Welcome To School Design!
What We Do

What is the Office of School Design?

The Office of School Design (OSD) partners with families and community stakeholders to develop new schools that are responsive to district needs. There are three phases of the new school process:

Family and Community Engagement

New School Leader Selection

New School Design and Development

Who Informs the Design of the School?

Throughout the new school process OSD convenes interactive meetings and visioning activities to ensure multiple voices and ideas are represented throughout the district to inform the new school design. OSD gathers information and feedback from:

Parents and Families

Students

District and Community

Community Stakeholders

In addition, OSD, in collaboration with the Superintendent, will also convene a district-based committee called the Working Group for additional information and feedback.

What is the Working Group?

In collaboration with the Superintendent, OSD convenes a committee of representatives from the district where the new school is to be located to provide feedback on district/community needs and on the design and development of the new school. Members of the Working Group include the Superintendent, representatives from the CEC, parents with a child attending a school in the district where the school will be located, a principal and teacher from the district where the school will be located, and students attending school in the district.

How are New Leaders Selected and Supported Prior to Opening?

In collaboration with OSD and the Superintendent, the NYCDOE’s Office of Leadership (OOL) recommends potential new leaders to the Chancellor. The Chancellor makes final selections. Selected leaders:

Have at least seven years of experience as pedagogues.

Are strong instructional leaders with demonstrated success in improving student achievement.

Have the ability to build meaningful relationships with families and a wide range of community stakeholders.

Are skilled in leading a team and can thrive in a new school by building culture and systems from the ground up.

OSD also collaborates with the Office of Leadership to implement the New School Collaborative (NSC), a new school planning and leadership development program. NSC provides differentiated support and professional development on: school design, leadership development; and strategies to effectively engage families and community stakeholders.

Timeline

What is the timeline for schools opening in new constructions in 2015?

  • Summer 2014

    Information and data gathering on district/community needs and interests. Preliminary analysis of district/community needs and interests. Preliminary community engagement and community mapping activities.

  • Fall 2014

    On-going engagement with families, students, community and parent leaders. New school leader selection process begins, led by the Office of Leadership. Working Group established and providing feedback on community engagement, marketing and school design. New school leader selected.

  • Winter/Spring 2015

    New school leader begins intensive outreach and community engagement activities. New school leader participates in NSC. New school leader continues collaboration with Working Group and with families and other community stakeholders to learn about the community and gain insights on district/community needs. New school leader gathers community feedback on design elements of the new school throughout the planning and implementation process. New school leader operationalizes the school: hiring teachers, ordering supplies, etc.

  • Summer 2015

    New School leader conducts orientation for families, teacher professional development, etc.

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    Fall 2015

    New school opens!

Contact Us

If you have a question, comment or concern that you'd like to send to the Office of School Design, please submit below!