Mamdani names Alan Ong new chair of NYC school board
Did you know search engines like Google are changing the way you see news? Keep Chalkbeat’s valuable education coverage at the top of your feeds by clicking here and checking the box next to our name. Mayor Zohran Mamdani tapped a new chairperson for New York City’s school board, the volunteer body that votes on major policy decisions and contracts: Queens civic leader Alan Ong. Ong has been…
Mayor Zohran Mamdani has appointed Queens civic leader Alan Ong as the new chair of New York City's school board, the volunteer body that votes on major policy decisions and contracts. Ong has been a member of the board since 2022, when former Mayor Eric Adams appointed him. State rules require the mayor to appoint a chair for the Panel for Educational Policy, or PEP, from a pre-selected pool of candidates.
The PEP chair role was created to ensure the board's independence from the mayor, as the current system relies on the mayor's ability to appoint a majority of the panel's members. Ong's predecessor, Greg Faulkner, took his independence seriously and cast several high-profile "no" votes, but it remains to be seen if Ong will follow suit.
Ong has held leadership positions throughout the city's education system, including being a PTA president and serving as president of the Community Education Council of District 26. He is currently the chief of staff to Queens State Assembly Member Nily Rozic.
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