The vision: College pennants in the corridors remind everyone their goal should be finishing high school and going on to college. Overnight trips create a sense of community.

The reality: Bronx Collegiate Academy, formerly known as the Bronx Expeditionary Learning School, is one of six small schools in the Taft Educational Complex. The name of the school was changed in the summer of 2011 to reflect a new focus on preparing students for college. The administration wants to encourage students to take college-level CUNY courses, called College Now, while they are still in high school and to continue their education after they graduate.

Bronx Collegiate still has a long way to go to achieve these goals. Most kids enter 9^th grade reading below grade level. Attendance is poor. While most kids say they feel safe in their classrooms, about one-third say they don’t feel safe in the neighborhood around the school, according to the Learning Environment Survey. There is a high rate of student suspensions. Students must pass through metal detectors to enter the building. There’s a lot of turnover in leadership: Darryl White is the fourth principal since the school was founded in 2004.

On the positive side, the teachers are young and energetic and seem to be willing to go the extra mile to engage the kids. For example, the faculty danced on stage to Beyonce--to the wild cheers of the students--at a school awards ceremony (recorded on YouTube). On our visit, we saw teachers push kids to achieve more. In one class, students who had already passed their Regents math exam were studying more advanced algebra so they could avoid remediation at CUNY. A college counselor gave students individual attention to encourage them to apply to college. While the school is no longer affiliated with Outward Bound, students still go on overnight trips. White says it’s important for students to have a bonding experience each fall and he schedules trips to places like the Frost Valley YMCA camp.

Special education: About 75 students receive special education services, including some in self-contained classes and some in Collaborative Team Teaching.(Clara Hemphill, December 2011)