July 15, 2016

DDC Middle School Summer Enrichment Program Visit to the Museum of the City of New York

On July 15th, DDC Community Partnerships and STEAM Initiatives along with 50 of their middle school students from LEAP MS 22, visited the Museum of the City of New York. The students went on a tour of the museum and became city planners for the day. They learned how New York City was developed and explored five central city planning challenges and opportunities that New York will face in coming generations. Specifically, what can we do to provide economic opportunities for the next generation? How can we foster a more inclusive city? How can we meet the housing needs of New Yorkers? How can New York City enhance its natural environment and cope with climate change? And lastly how can we make it easier for people to get into and around the city? Students discussed these issues and imagined the city’s future by designing a street, a building, and a park, and ways of addressing these challenges, drawing ideas from cities around the world. They also learned about the different types of zoning classifications. The experience was intended to prepare students to plan the layout of their own “Future City” project at the end of the summer enrichment program.

“DDC’s summer curriculum introduces fun, engaging hands-on activities related to the built environment, taking students on a journey from ancient time to the 21st century history of building structures,” said DDC Commissioner Feniosky Peña-Mora. “Our goal is to expose students to the world of the built environment and provide them with the tools and framework to not only understands how things work, but also how best to make them work to the benefit of our city and the larger society.”