Clara Barton High School

Clara Barton strives to prepare students for health careers like nursing or dentistry. High achievers may take advantage of the Gateway Honors program in science and math. However, according to school surveys, nearly one-third of students say they don’t feel safe in hallways, bathrooms and locker rooms, and more than half feel unsafe in the neighborhood outside the school.

Enrollment has declined significantly in recent years.

Students may apply to one of six health majors, four of which are state-licensed career and technical education (CTE) courses. The program puts students in contact with organizations like Kings County Hospital and the Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation, where they can get internships.

The Gateway Honors program is for students interested in medicine, science and engineering. Students work hard and have rigorous schedules with double periods in science and math. They can also pursue college classes through College Now.

Girls predominate over boys at Clara Barton by a margin of about three to one. The school has PSAL boys’ and girls’ sports, such as basketball and cricket, and other activities like gospel choir and drama club.

A bilingual Haitian Creole program prepares students for admission to the health career programs. English language learners get field experience by interning at local nursing homes.

SPECIAL EDUCATION: Classes have both special needs and general education students, where special needs teachers push in.

ADMISSIONS: Citywide. The Gateway Honors program admits students based on a review of grades and state exam scores. The Health Career Professions program admits students according to the educational option formula, designed to ensure a mix of students of different abilities. Bilingual Haitian Creole students also may apply for the bilingual program. (Isabel Corpus, web reports, June 2018)