First Public Middle School In College Point To Open This Fall

COLLEGE POINT, QUEENS -- As families across New York City scramble to prepare for the start of another academic year, hundreds of junior high school students in College Point have their own reason to rejoice.

Their commute to school is about to get a lot shorter.

The long-awaited M.S. 379Q, College Point's first public middle school, will make its debut at 124-06 14th Ave. with the rest of New York City schools on Sept. 5, welcoming students whose closest junior high options up until this year would have been in Flushing or Whitestone.

The 507-seat school, named the College Point Collaborative by local elementary students, took over the site from the Diocese of Brooklyn's St. Fidelis School, a private Catholic school whose declining enrollment and rising operational costs forced it to close after more than 150 years in 2013.

Now, after years of demand for a junior high school in the district, a brand new three-story air conditioned facility erected in its place is ready to welcome its first incoming class of sixth graders.

“I’m very excited about opening the very first public middle school in College Point,” said Renee Klager, the school's interim acting principal.

“I cannot wait to welcome students and the community to the school and look forward to working collaboratively with students and the community to build a student centered learning environment.”

The NYC School Construction Authority designed and built the school with 21 classrooms - two of which are designated for special education. It also features a reading resource room, an art room, a science lab, a music suite, a library and a gym with locker rooms, according to City Councilman Paul Vallone, who toured the new building Tuesday with Klager and SCA representatives.

“To stand at the doors of College Point's brand new middle school on the eve of its inaugural year is to realize a long awaited dream for the community,” Vallone said. “College Point Collaborative is truly a team effort that has included the parents and families of College Point from day one."

Vallone said his office also linked the junior high school up with local organizations to expand its marine biology program.

The Coastal Preservation Network will work with its science department to coordinate at least two field trips to nearby waterfront worksites, where students will get to study oysters and plant seagrass. Students will also work on their marine biology studies with help from the New York Harbor School on Governor's Island, Vallone said.

Parents can tour M.S. 379Q and meet Klager at the school's upcoming "Coffee and Conversation" event on Sept. 7 at 7:30 a.m. A formal ribbon cutting will be held Sept. 20 at 3:30pm.

Lead photo courtesy of the Office of City Councilman Paul Vallone