Nikole Hannah-Jones's Husband Accused of Fighting School Integration While Advocating for Diversity

Activist and reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones and her husband, Faraji, campaigned against allowing more students from affluent backgrounds into their daughter’s predominantly Black Brooklyn elementary school, PS 307, while simultaneously decrying the city's school system as "segregated," according to a New York Post investigation.

In 2016, the couple reportedly opposed a Department of Education rezoning initiative that would have sent students from the gentrified Dumbo neighborhood to PS 307. At the time, PS 307 was underutilized at 50% capacity and was approximately 90% Black. Meanwhile, the nearby PS 8 was over capacity and had a waiting list. The rezoning plan aimed to integrate PS 307 by assigning students from the wealthier, whiter Dumbo area.

Nikole Hannah-Jones, in a September 2026 New York Times Magazine essay, described sending their daughter, Najya, to PS 307 as a deliberate choice to attend a "mostly low-income and Black school" that "wealthier families with choices uniformly avoid," with the belief they could "help improve it for all the children there."

However, according to local reports, Faraji Hannah-Jones, who was then PTA co-president at PS 307, pushed for limits on the number of new students the school could accept. The Dumbo neighborhood was roughly 70% white and 11% Asian. Faraji reportedly stated at a 2016 community meeting, “When we said 50%, we didn’t say 50% with conditions. We said 50%, period.” He added, “We want the opportunity to sustain our equity for that neighborhood. We don’t want PS 307 to become PS 8.”

Parents at PS 307 expressed dismay and confusion over Hannah-Jones's characterization of the school. Ebony Richardson, a former PTA chair and current volunteer at PS 307, told The Post that the couple "came into this school to make a mess" and felt "heartbroken" by Hannah-Jones's description. Richardson stated, “They were imposing their will on the school.”

Parents who spoke to The Post rejected Hannah-Jones's portrayal of the school as failing and chaotic. One parent described her actions as "selfish," questioning whether she prioritized her child's education or her own agenda. Data indicates that PS 307's proficiency rates in reading and math are significantly below the city average.

Despite their stated goals of improving the school, neither Nikole nor Faraji Hannah-Jones has returned to PS 307 since their daughter moved on, according to Richardson.

In an email to The Post, Nikole Hannah-Jones stated that she and her husband "never" opposed the integration of the school. She claimed they were fighting for parental input and that the rezoning should include a percentage of seats for low-income students to prevent the school from becoming exclusively affluent. She also mentioned that her husband, Faraji, who grew up on a military base and serves on an NYC Department of Education committee, compared her to civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr., calling her "one of our civil-rights leaders."

At the time of the rezoning debate, the Hannah-Joneses lived near PS 25, an under-enrolled elementary school in Bedford-Stuyvesant that was outperforming expectations. PS 25 ultimately closed in 2025 due to low enrollment. Nikole Hannah-Jones explained that they chose PS 307 because it offered universal pre-K, which they sought to start their daughter's education in.