The official seal of The Bronx.

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. has joined the chorus of elected officials calling for universal testing of pre-K students for public school gifted and talented programs.

“Expanding testing would ensure that more students from all over the city, especially our Black and Latino students, would have an opportunity to take advantage of these programs. Access to gifted and talented classes, especially early access, helps create lifelong learners and allows for greater success in high school and college. Universal testing for these programs is the fairest way to reach those goals,” said Borough President Diaz today.

Borough President Diaz recently joined PACE (Parents’ Alliance for Citywide Education) to co-host a Gifted & Talented Education Open House, which provided information about New York City’s Citywide Gifted & Talented (G&T) elementary schools, Bronx district G&T programs and other accelerated education options.

“It is time for Mayor de Blasio and the Department of Education to act on this critical issue and provide universal testing for gifted and talented classes in our pre-K programs. We cannot leave our students behind,” said Borough President Diaz.