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Our Insights

What’s Special

Challenging academics and lots of high tech, hands-on learning

The Downside

Hard to receive individual attention in the sea of 5,000 students

Brooklyn Tech has achieved the rare feat of remaining true to its original goal of forming "a more technically literate workforce," while staying up-to-date with the latest technology and skills. The largest of the city's specialized high schools, Tech offers an exciting environment for students who like to design, build and work with their hands.

Integral to the school's mission is the belief that students enjoy learning more when they can touch, feel and do things. This is evident in classes across all subject areas, but most obvious in the workshops and labs of the 18 technical or scientific "majors." On a typical day you may find aerospace engineering majors practicing on flight simulators, law and society majors conducting a forensic analysis of hairs left at a "crime scene," and architectural and engineering majors building two-story house inside a classroom.

The first-floor hallways are lined with an alumni Hall of Fame, reminding students of the school's lauded history and high expectation of success, though Tech lacks the sense of pressure and competition that pervades the some of the other specialized and highly competitive high schools in the city.

Students all start off together in two core technology classes--design and drafting for production and digital electronics, which teaches them to work together using industry-standard practices such as drafting software, reading blueprints, wiring their computer "bread boards," and printing prototypes on one of the school's many 3-D printers. These two courses are meant to introduce kids to the problem-solving and design skills they will need in any college major or career they pursue.

In the spring of their sophomore year, students rank all of the 19 majors according to preference, and those with the highest grade point average are given first choice. Majors require a sequence of four to eight courses that students must complete over two years in addition to fulfilling graduation requirements in math, English language arts and social studies. Tech is generally stronger in math and science than in the humanities.

Some majors are more demanding than others and none can be changed once assigned. Social science research, for example, requires a sequence of six Advanced Placement (AP) courses over two years. Other majors, like software engineering, allow more flexibility because there are fewer required courses. The wide array of AP course offerings are open to all students, as are the school's many music, dance and drama electives.

Some classrooms are just as they were when the building opened; others have been recently renovated, like the mock courtroom, complete with a judge's booth, jury benches and portraits of Supreme Court justices on the wall.

The school, founded in 1922, moved in 1933 to its current campus adjacent to Fort Greene Park. The massive building has wide hallways, several elevators and many huge classrooms renovated to keep up with new technological demands. The 3,000-seat theater is one of the largest in the city, and is used for school plays as well as public events. Students in the "Stageworks" club manage the lighting, sound and sets for events.

There are many sports teams and well over 100 extracurricular activities, including drama, salsa dancing, quilting, photography and a robotics team which has won national championships.  Students design, manufacture using heavy-duty equipment and build their robots in-house, not relying on corporate partners as most school teams do. At a school full of budding engineers, though, it is hard to make the cut amongst the hundreds of applications for a spot on this 28-member team. A robust alumni network actively supports the school.

David Newman, a former assistant principal at the school, was named principal in 2017. He replaced longtime principal, Randy Asher who left to oversee the Department of Education's efforts to reduce the number of teachers in the Absent Teacher Reserve (ATR) pool.

Tech has over 20 guidance counselors who work with individuals or small groups at key transition points, like freshmen year and during the college admissions process. Still, at this biggest of all city high schools, it's hard to provide individual attention to each student.

About one-third of graduates go to private or out-of-state colleges and many attend CUNY and SUNY schools, including the highly competitive Macaulay Honors College.

SPECIAL EDUCATION: Fewer than 1 percent of students receive special education services.  (Nicole Mader, March 2015; updated  August 2018)

 

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School Stats

Citywide Average Key
This school is Better Near Worse than the citywide average

Academics

School
Citywide
How many students graduate in 4 years?
 
96%
How many students with disabilities graduate in 4 years?
 
83%
Average daily attendance
 
93%
How many students miss 18 or more days of school?
 
19%
How many parents of students with disabilities say this school offers enough activities and services for their children's needs?
 
72%
How many parents of students with disabilities say this school works to achieve the goals of their students' IEPs?
 
80%
From the 2021-22 School Quality Guide and 2020-21 NYC School Survey

Students

5942
Number of students
Citywide Average is 599

Race/Ethnicity


School
Citywide
Low-income students
 
57%
Students with disabilities
 
2%
Multilingual learners
 
0%
From the 2022-23 Demographic Snapshot

Safety & Vibe

School
Citywide
How many students were suspended?
 
0%
How many students say they feel safe in the hallways, bathrooms and locker rooms?
 
95%
How many students think bullying happens most or all of the time at this school?
 
22%
How many students say that some are bullied at their school because of their gender or sexual orientation?
 
20%
From the 2020-21 NYC School Survey and 2019-20 NY State Report Card

Faculty & Staff

School
Citywide
How many teachers say the principal is an effective manager?
 
60%
5.7
Years of principal experience at this school
Citywide Average is 7
250
Number of students for each guidance counselor or social worker
Citywide Average is 157

Teachers’ Race/Ethnicity


How many teachers have 3 or more years of experience teaching?
 
96%
Are teachers effective?
From the 2020-21 NYC School Survey, 2021-22 School Quality Guide, 2019-20 Report on School-Based Staff Demographics, 2021 Guidance Counselor Report, and this school's most recent Quality Review Report

Advanced Courses

Which students have access to advanced courses at this school? Learn more

Calculus

 
18%

Computer Science

 
32%

Physics

 
31%

Advanced Foreign Language

 
22%

AP/IB Arts, English, History or Social Science

 
78%

AP/IB Math or Science

 
77%

Music

 
7%
From unpublished, anonymized data from the 2021-22 school year provided by the New York State Education Department, brought to you by

College Readiness

School
Citywide
How many students graduate with test scores high enough to enroll at CUNY without remedial help?
 
96%
How many students take a college-level course or earn a professional certificate?
 
100%
How many students who have graduated from this high school stay in college for at least 3 semesters?
 
91%
From the 2020-21 and 2021-22 School Quality Guide
How many students filled out a FAFSA form by the end of their senior year?
 
84%
From the 2022-23 FAFSA data released by Federal Student Aid, brought you by
For more information about our data sources, see About Our Data · More DOE statistics for this school

Programs & Admissions

From the 2024 High School Directory

Brooklyn Technical High School (K89S)

Admissions Method: Test

Program Description:

Admission to this Specialized High School is based solely on the score obtained on the Specialized High Schools Admissions Test (SHSAT). Students should speak to their school counselors in the Fall to register for the SHSAT.

Offerings

From the 2024 High School Directory

Language Courses

French, German, Italian, Mandarin, Spanish

Read about admissions, academics, and more at this school on NYCDOE’s MySchools

NYC Department of Education: MySchools

Contact & Location

Location

29 Ft Greene Place
Brooklyn NY 11217

Trains: 2 Line, 3 Line, 4 Line, 5 Line to Nevins St; A Line to Hoyt & Schermerhorn; B Line, Q Line, R Line to DeKalb Av; C Line to Lafayette Av; D Line, N Line to Atlantic Av; G Line to Fulton St

Buses: B103, B25, B26, B37, B38, B41, B45, B52, B54, B62, B63, B65, B67, B69


Contact

Principal: David Newman

Parent Coordinator: Elmer Anderson

Website

Other Details

Shared campus? No

This school is in its own building.

Uniforms required? No
Metal detectors? No

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