A seed grows in Brooklyn. And it could grow into something great. There’s no way of knowing. But last night a group of administrators and teachers presented their visionary ideas for a new high school that’s opening next year on Henry Street and it sounded very exciting to me, a veteran of many high school open houses.

An outgrowth of the Brooklyn New School, the Brooklyn Secondary School for Collaborative Studies is designing a fascinating program for their first class of 108 high school freshmen. These students will spend their mornings engaged in an interdisciplinary, inquiry-based curriculum that "sparks curiosity and creativity." This part of their day is  project-oriented and the students will be evaluated through portfolios and presentations to a group of faculty members.

The afternoons will be devoted to more traditional skill-based classes like Math, ELA, Science and Spanish.

A visionary school like this will only suceed if it gets the right kind of students. They must be motivated and willing to work. The school also needs to be rigorous enough to ensure that the kids pass all requirements for a New York State high school diploma. BSSCS says that they will be interviewing prospective students to make sure that they understand this and  want to particpate in creating this growing school.

What I heard last night was exciting: a small school with humanistic values, where students can grapple with big philosophical questions and learn a great deal in the process about themselves and the choices they make. It’s an experiment for sure and it’s not for everyone. But a vision fueled by energy, expertise and intelligence was palpable in that Brooklyn classroom last night.

Yours from Brooklyn,
OTBKB