Award Year: 2020
South Bronx Classical Charter School
977 Fox Street
Bronx, NY, 10459-3320
Mr. Lester Long, Principal at time of Nomination
Charter School
South Bronx Classical Charter School
South Bronx Classical Charter School prepares K-8th grade students in the South Bronx to excel in college-preparatory high schools. Through a classical curriculum and highly structured setting, students become liberated scholars and citizens of impeccable character who achieve proficiency in and advanced mastery of New York State Performance Standards.
- Black/African American: 44%
- Hispanic: 51%
- Asian: 4%
Trained and prepared teachers building equity while maintaining excellence
South Bronx Classical Charter School is a high-performing K-8 public charter school that offers Latin, debate, character education, and a Common Core-aligned curriculum. Despite serving students deemed 'at-risk', it currently outperforms over 95% of schools in the state.
We believe teacher growth creates student growth, and student growth creates organizational growth. Thus we passionately develop and support teachers, providing a multitude of differentiated, high-impact professional development opportunities that allow teachers to rapidly acquire skills that lead to significant academic and behavioral gains in scholars.
Its curriculum is highly structured and dynamic, and detailed and rigorous lesson plans are revised annually based on student performance data, allowing teachers to know that every day they are providing scholars with the skills and knowledge they need to excel in high school, college and beyond.
Teachers, scholars and administrators create, maintain, and defend a high degree of order so teachers can focus on teaching and scholars can focus on learning. We take advantage of every minute of the year to maximize instructional gains. Consistent and relentless enforcement of character expectations minimizes distractions and encourages productive citizenship. The comprehensive teacher support systems enable teachers to focus more on instruction and transform their classroom into an environment focused on learning.
The school's organization model includes Grade Team Leaders, to whom classroom teachers report. This greatly empowers teachers to make the best decisions for their scholars. Similarly, many of the administrators participate in tutoring. These combine to remove the boundaries between teachers and administration.