Gothamist

2 days ago | gothamist.com | Jessica Gould

Mayor Eric Adams announced Monday the next phase of his signature literacy initiative will be extended to more than 100 middle schools, though one much-criticized curricula was notably absent. Adams, who is dyslexic, has made improving literacy his top educational priority and championed an effort to streamline curricula in both reading and math. He said students’ persistently low test scores in reading and math – hovering around 50% – have shown that a course-change was urgently needed.

4 days ago | gothamist.com | Elizabeth Shwe

United Bodegas of America is renewing its calls for panic buttons and NYPD monitoring in all bodegas after two fatal incidents last week. Anthony Diaz, 24, was fatally stabbed and two other men were hospitalized after an incident at a bodega in Inwood, Manhattan on Wednesday evening, according to police officials. Police say another man, 38-year-old Preston White, was shot and killed inside a bodega in the Bronx’s Williamsbridge neighborhood around an hour later.

5 days ago | gothamist.com | Jimmy Vielkind

A one-time aide to former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, whose sexual harassment accusations prompted a damning outside investigation, has settled her lawsuit against New York state. The state will pay Charlotte Bennett, a former secretary to the Democratic governor, $450,000 – of which $350,000 will go to her attorneys. She agreed not to seek future employment in the state’s Executive Chamber, which is the formal name for the governor’s office.

5 days ago | gothamist.com | Arya Sundaram

A New York state-run resettlement program for migrants — criticized for its slow pace in placing families — is coming to an end, after relocating roughly half of the families it was set up to help. New York's Migrant Relocation Assistance Program (MRAP), launched in July 2023 amid a surge in migrants coming to the city, will cease relocating new families on June 15, according to Anthony Farmer, a spokesperson for the state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, which runs the program.

5 days ago | gothamist.com | James Ramsay

Good Good Friday afternoon in New York City, where there shall be no biking on the really busy part of the Rockaway boardwalk this summer. Here's what else is happening:Are we in a recession? Not according to these Easter baskets. Organizers say anyone can be a Hot Girl for Zohran, it's a state of mind thing. You can go to the car show at the Javits Center to get your REAL ID.