In January 2018, we got major news to share! Broome Street Academy is just one of eight schools to be labeled a School of Opportunity by the National Education Policy Center.
The Schools of Opportunity project assesses a range of factors, including a school's ability to:
The award was covered in the Washington Post on January 22, 2018 and represents a major accomplishment for our small but mighty school. It acknowledges the hard work our staff puts in to make sure our students have better opportunities in their education.
The 2017-2018 school year has begun!
Our incoming freshmen and transfer students are being assigned to their CHAMPIONS - a staff mentor who will check in with them regularly throughout the school year to keep them on track and motivated as they make their way through high school.
Our seniors are currently holding elections for class president, and all of our students are getting settled in for a busy school year.
Our BSA Pride Week begins in mid-November, and is an opportunity for our stduents to get to know the spirit of BSA and its five pillars better: professionalism, resilience, investment, dignity, and empathy.
We are also preparing for our gala event in November - a major fundraiser that we co-host with our nonprofit partners The Door and Broome Street Academy. This gala is an opportunity to celebrate our major accomplishments for the year with our donors and supporters.
On Thursday, June 29, we celebrated the success of 63 Broome Street Academy seniors at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center as they head off to the schools of their dreams and opportunities of a lifetime. Nearly 80% of graduates have been accepted to college, with more than $100,000 in scholarships awarded just for them. They will soon attend some of the top schools in the country, with one graduate even shipping overseas to study at the University of East London!
BSA Board President David Zurndorfer opened the ceremony by reading a letter from Governor Cuomo congratulating the students and the school on their successes. While Rahzel, our valedictorian and senior class president, moved the audience with her stirring speech.
Rahzel is a remarkable student who overcame personal hardships and academic obstacles with her tireless work ethic and support from BSA. She enrolled in the most rigorous classes available, participated in various afterschool clubs, and volunteered for numerous community service projects. She was also one of the first students in the Hamilton Education Program, and has even met Mayor Bill de Blasio.
“Even though BSA is a small school, it has provided me with amazing opportunities and support. Plus it’s in the epicenter of New York City.” With a few college credits already under her belt, Rahzel will attend the prestigious New York University next year on a full scholarship.
The ceremony was designed to give students the chance to celebrate their well-deserved achievement with friends and family, and with the teachers and staff members who helped them throughout the years. Each graduate was presented with a diploma by his or her CHAMPION, the BSA staff member who provided them with one-on-one support and encouragement every step of the way.
Bryan Terrell Clark, who currently stars as George Washington in the hit Broadway musical Hamilton, delivered a rousing keynote address and spoke about the limitless potential of our students: “I want you to understand that where you are as a young person right now doesn’t define who you are. Some of you have gone through some things that no one else would ever understand. But those circumstances don’t define you. You define you! You can take the good and the bad in your life…and build on those things to become who you really want to be.”
A committed supporter of BSA, he also served as our MC at last year’s gala. “When I came to BSA, I was blown away by the impact that this school has on the lives of young people. Education and the arts shaped my future. BSA makes sure that every student, regardless of their circumstances, has both available to them. I jumped at the chance to be involved in any way. ”
BSA students succeed because of supporters like you who help us provide intensive, individualized resources for each student until the day they graduate.
Be sure to also check out more photos from the big day on our Facebook page!
BSA is blossoming in the arts these past few months!
We just hosted our annual student art show, with self portraits and other incredible artwork created by our students on display and sale for caregivers, staff, and friends. Many of the self portraits came with artist statements about how the young people learned how to grow through their art. For example, student artist Isabella entitled her piece Shyness and explained: “In freshman and sophomore year, I was a very shy girl and barely made any friends. Although I had four close friends, I was always in the shadows. I learned that it takes time to loosen up.”
We also recently had one of our students, Mahfouz, win the grand prize in the New York City Community Schools Student Film Contest. Many of our students submitted short video clips about BSA; Mahfouz's film was selected as the city-wide winner, so his film was screened at the Tribeca Teaches Film Festival. His classmates were invited to join him to see his film on the big screen, plus a special breakfast! Check out his short film on our website now.
This fall, we've had some very exciting updates at BSA.
We're looking forward to celebrating our first ever CHAMPION Day - it's a unique model in which our students have a staff mentor who cheers them on to success. We'll also be hosting an open house in December for any prospective 2017-2018 students.
We've just released a brand new video about our school as well - get to know BSA and what makes us unique by watching the video online now!
Finally, our Head of School was interviewed on PBS MetroFocus with the President of the Gilder Lehrman Institute to discuss how critical the EduHam program has been to helping young people creatively engage with history. Watch the video segment online now!
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can recieve an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
