported2026-06-22
“Parents set up a Change.org petition and we have written letters as we fiercely oppose the change in providers. The school principal has supported us and has also said he does not approve of the changes and is trying to fight them. We are not taking this silently and we are very unhappy.”
Moya Luckett — Parent, I.S. 230 Afterschool Program
I.S. 230 page →
Featured response · June 2026 hearing
Full claim-by-claim →

Resilience is not a transition plan.

A Council member asked Commissioner Sandra Escamilla-Davies what recourse families would have if new providers failed to offer the sports, arts, or academic enrichment their previous providers offered. Her answer:

“I know how resilient young people are and how adaptable they are to change.”
Our response

Resilience is what people are forced to develop when systems fail them. It is not a transition plan, a staffing plan, a disability-access plan, or a guarantee that lost programs will return. For autistic students and other children who depend on predictable routines, adaptability cannot simply be assumed.

Open questions
  • How long must children struggle before DYCD intervenes?
  • What metrics will determine whether a transition failed?
  • Who monitors exclusions, attendance drops, and lost programming?
  • What is the timeline for corrective action?
  • What remedy exists after children have already been destabilized?
What DYCD says

The process was competitive, standardized, and equitable, and the transition is manageable through planning.

What communities say

Parents were excluded. Principal preferences were overridden. Trusted ecosystems were disrupted. School-specific plans remain undisclosed.

Fairness note: Statements below are public-record, published comments, or direct correspondence shared with recipient permission. Source type is labeled on every card. If you represent any organization listed here and want to add, correct, or update your statement, email dycdparentaction@gmail.com — we will post it.

The contracting agency, on the record — including the headline admission that parents 'were not taken into consideration.'

Chantal Alba
DYCD spokesperson
Defended procurement
“A change in provider can feel disruptive.”

DYCD said the transitions resulted from a standardized competitive process, not a judgment on incumbents' value. Alba added that principal preference had to be balanced with scoring, capacity, and provider diversity.

What this office can do: Pause registration, reopen scoring, negotiate transition plans, and reissue awards under the Procurement Policy Board rules.
Cannot directly do: Speak for the Mayor or the Comptroller — but its decisions set the record those offices respond to.
Families are asking next: Release the school-by-school crosswalk, scoring rubric, and principal-ranking data referenced in the Council hearing.
Press reportedLast verified June 20, 2026
Current decision-maker
DYCD / Mayor
Next action
Release the school-by-school crosswalk, scoring rubric, and principal-ranking data referenced in the Council hearing.
NYC DYCD
Agency statement to Tribeca Citizen
Transition assurance only

DYCD acknowledged that families value existing relationships and promised free, enriching, safe programming with a smooth transition. The statement did not provide school-specific staffing, programming, disability, or continuity details.

What this office can do: Issue school-specific written transition plans covering staffing continuity, IEP/504 supports, late pickup, and family notice.
Cannot directly do: Wave away the obligation to plan by issuing a general assurance — PPB rules and Section 504 require documentable, school-level continuity.
Families are asking next: Publish a transition plan template and a school-by-school status grid families can verify.
Press reportedLast verified June 20, 2026
Current decision-maker
DYCD / Mayor
Next action
Publish a transition plan template and a school-by-school status grid families can verify.
NYC DYCD
Agency statement on Renaissance Youth Center
Defended procurement

DYCD called the procurement competitive and criteria-driven while acknowledging Renaissance Youth Center's vital role in the South Bronx. The statement did not explain why a recognized vital provider faced nearly $800,000 in cuts.

What this office can do: Restore or transition funding for sites where a vital incumbent is being defunded mid-cycle, using award-modification authority.
Cannot directly do: Defund a recognized vital provider without a school-impact explanation and expect the record to support the award on review.
Families are asking next: Publish the Renaissance Youth Center scoring sheet and the awardee's capacity assessment for the affected South Bronx sites.
Press reportedLast verified June 20, 2026
Current decision-maker
DYCD / Mayor
Next action
Publish the Renaissance Youth Center scoring sheet and the awardee's capacity assessment for the affected South Bronx sites.
Commissioner Sandra Escamilla-Davies
DYCD Commissioner — formal hearing testimony
Defended procurement
“sense of ownership”

The Commissioner defended the procurement as rigorous and transparent and described provider losses as devastating but part of procurement. She linked rebidding to equity and accountability and a renewed 'sense of ownership' across providers.

What this office can do: Direct staff to release scoring records, freeze disputed sites, and reopen evaluation where the administrative record is incomplete.
Cannot directly do: Substitute 'rigor and transparency' language for the documents — Council and Comptroller can compel the record on request.
Families are asking next: Commit to a written response to the Speaker / coalition letters by a date families can hold the agency to.
Primary documentLast verified June 20, 2026
Source
Council testimony · NYC Council Executive Budget hearing · June 2026 — Executive Budget hearing
Current decision-maker
DYCD / Mayor
Next action
Commit to a written response to the Speaker / coalition letters by a date families can hold the agency to.
DYCD — admission on parent participation
Agency testimony · the headline admission
Key agency admission
“Parents were not taken into consideration.”

DYCD acknowledged that parents were not included in actual provider selection and would instead be consulted later about programming with the incoming providers. This is the agency's own admission that the people closest to the children had no voice in the award.

What this office can do: Open a parent-input mechanism before fall 2026 implementation — meeting, written comment, or PA/PTA review.
Cannot directly do: Treat post-award programming consultation as a substitute for parental input on provider selection.
Families are asking next: Publish, in writing, what role parent feedback will play in remaining negotiation and registration decisions.
Primary documentLast verified June 20, 2026
Source
Council testimony · NYC Council Executive Budget hearing · June 2026 — Executive Budget hearing
Current decision-maker
DYCD / Mayor
Next action
Publish, in writing, what role parent feedback will play in remaining negotiation and registration decisions.
Help us close the gaps

Have a statement we're missing?

DYCD letters, Council member quotes, provider press releases, principal emails — if it's on the record and relevant, send it our way.

Email a statementPress contactSee full evidence base