Welcome to our Seminar II: The Peopling of New York class website! Under the direction of Professor Michael Batson, a group of sixteen Macaulay Honors College students complied information and statistics regarding the diverse ethnic population of Staten Island, as well as social and ethnic backgrounds of the Forgotten Borough’s public schools. The course sought to investigate the role of immigration and migration in shaping New York City’s identity. We considered the factors that have drawn people to New York since the 17th century; the different ways that religion, race, gender, and ethnicity have shaped immigrant encounters with the city; the impact of successive waves of newcomers on urban culture and politics; and the continuing debates over assimilation and Americanization. Specifically, we examined the ethnic diversity, or lack thereof, in the public school system. Education is often regarded as the most important mechanism of social mobility and as the great equalizer; it is important to understand the interconnections between ethnicity, race, gender, and class within the education system. With the assistance of Stephen Boatright, our Instructional Technology Fellow, we utilized technological software to create this website, a collection of research and personal experience concerning the diverse New York City community of Staten Island.