NYC’s DOE Should Cancel the SAT School Day Contract with College Board

While I am a test optional/free advocate (to the point that I brought testoptional.com to prevent the domain being used to spread pro-testing propaganda) and believe that a test score alone doesn’t define a student’s ability to succeed in college, I was thankful for SAT School Day when it was rolled out to the whole system because it ensured that all of my students took the exam, and I didn’t have to repeat the stressful actions it took to get all of my students to take the exam. In the summer of 2016, I started working for a community-based organization where I was stationed in two South Bronx high schools that were co-located. Both schools were in danger of closing if things didn’t turn around. At that time, I had been in college counseling for three years. I was shocked to learn that all of the seniors in one school had not taken the SAT in their junior year. In the other school, only half of the seniors took the exam in their junior year. I was not prepared for the difficulty that was coming that academic year.

My first task was convincing the seniors that taking the SAT was important. Then I hustled to get every single one signed up at a convenient school. After that, I showed the students how to get to the school, the time they needed to arrive, stressed the importance of having a full breakfast, and informed them of the items they needed to bring. On the morning of the exam, I woke up at 4am (which I’ve never done on a Saturday) and called every student to make sure they were getting ready to go to their exam site. Every student took the exam.

To avoid having to wake up that early again and give my students the opportunity to take the exam in a place they knew, I became a SAT Site Supervisor for the school. Administering the exam went smoothly, but I felt pressured to ensure the exams were sent out the same day. I don’t think College Board’s payment makes it worth it to be a Site Supervisor. I don’t miss it.

Things changed a lot when SAT School Day debuted in 2017. Having the exam during the school day meant my students didn’t have to wake up early and could see familiar faces as they entered the building to take the exam. SAT School Day was a huge load off my back. I’m sure many school-based College Counselors and School Counselors could say the same thing, despite the exam taking up instructional time and using teacher labor. With the pandemic in 2020, there isn’t a point to hosting SAT School Day anymore.

When the pandemic hit, students couldn’t take the SAT. This made every college in the nation go test optional; some schools even went test-free. Six years later, most colleges still have a test optional policy (the University of California system is still test-free). Given this, there is no need for SAT School Day anymore.

Here are more detailed reasons:

• Every college in New York State, except Cornell and West Point, is test optional, including our public systems: the City University of New York and the State University of New York.

• Only five test optional colleges in the state have a test score submission rate for their enrolled students just shy above 50%.

• The average test scores of NYC DOE students on SAT School Day don’t move the needle in college admissions, and fewer than a quarter of students take the exam a second time.

• Nearly 80% NYC DOE high school graduates who enroll in college attend a CUNY college.

• When we look up the test submission rates of every CUNY Four-Year College on the Federal government’s IPEDs website (under a school’s Admissions tab), we will see that no college reaches 15%:

  • College of Staten Island: 7%

  • Baruch College: 12%

  • City Tech: 5%

  • Queens College: 7%

  • York College: 4%

  • Brooklyn College: 9%

  • City College: 11%

  • Hunter College: 11%

  • Lehman College: 4%

  • Medgar Evers College: 3%

To find the true cost of SAT School Day, I submitted a Freedom of Information Law request. I asked NYC Public Schools for the amounts they paid to College Board from 2015 (the pilot year) to last year. Here is what I was sent:

• In 2015, the DOE paid College Board $1,305,192.

• 2016: $1,119,000

• 2017: $78,110.30

• 2018: $6,260,908.50

• Nothing in 2019.

• 2020: $794,214.80

• 2021: $3,290,451.06

• 2022: $5,064,291.20

• 2023: $2,818,190.30

• 2024: $5,479.20

• 2025: $6,534,430.50

• Grand total: $27,270,267.86

I can't explain why some years are lower. I'm not a journalist (but I was one in a past life, lol). But there are some things I do want to point out:

• These years are fiscal years. The DOE fiscal year is from July 1st to June 30th.

  Ex: 2025 Fiscal Year is from July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025.

  
  

• In 2017, SAT School Day was open to every school.

  
  

• DOE Schools shut down due to the pandemic on March 15, 2020, and fully reopened on September 13, 2021. If the shutdown hadn't happened (and the Federal government had been proactive about COVID), the DOE would've paid $6,512,726.80 for fiscal year 2020.

In addition to these costs, we also have to consider the “free” labor and resources College Board is getting from teachers proctoring the exam, admin setting up the exam, schools providing students with school laptops, and using the school’s Wi-Fi to take the exam. For a regular Saturday administration of the exam, aside from the school building use and the school paying for security, College Board pays the Site Coordinators and proctors.

Since the new Mayor is looking to cut costs, the city could probably save around $6 million by terminating the SAT School Day contract with College Board. For the high schools where the SAT scores make a difference in college admissions, those schools could opt to use their own funding to host a SAT School Day.

College Admissions & Financial Aid for First-Gen High School/College Graduate Parents

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgiAR1FYWhU

Last week, I hosted a free workshop for parents who are first-generation high school and college graduates. In the presentation, I go over how college admissions have changed over the past 20 years and give tips on how to afford college.

Here are the slides!

Class of 2025 Acceptances

This has been the biggest year in We Go To College's history. Between volunteering, contract work, and private clients, I worked with almost 20 students (and a School Counselor) after school and on the weekends. When I first envisioned We Go To College's mission while living in St. Louis, I had the goal of focusing on serving students who looked like me and were growing up in conditions similar to what I endured. I've worked with some amazing students over the years through the company, but this is the first year I felt that the mission was being fully realized: "We Go To College, LLC's purpose is to equip historically disadvantaged college-aspiring students and communities with the college access knowledge to create sustainable pathways toward upward mobility and disrupt the college admissions landscape."

The mission started to come together when I began working with Upward Bound Programs in St. Louis. The work expanded on a grander scale when I got the opportunity to help Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC design their college access program. This year, I was honored to work with a public high school in the South Bronx called Longwood Preparatory Academy. Years ago, I worked full-time for a community-based organization where I was stationed at Longwood. I have always loved the school's community and leadership and wanted to work with them again. This year, I provided the School Counselor with tools her students could use, guidance on writing recommendations, financial aid, and submitting documents, including a School Profile I created for them. In addition, I got to work with some students at the top of the senior class. Here is the acceptance list and current scholarship total of those students:

While I grew up in Brooklyn's East New York, a perilous neighborhood where I hope to do some work someday, I have a special place in my heart for the South Bronx because there are students who want to rise above the poorest congressional district in the nation. Last year, I worked at a charter school in the area. Before I left, I had begun working with a few juniors at the top of the class. While I would've loved to continue working with all the students, I didn't have the time. After evaluating my capacity, I decided to keep working with two of those students (and advised another when he had questions or was looking for quick feedback). Here is their acceptance list and total scholarship amounts:

While my private client numbers are small (and hyperfocused on middle-income families of color and students who aren't "competitive" for "highly selective" college), the results this year were very fruitful:

Last year, I volunteered for College Essay Guy's Matchlighters Program and was matched with a Dominican girl from Florida who attends a large public school. I worked with her on the Questbridge application and she was successful:

Huge thanks to everyone who was involved with these efforts this year. I'm glad that at least three students will be able to graduate from a selective college debt-free, just as I did. A few others will graduate with debt far below the maximum Federal Student Loan amount of $27,000 after four years. While looking forward to whatever work I have in store next year, I can't wait to see where this year's South Bronx students end up. I know some of them are hoping to get off the waitlist at selective colleges that provide full financial need. I'm praying for them. Getting off the waitlist would give them the greatest chance to leave the Bronx alive and hopefully go back to improve it.