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Our Insights

What’s Special

Small progressive school that welcomes both 9th graders and transfer students

The Downside

Foreign language only offered for two years, limited advanced course offerings

Humanities Prep, a small progressive school in the Bayard Rustin Educational Campus in Chelsea, provides an academically challenging and welcoming alternative to traditional high schools. Humanities Prep enrolls both 14-year-old 9th graders and older teens who may have struggled in a typical high school. 

Academics and Instruction: Classes include group discussions and debates, with 17 to 24 students per class. Instead of Regents exam prep, students focus on research, writing and critical thinking. The only required Regents is English. Students show their learning through PBATs (performance-based assessment tasks) in math, English, science and social studies. They pick a topic, write about it, and present their work to a panel. The graduation rate is high, and most graduates are prepared for college.

Teachers highly recommend the school on the NYC School Survey. They shape courses that go beyond the typical Regents curriculum. Advanced math students, for instance, take a course on proofs, exploring problems in depth. In "Food Chemistry," students study chemicals in food with a focus on health and social justice. 

Courses, like "Awkward, Angry, or Invisible," examine literature from a teen’s view. Other options include invasive species, “monsters in literature,” and Chinese and Japanese literature. The school has full-time visual arts and music teachers. French and Arabic are offered but only for two years due to the school’s small size. 

Humanities Preparatory Academy offers Advanced Placement (AP) courses in research, seminar, US history, environmental science and art history.  

Culture and Environment: The school uses restorative justice. Students who break rules meet with a "fairness committee" of teachers and peers to resolve the issue. For example, a student who storms out of class may need to apologize to their peers and take on a leadership role. 

Students have the choice to eat lunch in the cafeteria, classrooms, or at round tables in the hallway. The school is inclusive and often accepts students who transfer after being bullied. 

Teachers and students use first names. Each teacher leads an advisory four days a week, staying with the same group for their entire time at the school. The atmosphere is casual, with hoodies and hats common, but respect is key, and cliques aren’t allowed. 

Student-led activities include clubs for ecology, debate, jewelry, cooking, theater, robotics and finance (Bank of America). 

Parents get daily attendance reports. Staff may visit homes of students with chronic absences, often due to anxiety, and assure them there are no negative consequences for returning to school.

Special Education and English as a New Language (ENL): The school has three full-time special education teachers, including one for math. Students with disabilities are in classrooms with both a general and special education teacher (integrated co-teaching).

There is also one full-time ENL teacher. Some English learners have separate classes, while others get individual support during the day. All ENL students have passed the English Regents.

Building and Facilities: Humanities Preparatory Academy shares its building with five other high schools. The gym is shared. A swimming pool in the basement is expected to open in 2026. 

College and Career: About one-third of students take College Now courses at Baruch and Hunter Colleges (CUNY). Students start planning for life after high school in advisory groups. The top 10 percent with the highest grades work with a private college counselor, funded by the school. There is also a full-time college counselor on staff.

Admissions: Most students enter in 9th grade via the main high school admissions process. Roughly 30 percent of students transfer from other high schools. Transfer applicants should contact the school for guidance. (Dashiell Allen, web reports and interview, October 2024)

 

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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?
 
97%
How many students with disabilities graduate in 4 years?
 
100%
Average daily attendance
 
86%
How many students miss 18 or more days of school?
 
42%
From the 2022-23 School Quality Guide and 2022-23 NYC School Survey

Students

265
Number of students
Citywide Average is 615

Race/Ethnicity


School
Citywide
Low-income students
 
67%
Students with disabilities
 
23%
Multilingual learners
 
4%
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?
 
83%
How many students think bullying happens most or all of the time at this school?
 
27%
How many students say that some are bullied at their school because of their gender or sexual orientation?
 
13%
How many teachers say they would recommend this school to other families?
 
100%
From the 2022-23 NYC School Survey and 2019-20 NY State Report Card

Faculty & Staff

School
Citywide
How many teachers say the principal is an effective manager?
 
100%
11.1
Years of principal experience at this school
Citywide Average is 7
261
Number of students for each guidance counselor or social worker
Citywide Average is 191
How many teachers have 3 or more years of experience teaching?
 
86%
Are teachers effective?
From the 2022-23 NYC School Survey, 2022-23 School Quality Guide, 2021-22 Report on School-Based Staff Demographics, 2023 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 2021-21

Computer Science

Not offered in 2021-21

Physics

 
39%

Advanced Foreign Language

Not offered in 2021-21

AP/IB Arts, English, History or Social Science

 
23%

AP/IB Math or Science

 
8%

Music

 
15%
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?
 
72%
How many students take a college-level course or earn a professional certificate?
 
40%
How many students who have graduated from this high school stay in college for at least 3 semesters?
 
53%
From the 2020-21 and 2022-23 School Quality Guide

How many graduates who are eligible received Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) funding to attend a NYS college?
 
35%
This shows how well this school supports low-income students to get funding for college.
How many of those TAP recipients made it through college? Learn more
From unpublished, anonymized student-level data for the class of 2016-17 provided by the New York State Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC) in coordination with the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC), brought to you by
How many students filled out a FAFSA form by the end of their senior year?
 
76%
From the 2022-23 FAFSA data released by Federal Student Aid, brought to you by Visit Understanding FAFSA for help with the FAFSA and financial aid.
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

Humanities Preparatory Academy (M99A)

Admissions Method: Screened

Program Description:

Develop intellectual and civic leadership through self-discovery and challenge, with an emphasis on writing, science and math, public speaking, the arts, technology, and community action.

Offerings

From the 2024 High School Directory

Language Courses

Spanish

Advanced Courses

Algebra II (Advanced Math), AP Art History, AP Environmental Science, AP Seminar, AP United States History, Chemistry (Advanced Science), Comp Sci/Math Tech (Advanced Placement), Physics (Advanced Science)

Boys PSAL teams

Baseball, Basketball, Bowling, Soccer, Volleyball, Wrestling

Girls PSAL teams

Basketball, Bowling, Softball, Tennis, Volleyball

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

NYC Department of Education: MySchools

Contact & Location

Location

351 West 18 Street
Manhattan NY 10011

Trains: 1 Line to 18th St; A Line, C Line, E Line, L Line to 14th St

Buses: M11, M12, M14A-SBS, M14D-SBS, M20, M23-SBS, M55, M7, SIM1C, SIM33C, SIM3C, SIM4C


Contact

Principal: Jeannie Ferrari

Parent Coordinator: Dilyon Stanislaus

Phone: 212-929-4433

Website

Other Details

Shared campus? Yes

This school shares the Bayard Rustin Educational Campus with five other schools

Uniforms required? No
Metal detectors? No

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