Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, Schools Chancellor Dennis M. Walcott and Council of School Supervisors and Administrators President Ernest Logan today welcomed New York City public school students back for the 2012-2013 school year. The Mayor and Chancellor also launched a new mobile texting program that will send school-related information, including calendar updates, reminders and tips on how to access school resources. New York City public school parents and family members can enroll by texting “nycschools” to 877-877 to receive text messages throughout the school year. The Mayor, Chancellor and President Logan greeted students, faculty and staff at the New Settlement Campus in the Bronx, which houses Comprehensive Model School Project M.S. 327, District 75 School P010X and Mount Eden Elementary School, one of the 55 new schools opening this fall.

“The new school year is a new opportunity to build on the important progress we have made over the last several years, and working with schools, students and their families, we will do better this year than ever before,” said Mayor Bloomberg. “That work starts by doing more to make sure parents have the information they need to help their children succeed – even when they are on the go. That’s why we’ve launched a new texting tool to keep them up to date. We expect success because we know our students can achieve it, and we are making investments to help fulfill their potential.”

“By every measure, New York City’s students have made incredible gains, and we’re going to push even harder to prepare more students to graduate ready for college or their careers,” said Chancellor Walcott. “The New Settlement Campus is a wonderful example how when schools, parents, elected officials, and community organizations work together our students benefit. I want to thank all our partners for providing the resources we need to keep building great new schools for our children.”

“New Settlement Campus embraces the entire community, answering educational, social, residential and medical needs all at once. And artistic needs, too. Let’s not forget the arts,” said Ernest Logan, President of the Council of School Supervisors & Administrators. “This community effort is going to bring new strength and vigor to a neighborhood and to children that haven’t gotten a lot of breaks.”

The new mobile texting program is the latest tool the Department of Education has developed to deliver information about public schools and programming to parents and families. According to the 2010 and 2011 annual parent School Survey, receiving information through electronic communication is the first choice of parents across age-groups, boroughs, income-levels and ethnicity. The mobile updates will include the issues parents who responded to the School Survey indicated as priority: the 2012-2013 school calendar; information on how to enroll in school programs; breakfast and lunch menus; and tips on how to log onto ARIS Parent Link – a web resource with student attendance, test score and grade data.

The New Settlement Campus is a newly constructed facility that houses three schools. The Mount Eden Elementary School is one of 55 new schools opening this fall and has students in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten and first grade. It will expand to include students up to the fifth grade. The Comprehensive Model School M.S. 327 is a middle school with students in sixth through ninth grades that opened in the 2004-2005 school year in the Bronx. It will expand to include students through twelfth grade at its new location. New Settlement is also home to the District 75 School P010X. The campus offers a number features for all students to use, including an indoor swimming pool, a dance studio in partnership with the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater and rooftop garden.  Under Mayor Bloomberg, the Department of Education has opened 590 new schools since 2002, creating 116,000 additional seats for students.