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WEEK of April 21, 2008 |
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Approaching New Horizons: BFS Joins Hands With PS 307 by Jeffrey Stanley On April 11, to commemorate the fledgling partnership between BFS, PS 307 and Horizons National, a group of BFS faculty and parents mingled with their counterparts from the nearby Daniel Hale Williams Elementary School (PS 307). along with Horizons National board members and staff, local politicians and friends from as far away as Maine and Georgia at a very special celebration held at the Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge. Although diverse in all kinds of ways, a stroll through the crowd to take an informal poll yielded a common refrain: “This is a fantastic partnership!” The Horizons National Student Enrichment Program, launched in New Canaan, Connecticut over 40 years ago, is an organization which links independent schools with nearby public schools. The mission is to strengthen public school students’ learning retention and reduce the “achievement gap” often faced by children in economically troubled areas. BFS is the first independent school in New York City to heed Horizons’ call, and if the mood this night was any indicator it’s the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Lorna Smith, Horizons’ executive director, described the genesis of this three-way partnership. “Our managing director Andrew McLaren used to be the headmaster at the Little Red Schoolhouse in Manhattan, then became associate director of the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYAIS). After joining Horizons he sent a letter out to all the heads of New York area independent schools and Michael Nill responded. Dr. Nill said it was perfect timing for BFS.” That was two years ago. Head of School Nill appointed a committee of faculty and parents to explore the feasibility of a Horizons program at BFS. They reached out to nearby PS 307 and Principal Roberta Davenport. “She’s got a fascinating story,” explained Smith. “She grew up in the Farragut Houses, a housing project across the street from PS 307. She moved to Connecticut and founded a school there, the Waterside School, then came back here to rescue PS 307. She was thrilled when Horizons approached her.” Davenport herself confirmed as much when she addressed the gathering later. “I have a deeply personal commitment to PS 307,” she said. “My parents raised 10 children in the Farragut Houses. My father worked in the Brooklyn Navy Yard as a plumber. I remember when the foundation for PS 307 was laid. I had a wonderful time there but not all kids there today are having the same wonderful time. I’m working to see that change. This is a real labor of love for me.” Davenport first heard about Horizons while teaching in Connecticut at the school she helped found for the working poor. “Talk about coming full circle,” she said. “It’s a real gift to PS 307 and to the community.” As PS 307 assistant principal Bill Deiderich explained, the program will begin this summer when 15 rising first graders will participate in summer courses held at BFS. Next year this group will rise a grade level and a new crop of rising first graders will be brought in, the cycle continuing for eight years until the program reaches its intended capacity of K-8th grade Horizons students. “This is hopefully going to close the achievement gap,” he said. “As we know, students lose learning over the summer. We hope to stop that or at least lessen it. BFS is a wonderful school in which to do this.” Eighty percent of the 15 entering students are from PS 307 kindergarten teacher Hilary Redman’s class. “I’ve only been there for a little over a year,” she said. “I’d never heard of Horizons. It’s fantastic. Now we’re trying to generate enthusiasm among the kids and the parents.” She has high hopes for the program and takes a long view. “I hope it becomes something they truly look forward to and can’t wait to get to every summer, and when they’re older they look back on it as one of the fondest moments of their childhoods, and as something that was truly useful to them.” PS 307 parent and grandmother Jennifer McKenzie sent four children and twenty-five grandchildren through the school and agreed with Redman. “The program is exciting and it’s exactly what we need. I want Horizons to stay forever.” Joe Chan, himself a Horizons graduate and president of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, will serve as the program’s chair. “This is Horizons’ first outpost in New York City and I truly believe BFS is a great place to start,” he told a group of reporters. “They’re diverse, they’re inclusive, they’re involved in the community.” Addressing the crowd later he spoke of the program in personal terms. “I’m a product of the original program in New Canaan, CT. It transformed my life, the way I perceived the world and its possibilities when I was a kid.” He thanked his former teacher Lynn McNaught who ran that program for 26 years and led the charge to replicate it nationally. “We’re here to celebrate something that will make a difference in the lives of hundreds if not thousands,” Chan said. “The program takes a school, leverages their resources and those of the neighborhood to help underprivileged kids.” Chan’s friend and a member of the program’s advisory board Jacqui Williams is a partner in the government relations firm Patricia Lynch Associates and said she was happy to lend a hand when Joe tapped her to serve on the board. “Our careers have been quite parallel,” she said of Chan. “I live in Bed-Stuy and I support this initiative because it gives black and brown children the tools to become self-sufficient. I look for achieving parity.” BFS parent John Major, co-president of the PAT, was also in attendance. Although there is no formal connection between the PAT and the BFS Horizons program he said the PAT really wants to get BFS parents involved in a volunteer role over the summers. “There’s a very nice energy between this program and what our school is about,” he said. “It’s a great match for us.” BFS parent Lauren Donner, who previously taught at PS 307 and also worked there as an early childhood resource specialist, describes herself as an eager Horizons volunteer, “Sometimes we parents say we want to be involved in something and then we can’t, but I’m really excited about this.” Conrad Boyce, a BFS parent and former school committee member, also welcomes the program. “It’s a wonderful opportunity for BFS to expand its horizons, no pun intended. I thought it was a good idea,” he said. “It’s nice when you have an idea, a dream, and you see it come to fruition to influence the lives of children.” Among the political dignitaries were the Honorable Yvonne Graham, special assistant to Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, who reminded the crowd that “new and exciting things happen in Brooklyn every day, and today’s no different.” However, she explained, there is something unique about this new partnership. “It does take a village to raise our children. This has given us a true collaborative spirit that transcends race and socioeconomic factors.” New York State Assembly Member the Honorable Hakeem Jeffries built on that concept. “Diversity is a tremendous strength for Brooklyn but amidst that you have folks who are doing extremely well and folks who are struggling every day. We’re building a bridge between them today. That’s a fantastic thing.” Michael Nill lauded Horizons’ community-oriented mission, which is not to remove kids from public schools and enroll them in private schools, but to strengthen the public schools, “I like that.” Nill also spoke to the crowd about the philosophical reasons for launching the program. “This is among our happiest and proudest moments. It’s one thing to talk about Quaker values and read about them but here is another opportunity for BFS to live it. We have a very community-oriented mission.” |
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