Unhappy with the persistent overcrowding at two school districts in Queens, local leaders have convened a panel to propose solutions, such as taking a closer look at co-locations and district re-zoning.

The Department of Education said it must restructure a popular middle school program for gifted students in Queens, in order to make room for more general education students down the road. The decision has infuriated many parents of both general education and G&T students, who say that the D.O.E. ignored their wishes and made changes to a program that no one asked for.

An inside player who helped negotiate an unusual admissions policy at an elementary school in fast-changing Sunset Park, Brooklyn lifts the curtain on the process behind the policy that will set aside more than a third of the Kindergarten seats for poor and immigrant students.

One elementary school in crowded District 30 is getting more seats soon. The School Construction Authority announced plans to build an annex slated to open in 2016.

The city said average class sizes increased by 1.6 percent this fall, with the biggest jump seen in first grade. The overall student-teacher ratio for both general education and inclusion classes decreased by 1.4 students per teacher, according to the latest class size data released by the D.O.E.

A local Corona native leads the middle school I.S. 61 with a focus on strong relationships and continuity for his students. SchoolBook interviews Joseph Lisa in our latest Principals Office.

A parent argues against the city’s proposal to re-draw the lines for elementary schools in Park Slope, Brooklyn. She says it causes more problems than it solves.

The Education Department has presented plans to rezone parts of District 2, covering Midtown East, Greenwich Village and Chelsea. Families and local residents can weigh in on the proposals later this month, ahead of the Community Education Council vote.

According to the annual survey of class size conducted by the teachers’ union, there were 670 schools with overcrowded general education classes in the city in the first weeks of school, up from 660 last year. The number of overcrowded special education classes more than doubled.

Beacon High School is getting a brand new facility on West 44th Street in Manhattan. When construction is done, the screened school will have a cafeteria, a gym, and technology and arts labs. There also will be space for the popular school to accept about 300 more students.