6) Because the article mentions "low-income immigrant neighborhoods," how many of these residents are in NYC legally, how many are undocumented/illegal/overstayed (therefore have not paid to support the public system which is giving them top priority)?
Discussing admissions criteria is difficult enough without bringing immigration status into it, and in any case, the 1982 Plyler v. Doe Supreme Court decision stated that local governments cannot discriminate based on immigration status in K-12 education, and the purpose of public schools is to ensure access to children of poor families. Making this argument is unlikely to help preserve selective middle schools.
