Manhattan Youth Loses Half Its NYC Middle School After-School Contracts - New York Family

Manhattan Youth has operated after-school programs in 24 Manhattan middle schools for more than a decade. It will not return to roughly half of those schools this fall after the city’s DYCD completed a competitive rebid process. About 12 middle schools are affected, including MS 104 Simon Baruch, Wagner, Yorkville East, The Computer School, Salk School of Science, Lab Middle School, the ASL School, the Ella Baker School, and School of the Future. New providers will take over in fall 2026, including the Imogen Foundation at multiple schools and NYJTL at Wagner. The change brings new staff, programming, and organizational culture. Programs remain free and school-based, while parents have launched a petition seeking more transparency.

"Manhattan Youth has run programs in 24 Manhattan middle schools for over a decade. It won't be back in roughly half of them this fall. Manhattan Youth lost after-school contracts at about 12 Manhattan middle schools following the city's latest round of competitive bidding. It's a significant reduction for an organization that has been a fixture in many school communities for years."

"The affected schools include MS 104 Simon Baruch, Wagner Middle School, Yorkville East Middle School, The Computer School, Salk School of Science, Lab Middle School, the ASL School, the Ella Baker School, and School of the Future. In their place, the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) has assigned new providers. One of them is the Imogen Foundation, which is taking over at least four schools, and NYJTL, a tennis-focused organization, at Wagner."

"The switch is part of a citywide re-bidding process in which DYCD reviewed more than 3,700 proposals and awarded 806 school-based contracts across 171 organizations. Every existing provider, including Manhattan Youth, had to reapply. The agency announced the results on May 14, describing the round as the largest expansion of the city's after-school system (a $760 million annual investment) in its 20-year history."

"For the schools losing Manhattan Youth, the change means new staff, new programming, and a new organizational culture arriving in September. The coaches, instructo... Programs remain free and school-based despite provider changes. Parents have launched a petition calling for more transparency."

Read at New York Family