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Our Insights

What’s Special

Theater focus; supportive environment

The Downside

Poor attendance, limited resources

A tiny school, School for Classics High School offers a supportive environment, a collaborative staff and the chance for students to perform in theater productions such as Hamlet and Guys and Dolls. Although most students come in with test scores well below the city average, three-quarters graduate in four years.

Across the street from the Cypress Hills public housing development, School for Classics shares a building with a neighborhood middle school, JHS 218 James P. Sinott, and a charter middle school, Invictus Preparatory Charter School. Students say they feel safe in the building, but there are some concerns about the surrounding neighborhood, according to school surveys.

Teachers give the school high marks for its work environment and are overwhelmingly positive about the principal, according to school surveys. Virtually all say they would recommend School for Classics to parents seeking a high school for their child. Teachers work well together, creating a coherent academic program that boosts achievement, according to an educator who visited the school for a Department of Education report called the Quality Review.

Teaching artists work with classroom teachers certified in theater and dance. There are several Advanced Placement classes and student may opt for a science program where they take chemistry, AP Environmental sciences and AP biology. 

 The small size clearly limits students’ options, and many students responding to the survey say the school does not offers enough classes and other activities to keep them interested. There is only one PSAL sport, basketball, with both boys and girls teams, for example.

Attendance is well below average, with almost half of the students missing at least a month of school. Few students are well-prepared for college.

However, a student interviewed by The Bell podcast praised the theater program, which allowed him to act in Hamlet and sing in Guys and Dolls. “We were working from September all through June and it was great,” the student, Noah, said. [school photo from The Bell podcast website]

Special education: The school provides team teaching classes with a mix of general and special education classes. More than a quarter of students are English language learners. The Quality Review said teachers make a special effort to ensure that students with disabilities and those learning English have access to the same curriculum as other students, noting, for example, that teachers in some subjects provide student with material translated into Spanish and Bengali along with glossaries, dictionaries and access to on-line translation tools. (Gail Robinson, from DOE materials and web reports, October 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?
 
83%
How many students with disabilities graduate in 4 years?
 
63%
How many English language learners graduate in 4 years?
 
95%
Average daily attendance
 
84%
How many students miss 18 or more days of school?
 
44%
How many parents of students with disabilities say this school offers enough activities and services for their children's needs?
 
100%
How many parents of students with disabilities say this school works to achieve the goals of their students' IEPs?
 
100%
From the 2021-22 School Quality Guide and 2020-21 NYC School Survey

Students

272
Number of students
Citywide Average is 615

Race/Ethnicity


School
Citywide
Low-income students
 
91%
Students with disabilities
 
24%
Multilingual learners
 
36%
From the 2022-23 Demographic Snapshot

Safety & Vibe

School
Citywide
How many students were suspended?
 
2%
How many students say they feel safe in the hallways, bathrooms and locker rooms?
 
83%
How many students think bullying happens most or all of the time at this school?
 
48%
How many students say that some are bullied at their school because of their gender or sexual orientation?
 
32%
How many teachers say they would recommend this school to other families?
 
79%
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?
 
74%
4.0
Years of principal experience at this school
Citywide Average is 7
117
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?
 
78%
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

Not offered in 2019-20

Computer Science

 
0%

Physics

Not offered in 2019-20

Advanced Foreign Language

Not offered in 2019-20

AP/IB Arts, English, History or Social Science

 
28%

AP/IB Math or Science

 
9%

Music

 
3%
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?
 
50%
How many students take a college-level course or earn a professional certificate?
 
67%
How many students who have graduated from this high school stay in college for at least 3 semesters?
 
54%
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?
 
57%
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

Theater Skills (L53A)

Admissions Method: Ed. Opt.

Program Description:

We have developed an interesting sequence of theater courses that involve portraying complex characters, scene work, monologues, improvisation, and stage craft. Students begin their high school career with introductory theater classes which progress to the writing, production, and performing of plays and shows.

Offerings

From the 2024 High School Directory

Language Courses

Spanish

Advanced Courses

Algebra II (Advanced Math), AP English Language and Composition, AP Environmental Science, AP Psychology, AP Spanish Language and Culture, AP United States Government and Politics, Chemistry (Advanced Science), Comp Sci/Math Tech (College Course [Credited]), ELA (College Course [Credited]), Math (College Course [Credited]), Math (College Course [Uncredited]), Other (College Course [Credited]), Science (College Course [Credited]), Social Studies (College Course [Credited]), World Languages (Advanced World Languages)

Boys PSAL teams

Basketball

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

NYC Department of Education: MySchools

Contact & Location

Location

370 Fountain Avenue
Brooklyn NY 11208

Trains: A Line, C Line to Euclid Av

Buses: B13, B14, B15, B20, BM5, Q7, Q8


Contact

Principal: Nicole Tancredi

Parent Coordinator: Ivory Ellison

Website

Other Details

Shared campus? Yes

This school shares the building James P. Sinnott Magnet School for Health and Health Careers and Achievement First Linden Charter School

Uniforms required? No
Metal detectors? No

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