Benjamin Franklin High School for Finance & Information Technology

Founded in 2014, Benjamin Franklin High School for Finance & Information Technology (Franklin FIT) is designed to offer students the chance to earn professional certificates in computer technology that will help them get jobs when they graduate. Some students have paid internships, according to the Comprehensive Education Plan.

Teachers say the school is orderly and disciplined, and most agree that the principal, Dr. Carla Theordorou, is an effective leader, according to school surveys. Parents, students and teachers generally respect one another and trust each other. Theodorou, who founded the school, is an experienced leader who also founded Metropolitan High School in the Bronx.

However, some students say they don’t feel safe in bathrooms, corridors and locker rooms. Attendance is below the citywide average and many students miss more than a month of school.

The school is housed in the Campus Magnet Building in Cambria Heights, a residential neighborhood surrounded by small homes and quiet streets. The building, which now houses several small schools, was formerly called Andrew Jackson High School and was shut down in the mid-1990's for poor performance. All the schools share use of the auditorium, gym, cafeteria, newly renovated library and sports fields out back. There are shared athletics on campus, which also boasts a large indoor field and track.

Admissions: In recent years the school has had room for everyone who applies. (Melanie Quiroz, web reports and DOE data, September 2018)