Hello BSA supporters!
Summer break is approaching, and our students here at BSA are wrapping up portfolios, preparing for Regents, and our very first graduating class will soon hold their diplomas in hand! 16 of our students have already been accepted into college, and the number keeps rising! Here is an update on how our students are staying focused and engaged as this school year comes to an end.
Art Show
On Tuesday April 21, we celebrated the artistic talents of our students at our Third Annual Art Show. It was great to see students speak with staff, caregivers and guests about the work they produced in art and technology class over the last couple months. The evening also featured our Culinary Club who prepared and served snacks to our guests. Many of our student artists were lucky enough to sell their one-of-a-kind art work. Half the proceeds of each piece sold goes to the student and the other half benefits BSA’s art program.
Duke of Edinburgh International Awards Ceremony & Gala
BSA welcomed a very royal visitor last month, His Royal Highness (HRH), Prince Edward. The Prince visited Broome Street Academy as part of his trip to New York to promote The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award. Three of our BSA girls received a bronze medal from His Royal Highness, Prince Edward, as part of their participation in the award program, which recognizes student achievement in community service and adventure education. The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award gave individual BSA students the opportunity to take part in lessons in activities such as archery, basketball, classical singing, and cooking. Amaya, a budding zoologist, was given the opportunity to participate in an internship at the Bronx Zoo. Another student Takeya, who aspires to do the voiceover on cartoons, was given professional voiceover acting lessons.
Prince Edward presented our students with their Bronze level Award. The students who participated are looking forward to working towards the Silver level Award over the next school year.
Singing in the Summer
On Thursday May 7, students were visited by a group of professional singers. Actor Bill Connington kindly organized the visit to help BSA students prepare for their upcoming performance of RENT. Our students enjoyed a private performance of musical theater professionals singing numbers from the iconic Jonathan Larsen musical, and professional opera singers singing selections from La Bohème, which RENT is based on.
Bill talked with students about how singing, and performance in general, helps you express your emotions and creativity in a safe environment. Bill said "Singing is about sharing your voice. Sharing with the audience who you are, and your deepest feelings.
The professional singers ended the performance with ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ from the musical Carousel, and were given a standing ovation from BSA students. After the show, students received the singers’ top tips on how to best prepare for our upcoming performance of Rent.
As always, we sincerely appreciate your interest and support of BSA.
Check out the links below to learn more about our school and stay tuned for a report on graduation!
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Hello Supporters and happy February! Winter has not slowed us down here at BSA and we have tons of news to share with you…
On a Roll with Honor Roll
Broome Street Academy has inducted students into the National Honors Society! 16 of our BSA girls joined this organization, which recognizes students across North America for excellence in academics, service, leadership and character. Here’s what one of our National Honors Society girls said about her motivation:
“Other people may think I take my grades too seriously, but it’s just that I’m motivated and competitive. One thing I’ve learned is that life isn’t always perfect, but it’s always what you make it. So make it count. Make it memorable, and never let anyone steal your happiness.”
This is the first time in BSA history that our students have made it into the National Honors Society, and most certainly will not be the last!
Sports Update: Slam Dunk for the Lady Warriors!
Our Champion year continues! The BSA girls’ basketball team recently wrapped up their season and brought home first place in their league! Our boys’ team also won their league, and the two trophies look great sitting side by side. We truly are unstoppable!
BSA Students: Future Community Leaders
BSA seniors partnered with the Brooklyn Public Library this year for a new social studies project: the first annual Government Project Fair. For this assignment, seniors selected an issue they felt connected to and developed an action plan to make a difference in their communities. Topics chosen included gentrification, homelessness, marriage equality, and much more. They then met up with the staff at Brooklyn Public Library to learn about the research methods and resources needed to complete their assignments. Once finished, our students pulled out all the stops for their final presentations- using poster displays, PowerPoint, and videos to educate their peers and teachers on the issues they researched. The students showed an incredible amount of passion and professionalism through this project, and really made their teachers proud! Plans are already being made for next year’s fair. As always, we sincerely appreciate your interest and support of BSA.
