Zohran Mamdani, a candidate for mayor of New York City, is facing criticism over his proposal to phase out gifted education programs in the city’s public schools. The plan has sparked debate about how best to achieve equity in education.
The Washington Post editorial board criticized Mamdani’s approach, stating: “Who could have guessed that Zohran Mamdani (D), the leading candidate to become the next New York mayor, would provoke a firestorm by announcing this week that he intends to phase out the city’s early elementary school programs for gifted students in the name of equity? Parents of bright children want access to schooling that meets their needs? Shocking.” The editorial continued, “gifted children have different learning needs from their peers, just as children with cognitive disabilities benefit from education plans that are specific to them.” It added, “Parents see the gifted programs as stepping stones toward high-achieving schools down the road. But the solution is not to take away opportunities from children who are currently benefiting from them; it is to expand the program and improve how the city identifies children from underserved populations.”
Jonathan Turley, a professor at George Washington University writing for The Hill, echoed these concerns. He stated: “Zohran Mamdani appears to have a plan for leveling the playing fields in education. Faced with a huge number of students with comparably dismal scores in math, English, and science, Mamdani is going to bulldoze higher-achieving programs. It is a pledge that only Soviet central planner would relish.” Turley further argued: “By eliminating gifted and talented program in lower grades, Mamdani will increase equity through mediocrity. With some on the left demanding the closure of all such programs, the concern is that New York is following the trend in other blue cities. (His opponent, former Governor Andrew Cuomo, has said that he would actually expand these programs).” He also noted: “Even the Washington Post’s editors have objected to his plan as ‘damaging education in the name of equity.’”
Mamdani himself attended an elite private school before entering public service.
