PS 290 A.C.E. Academy for Scholars at the Geraldine Ferraro Campus

SEPTEMBER 2014 UPDATE: Chancellor Dennis M. Walcott and Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan announced that PS 290 A.C.E. Academy for Scholarsin Queens was renamed the Geraldine A. Ferraro Campus, after the first female vice presidential candidate and three-term congresswoman of the Ninth District. The campus opened in September 2014 and the new building is located just a few blocks from the late congresswomans district office. The school is located in Ridgewood but the school's zone is in Maspeth.

FEBRUARY 2012: PS 290, opened in September 2010 to relieve overcrowding in neighboring schools, seems to be off to a good start. Parents and teachers are enthusiastic, according to the Learning Environment Survey. For now, the school is housed in shared space in a large middle school, IS 73, but plans are in the works for a new building, due to open in 2013. (See photo above of the architect's drawing.)

The administration seems to have a good plan for the school, which will add a grade each year until it serves K-5. The school offers a demanding and traditional math curriculum called Singapore Math as well as dance, music, art and the chance for creative play with puppets, according to the Comprehensive Education Plan (CEP). Instead of a regular social studies curriculum, the school offers "global connections," designed to make children think about the world around them. Small classes allow for individual attention. the schools offers both a gifted and talented program and special education services.

While PS 290 is housed in IS 73, space is a challenge. The school must work out times for children to use the gym or the cafeteria, for example. Because the school is small, it doesn't yet have the budget for guidance counselors or school aides, according to the CEP.

Admissions: When it opened, PS 290 was open to children from throughout District 24 but it became a zoned school when it moved to the new building in 2014. (Clara Hemphill, February 2012; updated admissions, 2014)