Check out the links below to learn more about our school and stay up-to-date on all that we're doing!
Links:
Hello Supporters! Can you believe it? Broome Street is gearing up for our 4th year! The 4th anniversary marks the first year of having all 4 grades AND a full senior class. With the highest attendance rate in the history of the school, the largest staff yet, and tons of new programming, our Champion Year is gearing up to be our strongest yet.
#Champs
Along with our Champion Year comes the Champion Program. This program matches up each BSA student with a personal staff mentor. Staff members consistently meet with their champions to nurture the specific needs of the students and keep them on track. Because each student has at least one strong personal connection with a staff member, every student has the time, attention, and support they need to work through specific struggles and find their greatest strengths. Having a positive connection between students and adults decreases bullying, lowers drop-out rates, and improves social emotional capacities. With this additional layer of support our Champion Year is looking bright!
BSA Scores Big
Soccer has arrived at BSA! A few months ago, with the help of supporters like you, and the Dick’s Sporting Goods Foundation, we raised enough money for a girls and a boys soccer team. The Broome Street Academy Warriors laced up their cleats for their very first season, and what a season it was! BSA took on other NYC Charter Schools, and kept up with even the toughest teams in the league. Our girls even tied one of their final games! For some of our girls, this was the first sports team they have ever been on. Our coaches were impressed with the commitment, dedication, teamwork, and strength the girls showed, and were especially proud of how those skills followed the girls from the field into the classroom.
Girl Rising
Our friends at Bobbi Brown Cosmetics reached out to us about an inspiring film they have seen and wanted to share with our students. The film is “Girl Rising” and follows the stories of nine girls from developing countries as they overcome great social and cultural barriers in order to get an education and improve their lives. The Bobbi Brown team not only recommended the film, but set up a screening for us! The dance studio was transformed into a movie theater, complete with popcorn and snacks, and both male and female students packed the room to watch. We were lucky to have a Girl Rising staff member join us after the film to an exclusive Q&A session with us. Students asked questions about making the film, and where the girls are today. BSA history teacher Mr. Lewis then encouraged the students to share their feelings after viewing the film. Overwhelmingly, the students said the film made them realize they take for granted what they have at home and at school – that despite their tough situations, at the very least they have BSA and our staff to support them.
As always, we sincerely appreciate your interest and support of BSA. Visit our website and join our mailing list to learn more about our school and stay up-to-date on all that we're doing.
We have so much to share with you! BSA accomplished some fantastic feats these past few months and we are gearing up for another exciting school year.
BSA’s first spring play
The school held its first ever school play in the spring – the Hip-Hopification of a Midsummer Night’s Dream . BSA’s Performing Arts teacher worked with the students to re-write the Shakespeare classic into rhyming couplets put to a hip-hop beat. After months of preparation – learning lines, creating costumes, and building sets – the students held two knockout performances. The audience laughed, cheered, and, of course, applauded the actors who gained experience in performing, orating and taking risks!
Graduation!
In June, we were proud to celebrate our school’s first four graduates! These young adults graduated from BSA in just three years (having arrived at BSA with a few credits already under their belt). Overcoming many obstacles and proving their resilience over and over again, our graduates proudly accepted their diplomas in a room full of teachers, friends, family members, and supporters. Some are heading to college, focusing on careers like law enforcement, while others are pursuing careers through internships and employment. One graduate was awarded the NYC Comptroller Student Achievement Award. It was a big moment for BSA, watching our first few students hold their diplomas high, and we are so excited about the upcoming start of the school year where our first full senior class will work towards their own graduation day.
