NYC DOE Calendar: Enhancing Accessibility and Engagement

Dear New York City Department of Education,

Subject: Enhancing the NYC DOE School Calendar for Better Accessibility and Engagement

I am writing to highlight opportunities to improve the NYC DOE Citywide School Calendar (2024–2025 School Year Calendar) and the importance of intuitive digital calendars for individual schools. With thousands of parents, students, and educators relying on this calendar to plan their schedules, enhancing its usability will significantly improve engagement, accessibility, and overall user satisfaction.

Five Ways to Improve the NYC DOE School Calendar

1. Interactive and Searchable Format

Currently, the NYC school calendar provides essential dates but lacks an interactive interface. Implementing a searchable and filterable calendar would allow parents to quickly find school closures, parent-teacher conferences, and holidays relevant to their needs.

2. Google Calendar and iCal Integration

Parents and teachers rely on digital calendars to manage their schedules. Providing a one-click option to sync NYC school calendar events with Google Calendar, Outlook, and Apple Calendar will ensure parents never miss an important school date.

3. Mobile-Friendly Design

A significant portion of parents access the NYC public school calendar via mobile devices. A mobile-responsive, app-like experience would make navigating the calendar effortless, preventing unnecessary scrolling and zooming.

4. Automated Notifications and Reminders

Parents would benefit from email or text reminders for important events such as school closings, half-days, and early dismissals. A push notification feature for last-minute changes (such as snow days) would also enhance communication.

5. School-Specific Customization

Parents often need information not just from the citywide DOE calendar but also from their child’s individual school. Allowing users to filter events by school or district would provide a personalized experience and reduce confusion.

Why Every NYC Public School Needs a Digital Calendar

While the citywide NYC DOE calendar is crucial, each NYC public school must also have an intuitive, digital-first calendar for school-specific events, PTA meetings, and extracurricular activities.

A well-designed NYC school events calendar should include:

• Real-time updates on schedule changes
• Event sign-ups for parent-teacher conferences and workshops
• Mobile notifications for reminders
• Integration with school apps and websites

By adopting these enhancements, the NYC DOE and individual schools can improve parent engagement, reduce confusion, and create a seamless experience for families navigating the school year.

A strong example of an intuitive, mobile app version of a calendar, that meets all of the criteria above, can be found at https://www.solvedconsulting.com/app

I appreciate your attention to this critical issue and look forward to seeing how the NYC school calendar evolves to better serve students, parents, and educators.

Best regards,

NYCPS Parents