will reduce dropout rates, keep more students interested in academics and limit the number of students who get lost in the shuffle of high school.
The Lower Manhattan Arts Academy (www.lomanyc.net) LOMA opened its doors in September 2005 with the intention of creating a small neighborhood school with a student community that mirrors the population and culture of the arts-minded Lower East Side. Principal John Wenk is a longtime educator who has worked at the Professional Performing Arts School as well as formerly teaching at Seward. Sad to see the end of a historic neighborhood institution, he wanted to retain what was good in the building - its strong, experienced teachers - and shift them into his new school. He also wanted to build arts into the curriculum, treating them with the type of seriousness they receive at Performing Arts, where aspiring actors, dancers, and other artists learn both technical and academic skills. LOMA plans on a school size of no more than 300 students.
The Urban Assembly Academy of Government and Law (www.urbanassembly.org/gal.html) opened its doors in September 2005 and seeks to build on the success of two schools with similar themes in the Bronx and Brooklyn. The school's curriculum is designed to build an understanding of how academic subjects and issues in government and law intersect in ways that affect the lives of real people. Principal Joaquin Tamayo, plans to follow the pattern of the many well-regarded Urban Assembly schools - strong leadership, a carefully chosen faculty, small advisory groups in which the students receive extensive personal attention, and creative and substantive use of its specific theme through strong and committed community partners. The school is partnered with New York University School of Law, the Welfare Law Center and several New York City law firms. Urban Assembly plans on a school size of no more than 300 students.
Essex Street Academy (www.essexstreetacademy.org/home) was founded in September 2004. Students have daily advisory periods to discuss school and personal issues with a faculty member. They also attend school-wide town hall meetings, where they are briefed on the latest events and participate in activities so that teachers and students stay connected to each other. Essex Street Academy is a member of the Coalition for Essential Schools network, which advocates for small schools where students concentrate on learning a few subjects in detail. Principal Alex Shub, formerly a teacher at the Institute for Collaborative Education (ICE), studied under Theodore Sizer, the Brown University emeritus professor and education reformer who organized the coalition. Subscribing to the same philosophy as the group, the school centers its classes around themes so students can follow a common thread through their studies in a course. Essex Street Academy plans on a school size of no more than 300 students.
High School for Dual Language and Asian Studies
(schools.nyc.gov/SchoolPortals/02/M545/newsandinfo/News/NewsInfo1.htm) opened in September 2003 with the idea that monolingual students who are taught in two languages - English and Mandarin Chinese - can end up proficient in both. Ninth grade at the school is structured as a "foundation year," when teachers devote considerable instructional time to the second language in preparation for work ahead. Led by Principal Li Yan, once an English-language teacher, the school features a longer class day because of the demands of the curriculum. Dual Language plans on a school size of no more than 500 students.
New Design High School (http://www.newdesignhigh.com) opened in September 2003 with the goal of prodding students to learn through art. Principal Scott Conti makes it his mission to use art as "a vehicle for problem solving." Art projects are incorporated into academic classes, so students may illustrate a book about the greenhouse effect in a science class or graph architectural spaces in math. In the afternoons, students take art studio, in which visiting artists expose the kids to various forms of expression, while teaching them technique and style. The school has partnerships with several art and architecture firms. New design plans on a school size of no more than 500 students.
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