Brooklyn Institute for Liberal Arts (BILA)

Brooklyn Institute for Liberal Arts (BILA) is a small high school that helps children catch up and graduate on time, even if they come in with low skills. The majority of students finish the bulk of their high school credits and exams by the end of 10th grade, leaving time for advanced coursework. A recent graduate won a scholarship to Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania.

Most students at BILA are immigrants, or children of immigrants, from the English-speaking Caribbean islands.

Ann-Marie Henry-Stephens is the school's founding principal. A teacher for more than 25 years, Henry-Stephens has taught in both the Caribbean islands of Trinidad and Tobago and in New York City schools, most recently as an English teacher and assistant principal at the now-closed Paul Robeson High School.

Attendance is high and school surveys show children feel safe. Students meet in groups of 12 with a faculty advisor first thing almost every day and stay together all four years. Advisors help teens work through the tough transition from middle school to high school and make sure they do not fall behind. Students receive weekly progress reports, and advisors keep in touch with parents about attendance, tardiness and academic progress.

The strong on-time graduation and college-readiness rates are significant given that the majority of students enter school reading at or below a 6th grade level. The school’s Comprehensive Educational Plan says 9th and 10th graders spend extra time in literacy classes to boost reading and writing skills. Teachers use pictures, glossaries, simple worksheets, and oral and written instructions to help kids understand concepts. After school tutoring is available in all subjects four days a week until 5 pm.

The school was founded in partnership with the Institute of Student Achievement (ISA), an organization that provides financial and structural support to small public schools located in areas with historically low graduation rates. ISA helps with college prep including trips to campuses such as to Howard University in Washington D. C. Teachers also receive extra training funded by ISA. They meet together several times a week and two hours on Wednesday afternoons.

The school opened in September 2012 inside the George Wingate Educational Campus. Students must pass through metal detectors.

ADMISSIONS: Educational Option. The school seeks a mix of low-, middle- and high-achievers. (Lydie Raschka, web reports and DOE data, August 2018)