By law, a student's admission to one of New York City's eight elite high schools is determined by his or her score on the Specialized High School Admissions Test (SHSAT). Only a very small number of black and Hispanic students make the cut, a fact that has led Mayor Bill de Blasio to engineer what he regards as a more equitable racial distribution of the widely sought seats in these schools. This will mean that some students, mostly Asian, will lose the seats they would otherwise have earned. Opponents of the mayor's plan argue that the status quo is color-blind and merit-based and should largely be left alone. However, the actual effect of these changes for the students who will gain entry and those who lose out can't be considered in isolation. This report considers the mayor's plan for the specialized high schools in a citywide context. Among the findings are: (1) There is a clear hierarchy of high schools operated by the New York City Department of Education. Those schools that admit students with the highest average eighth-grade composite state test scores include the city's specialized high schools as well as other high-performing schools, many with a more racially diverse student body; (2) The eight high schools that use the SHSAT have the highest student attendance (96%), SAT scores (1429 combined verbal and math), and college-readiness rate (99%). However, the next 50 to 75 high schools (in terms of the achievement level of their entering classes) also post high outcomes: attendance rates of 90%-98%; combined average SAT scores of 1000-1400; and college-readiness rates of 80%-95%; and (3) The high schools whose students' eighth-grade composite state test scores were in the two lowest quintiles do not show good outcomes. Attendance data indicate that their students are disengaging from their education in larger numbers; more than 40% are deemed chronically absent. While their graduation rates are reasonable, only a small percentage enroll in college.