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- calendar_today November 2, 2026
PTA Fundraising in New York City: A Varied Landscape
In New York City, parent teacher associations (PTAs) play a significant role in raising funds for schools, ranging from modest bake sales to the operations of sophisticated nonprofit organizations. While some PTAs collect just a few hundred dollars, others bring in millions, highlighting striking inequalities in educational resources.
Record-Breaking Fundraising and Stark Contrasts
P.S. 29 in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn led all city schools by raising about $2 million in the last school year. P.S. 158 on Manhattan's Upper East Side was close behind, collecting $1.7 million. Both serve between 600 and 700 students. New Explorations into Science, Technology & Math, a Lower East Side K-12 school with about 1,600 students, raised $1.4 million. Citywide, PTAs reported nearly $70 million in revenue and savings for the 2024-25 academic year, supporting after-school activities, field trips, support staff, and occasionally, building maintenance.
Racial and Economic Disparities in PTA Fundraising
Disparities in PTA fundraising closely mirror the city’s racial and economic divides. Schools with predominantly white enrollments raise far more than those serving primarily Black or Latino students. In the last year, schools serving more white students outpaced those serving Black children by a ratio of 5-to-1 in funds raised. On average, white students benefited from $254 in PTA-raised funds, while Black students received just $46.30. Of the fifteen schools that raised more than $1 million, only two had Black enrollments above 4%.
For instance, P.S. 8 in Brooklyn Heights, with 69% white enrollment and only 3% Black students, raised $1.3 million. By contrast, P.S. 399 in Flatbush, where 66% of students are Black, and P.S. 43 in Mott Haven, with 78% Latino enrollment, each raised less than $1,000, with over 95% of their students coming from low-income households.
Compounding School Segregation
These fundraising disparities are both a symptom and a cause of educational segregation. Education experts warn that PTAs with more resources can offer extensive extracurriculars and after-school programs, making their schools more attractive to families. "It exacerbates inequality," said Brittany Murray, an education professor at Davidson College who studies PTAs. The ability of PTAs in affluent areas to fill gaps left by public funding stands in stark contrast to underfunded schools in high-poverty, predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods.
How PTAs Spend Their Funds
The Department of Education's Regulation A-660 permits PTAs to fund personnel and services such as supplemental teachers, after-school programs, tutoring, field trips, and extracurriculars. However, PTA funds cannot pay for core subject classroom teachers. Financial data reveals that after-school programs consume significant portions of PTA budgets. For example, P.S. 8’s PTA spent $526,000 on its after-school program in 2024-25, including $146,000 for staff salaries, funded mainly through fees collected from participating families. P.S. 29’s PTA allocated $1.6 million to after-school offerings, raising $1.5 million in related fees.
After-school programs do more than provide childcare; they offer enrichment activities ranging from STEM clubs to the arts. Yet, the ability to offer such options depends largely on PTA fundraising power, contributing to inequality in student experiences across the city.
Public Funding and Efforts to Mitigate Disparities
PTA fundraising accounts for a small portion of the overall $41 billion New York City education budget. The city’s Fair Student Funding formula directs more public money toward schools with high concentrations of poverty, English learners, and students with disabilities. Despite this, experts argue that public funding does not fully compensate for fundraising gaps between schools. At P.S. 29, where PTA contributions reached $2,886 per student, public funding was about $17,000 per pupil. Other schools with higher poverty rates, such as P.S. 307 and P.S. 44, received $42,000 and $35,000 per pupil, respectively, mainly from city, state, and federal resources, but saw minimal PTA fundraising.
Although additional funding measures are in place, researchers including Claire Mackevicius of the University of Oregon emphasize that disparities persist due to broader underfunding of public schools. Such inequities, they say, demand more systemic solutions than relying on charitable efforts by parents.
Renewed Calls for Reform
As renewed attention is drawn to educational segregation—spurred in part by media coverage like Nikole Hannah-Jones' New York Times article—advocates and policy experts urge city leaders, including Mayor Zohran Mamdani, to address the root causes of funding inequalities. The ongoing gap in PTA fundraising remains a prominent symbol of the challenges facing New York City’s schools as they strive toward equitable education for all students.
Related coverage
Source: gothamist.com.