State exams
The majority of BSA students sat for at least one New York State Regents exam in June. In order to graduate, all students must pass at least five statewide exams: English, Integrated Algebra, US History, Global History and a Science (Earth Science, Environmental Living, Chemistry or Physics). At BSA, our goal is for all sophomores to have passed at least one exam, juniors to have passed at least three and seniors to have passed five or more by the completion of each school year. As of July, 96% of sophomores and 90% of juniors were on track towards graduation. Additionally, 46% of freshman are ahead of schedule with at least one (and some with more) exams passed!
What’s next?
BSA was also lucky to be selected by New York City Schools Chancellor Carmen Farina to be a part of the Learning Partners Program. Recognized for BSA’s talents in building a positive school culture, we will act as a host school for two Manhattan middle schools by providing trainings and support in helping to implement culture-building programs of their own. The program allows for routine feedback and sharing of best practices over the course of the year. We were honored to be selected and are excited to work with our partners.
This fall, BSA will launch our Champion Model, a student advocate program designed to build relational trust, provide students with an adult advocate and support students in learning how to self-advocate. All students will have a Champion – a staff member dedicated to supporting them academically, socially and emotionally through the full school year. Champions will check in with students regularly to assess needs and connect them to in-school, Door or community programs. Having an adult mentor/friend/advocate is instrumental in the lives of our students, as many don’t have any of these at home. We’re looking forward to tracking and assessing the impact of the program and will be sure to share more with you in future reports!
As always, we sincerely appreciate your interest and support of BSA. Visit our website and join our mailing list to learn more about our school and stay up-to-date on all that we're doing.
PS: In the NYC area? Consider coming to our October fundraiser, Our Family Table.
Links:
What haven’t we been doing here at BSA since February!? Over the past few months we’ve had some exciting visitors, excellent arts programming, and of course, a constant focus on academics.
In March, BSA hosted New York City Schools’ Chancellor Carmen Farina for a visit. The Chancellor was very impressed with our school, particularly the way our teachers run their classrooms, the community feel, and the collaborative attitude amongst all staff and students. She mentioned her visit to BSA on a television interview with NY1 and during her 100 days speech. It was very meaningful for us to hear such positive feedback from such an influential leader.
The Chancellor mentioned how invested all of our staff and students were in their learning. How do we get students invested? Well, it’s unique for each individual. Everyone has an academic plan, but each student needs different types of support and engagement to succeed. Some find engagement through after-school activities, like our Cosmetology Club, sponsored and supported by Bobbi Brown Cosmetics. Bobbi Brown staff and make-up artists visit the club once a month to lead a make-up lesson and discuss all the various careers and jobs that fall within the cosmetics industry. Providing our students with insight into the expansive world of their possible futures helps to motivate them to remain invested in their school work and look to the future as a motivator to overcome barriers to success.
Other students find motivation through the arts. BSA was asked by the National Arts Club to participate in a week-long gallery event titled “Inspiring Arts Education Summit”. One of three featured schools, BSA selected 30 pieces of art to display in the National Arts Club’s Trask Gallery. The event’s headlining artist, Inocente, the focus of the Academy Award Winning Short Documentary, visited BSA and collaborated with our students on two murals. Inocente was a formerly homeless youth that used art to cope with her difficult surroundings – something that many of our students could relate to.
Our students also have access to mentors, counseling, support groups, sports, and more to supplement and support their academics. Ultimately, we’re all working towards ensuring each student graduates with a high school diploma and so many of our students are succeeding. In late March we held an academic awards ceremony to acknowledge our students success to-date giving out superlatives for each student, including “Most likely to bring a smile to your face” and “Most considerate and reflective student”.
Our academic classes are enhanced by prep classes focused on PSATs and SATs. As the year’s end approaches, we have after-school test-prep sessions and Regents University – a program that supports our students in preparing for the New York State exams required for graduation. It’s go time from here on out and we’ll all be working hard to finish this school year on a high note.
We are so appreciative of your interest and support of BSA. Visit our website and join our mailing list to learn more about our school and stay up-to-date on events and activities.
PS: We recently successfully completed a campaign to bring soccer to our school – check out this video where our students explain what a soccer team means to them!
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