The Environmental Protection Agency is planning a large-scale inspection of New York City schools after a city-led pilot study found elevated levels of toxic PCB chemicals in three buildings last summer, according to the New York Times. The PCBs were found leaking from old fluorescent light fixtures and the Bloomberg administration has contended that there’s no cause for immediate concern about students’ health as a result of the contamination. Plus, the city has said, replacing the outdated fixtures in the estimated 750 to 850 school buildings that need new ones would likely cost around $1 billion. But the EPA called exposure to PCBs “cause for considerable concern” and will nonetheless begin its inspections early next month. [more]

New York City Schools chancellor Joel Klein announced he supports opening a public high school on the Upper West Side that specializes in writing. The school, which would be named after late Pulitzer Prize-winning author and teacher Frank McCourt, would open in fall 2010 at the Louis D. Brandeis High School campus on 84th Street between Amsterdam and Columbus avenues. The Frank McCourt School would join three other specialized high schools on the campus, including Global Learning Collaborative, the Urban Assembly School for Green Careers, and Innovation Diploma Plus, which helps older students graduate from high school. The city is planning to hold a public forum before the Panel for Educational Policy votes on the school.