The High School for Contemporary Arts, a small school in the Evander Childs Educational Campus, has a black box theater, a brightly-lit art studio, a music room, and a dance studio. It has benefited from the stable leadership of Francisco Sanchez, principal since 2005, as well as low teacher turnover.

“The school has a sense of community,” said Heidi Dien Ludwig, a staffer for New Visions for Public Schools, the non-profit group that provides support to the school. “The principal is dynamic, larger than life. He knows every child, and he has an open door policy.” Freshmen begin the year with a Circle Line cruise around Manhattan.

In addition to classes in art, music, theater and dance, the school offers four years of math and four years of science—a stronger academic program than many of the city’s small schools. Although most students enter performing below grade level, three-quarters graduate on time. The school was the subject of a PBS documentary broadcast in 2007.

The High School for Contemporary Arts has a wide array of sports teams, shared with the other schools in the building.

Unfortunately, there are some concerns about safety and discipline. While students say they feel safe in class, they don’t always feel safe in the bathrooms, hallways or locker rooms, according to the Learning Environment Survey. Police have sometimes been called in to break up fights in the fourth floor cafeteria, which is shared by all the schools in the building. Ludwig said the principals in the building have been working together closely to resolve safety issues and have requested security cameras for the stairwells.

Special education: The school offers a range of special education services, including self-contained classes.

Admissions: Limited unscreened. Priority to students who attend an information session. (Clara Hemphill, Interviews and DOE statistics, August 2012.)