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In 2015, Public School 34 in Greenpoint launched the first Polish-English Dual Language Program on the East Coast, allowing students to learn simultaneously in both languages.
As Radio RAMPA has learned, for the 2025–2026 school year, P.S. 34 will continue offering bilingual Polish-language classes, but with changes.
The New York City Public Schools, in an email to Radio RAMPA dated July 16, stated: “For the 2025–2026 school year, P.S. 34 will continue to offer Polish Dual Language classes in Kindergarten, as well as 3rd and 4th grades. The program will not be continued for the incoming 1st grade cohort, and grades 2 and 5 have been consolidated. A world language instructional model which will maintain Polish language learning and reinforce a pathway for future growth in dual language instruction will be provided to the underenrolled cohort. Families have been notified of this change.”
The NYC Public Schools confirmed to Radio RAMPA that families have been informed of these changes. Additionally, the Department stated: “At New York City Public Schools, we educate students and support families from a wide range of backgrounds, and are proud to host dual language programs across the city in service of these families and in response to an increasingly global world that our children are growing up in. While select grades will no longer participate in the program due to reduced enrollment, the Polish Dual Language program continues to be offered at this school and to incoming Kindergarten classes. All students will continue to have access to Polish instruction, with opportunities to build their skills through a modified format outside the full Dual Language model.”
According to NYC Public Schools’ policy, parents have “The right to have children in a Bilingual Education (BE) program when there are 15 or more grade-level ELL students in grades K-8 with the same home language in one or two contiguous grades and 20 or more ELL students in high school with the same home language in one grade. If there is not a sufficient number of qualifying students in a school, but there are within its district, the district must provide a BE program.”
This means the continuation of the dual language program at the school depends on enrollment numbers for each year.
It’s worth noting that at its inception, the dual language program at PS 34 was the only Polish bilingual program offered in NYC public schools. Since then, two additional Polish language programs have launched in District 24: at PS 71 in Ridgewood and PS 153 in Maspeth. In Ridgewood, the program faced similar enrollment challenges—the principal of PS 71 preserved the program by modifying it to continue Polish instruction. At PS 153 in Maspeth, a full Polish dual language program was established and continues to operate.
These changes may reflect shifts in the community in Greenpoint—Polish families are now using programs closer to home, whereas in the past, many families had no choice but to bring their children to Greenpoint.
Polish language education at PS 34 in Greenpoint remains active. In 2019, Radio RAMPA participated in a promotional day for the Polish Dual Language Program at the school (video below). The school regularly organizes events in collaboration with institutions like the Józef Piłsudski Institute and Polish Bilingual Day celebrations. In May 2025, the school once again held its Polish-English Curriculum Showcase, which, according to their Facebook page, aimed to “showcase art, poetry, and music honoring Poland’s rich history and commemorating the 1000th anniversary of the coronation of Bolesław the Brave.”
Radio RAMPA has requested comments from both the NYC Public Schools and PS 34 Principal Alain Beugoms, as well as Assistant Principal Jeanne Marshall. No direct comment from school leadership was received at the time of publication.
Monika Adamski
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