Of all the New York City agencies Zohran Mamdani will soon be in charge of, the largest, by a wide margin, is the public school system.

Yet, the mayor-elect did not signal comprehensive plans for it during the campaign. Many are wondering if the status quo will remain or if major shake-ups are coming.

Education is of “immense importance,” Mamdani says

The public school system is in the midst of an ongoing bus contract dispute and has an enrollment that shrunk by 20,000 students this year, according to the Department of Education’s preliminary data.

On Thursday, just hours after he won the election, Mamdani held a press conference detailing his transition.

“The topics of education and public safety continue to be of immense importance,” he said.

But of those two topics, more is known about his plans for public safety and the NYPD — an agency with a budget roughly one-sixth the size of the school system’s — than education.

What we know about Mamdani’s education plan

The mayor-elect has proposed a system of “co-governance” rather than mayoral control of the school system, but he hasn’t provided much detail on how that might work.

He supports the current literacy and math curriculums of the Adams administration, but wants to eliminate the kindergarten entry point to Gifted and Talented programs. He also has a $12 million plan to recruit teachers.

“Wanting to make sure that we recruit and retain enough educators is really important,” said Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers.

Weingarten called Mamdani’s election win “inspiring,” and appears ready to give him some leeway.

“I’m glad he knows what he doesn’t know and is learning,” Weingarten said.

“I know he’s looking at the system comprehensively”  

Late last month, the Mamdani campaign quietly organized a roundtable of education leaders and advocates. City Council Education Chair Rita Joseph helped organize it and described Mamdani as “still learning.”

“It was refreshing to see that, ‘Hey, I don’t know the system, but I’m willing to learn, I’m willing to see, and I don’t want to make mistakes along the way,'” Joseph said. “It’s too early to say he’s going to get rid of this and that. I know he’s looking at the system comprehensively.”

CBS News New York reached out to the mayor-elect’s office and asked for further details, like whether he plans to retain Schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos, but did not immediately hear back.