Kweller Prep Offers Free Test Prep to 100 Sponsored Students

Thanks to a sponsorship with the Hunter College Community, top-performing 6th-grade students from public and charter schools in the Bronx and Harlem traveled to Kweller Prep, an accelerated learning program with locations in Forest Hills, Queens, and Midtown, Manhattan in preparation for the rigorous Hunter College High School Entrance Exam. To qualify to take the Hunter test, these students had to score at or above a 625 in math and 625 in ELA during the 2019-2020 school year in the fifth grade.

Kweller's Hunter winter break course took place from December 26, 2019, to December 30, 2019, with students traveling across boroughs as starting as early as 6:00 am to attend either of Kweller's Manhattan or Queens locations. Students attended daily, for four hours per day for five consecutive days. Sponsored students were provided with Kweller Prep's textbooks, materials, school supplies, book bags, snacks, refreshments, and meals.

Kweller further offered free workshops for parents at each location to help them better understand how to help their children prepare in the days leading to the Hunter Test. "Parental involvement is key, and during these meetings, we made sure to address everything from how to reduce exam stress to exactly what to expect on the day of the Hunter Test," said founder and director, Frances Kweller. "It is an honor that we were chosen to host this program and we did not take our responsibilities lightly. We prepared daily to ensure each student had an excellent learning experience."

Exam-entry schools have faced much criticism in recent years over the lack of minority student representation in their student body.

“We are hoping to help change the narrative,” says Kweller, when referencing the lack of diversity in exam-based, screened, and specialized high schools throughout New York City. “We launched a Go-Fund-Me page earlier this year, and are actively looking for more sponsors to donate to our non-profit-division, the First in Family Fund, a registered 501C3.”

She concludes, “Anyone who wants access to quality test-preparation should have it, and it should not be cost-prohibitive. We hope this collaborative effort will set a new precedent and will encourage others to support our cause and help offset the costs involved in running such programs.”

The Hunter exam, which takes place on January 10, 2020, and is three-hours-long, is considered one of the toughest entrance-exam based schools in New York City. With an annual Ivy-League acceptance rate of 25%, Hunter College High School is one of the most selective college-preparatory high schools in the U.S., offering smaller-than-average classroom sizes and an advanced curriculum, often years above a student’s current grade level. While 50 students are accepted into Hunter elementary, admission into Hunter High School has only one entry point: the Hunter test which is administered in the sixth grade. The school is free to any student who meets the cut-off score on the challenging reading and math multiple-choice and essay-based exam. In 2019, approximately 175 students from 2,883 test-takers were admitted.