Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has met with Schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos in what could amount to a job interview with high stakes for the city’s students, parents and schools.
Mamdani, while discussing the recruitment of new teachers earlier, told reporters, “I think she has been doing a good job.” He more recently spoke positively about her work without indicating his intentions or any decision.
“I have met with Chancellor Ramos. I have appreciated the work that she has done,” he told Spectrum News NY1 recently. “And like everyone within the Adams administration, I’ll assess her and everyone else based on the work they’ve done.”
Aviles-Ramos, who took the helm in October 2024, succeeding David Banks, indicated she would like to stay on and work for Mayor-elect Mamdani as his schools chancellor. And she gave a positive, if not a detailed, perspective on her meeting with Mamdani.
“We had a great conversation about all things education from safety to raising achievement scores and proficiency levels in math and reading,” Aviles-Ramos said on Spectrum News NY1 earlier this week. “We talked a lot about daycare versus early childhood education.”
Mamdani has been crafting his own vision for education in New York City public schools, a system with about 1 million students.
While he has announced numerous replacements for officials, he has retained some, such as Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch.
Other possible picks for chancellor discussed by observers include former Chancellor Meisha Ross Porter, but Aviles-Ramos has been garnering some support over her first year on the job.
“What we’re really addressing is an opportunity gap, not an achievement gap,” Aviles-Ramos recently told NY1. “When teacher and students are given the right resources, we see those test scores go up.”
A solid report card
Aviles-Ramos has a good report card among many parents, teachers, and activists boosted by an improved report card for students, including rising math and ELA proficiency scores across the board.
Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, called the rise in ELA and math scores announced a little bit before the end of her first year “a testament to the hard work by New York City educators and our students.”
He then singled out Aviles-Ramos for working hard to keep and implement various programs.
“I also want to acknowledge that this success would not have been possible without Schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos, who fought the DOE bureaucracy to make sure the needs of students and school communities came first,” Mulgrew said.
Proficiency in grades three to eight in 2025 rose 3.4 points in Math and 7.2 points in ELA since 2024 in data released in August, reaching 56.9% for Math and 56.3% for ELA.
While that still leaves a lot of space to improve, it’s positive momentum with rates rising across all ethnicities for grades 3 to 8, including a 1.1 point rise to 80.8% for Asian students in Math, White students up 2.8 points to 75.1%, Black students rising 4.6 points to 43%, and Hispanics increasing 3.4 points to 43.1%.
Asian student ELA proficiency for grades 3 to 8 since 2024 rose 4.9 points to 74.9%, while White students rose 7.3 points to 73.1%, Black students jumped 8.3 points to 47 percent and Hispanics rose 7.1 points to 43.5%.
“In the end, I’m a super teacher, I’m a former principal,” Aviles-Ramos told New York 1. “I get to go into classrooms and have conversations with teachers and principals about pedagogy, and curriculum and instruction.”
She has been implementing and expanding instructional initiatives, such as NYC Reads and NYC Solves as well as Student Pathways. And she launched NYCPS Cares this spring, designed to address “systemic inequities in schools.”
“She’s child-centered. She’s an educator,” one former principal told amNewYork regarding Aviles-Ramos. “Her passion is to see children succeed and she is a mother of a child in the New York City school system.”
Bringing a diverse student body together
The New York City schools are a diverse city within a city with 906,248 students in the 2024-2025 school year including 42.3% Hispanic, 19.3% Black, 18.7% Asian and Pacific Islander, 16.1% White, 2% multiracial, and 1.2% native American.
About three quarters, or 75.3%, are categorized as economically disadvantaged, so many students may face economic challenges as well. “I don’t think she’s looking to make a name for herself,” the former principal said. “I think she’s looking to continue to make a positive name for the New York City school system and the children it serves.”
Aviles-Ramos, according to the former principal, also recognizes and supports programs to serve children in a wide range of social circumstances, including those living in shelters.
“She’s tried to touch all bases to try to ensure that every child receives more than adequate education,” the former principal said. “There are children in temporary housing that don’t have the roof that other children might have.”
Aviles-Ramos has been a teacher, assistant principal, principal, deputy superintendent, and acting superintendent as well as administrator.
She started as a New York City Teaching Fellow and English teacher at Truman High School in 2007 in the Bronx, then became principal at Schuylerville Preparatory High School, increasing graduation rates from 23 percent to 68 percent in her first year to 83 percent in her second year.
She became senior executive director of program implementation in the Office of the First Deputy Chancellor, chief of staff for Chancellor Banks and then deputy chancellor of family and community engagement and external affairs.
Aviles-Ramos holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Fordham University, and a Master of Arts degree from CUNY City College and is the mother of a daughter in middle school.
Mayor-elect Mamdani has discussed the need for more support for childcare, while Aviles-Ramos also emphasized the importance of pre-kindergarten in caring for and educating children.
The former principal believes there’s value in allowing Aviles-Ramos to continue working with him to achieve his goals.
“She’s approachable and open. She listens to criticism. She’s not a pushover, but she’ll take suggestions under advisement,” the former principal said. “Give her a chance to continue the work that she’s doing under the new mayor’s leadership. If he’s not happy, he has the options to make a change at any time during the next our years.”
Mayor-elect Mamdani will make his choice to implement his educational vision, but the current chancellor at least seems to have finished her first year with a good report card from many.
“Every mayor gets to pick their own chancellor,” the former principal said. “At this point, he might do differently, but I don’t think he can do better.”
