Washington Heights Defends High School Slated For Closure

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NY — Students, faculty and parents of the High School for Health Careers and Sciences in Washington Heights slammed Department of Education officials Monday night for proposing to close the school despite making improvements in recent years.

More than 60 people spoke during a public hearing in the auditorium of the George Washington Educational Campus on Audubon Avenue and West 192nd Street, the vast majority of whom supported keeping the school open. The auditorium was packed with supporters of the High School for Health Careers and Sciences, including parent groups and the entire varsity basketball team.

Students described the school as a welcoming "second home," teachers pointed out recent increases in the school's performance and positive evaluations and elected officials declared that the school needs more time to continue an upward trend.

"If you want to show us you care, you're not going to close the school," a senior on the basketball team said Monday night. "That's not something you do."

The Department of Education proposed closing the High School for Health Careers and Sciences along with eight other renewal schools in December.

The High School for Health Careers and Sciences was selected for closure because it did not show sufficient progress after its inclusion in the city's Renewal Schools program — which gives struggling schools extra funding and resources to help them turn around — according to an Educational Impact Statement prepared by the Department of Education.

The school struggles when it comes to both academics and enrollment, according to the DOE. The schools' college readiness rate of 21 percent is 29 points below the borough-wide average of 50 percent and its graduation rate has fallen from 70 percent in 2014-2015 to 62 percent in 2016-2017, according to an Educational Impact Statement. Enrollment has dropped from 657 students during the 2012-2013 school year to its current 466 students, according to the Environmental Impact Statement.

But teachers at the school accused the Department of Education of using statistics that are intentionally misleading. Dan Rosenbaum, who's been teaching science at the school for 15 years, said that several metrics point to the fact that the school is improving compared to its peers and other Renewal Schools. Rosenbaum also noted that the High School for Health Careers and Sciences has the second-highest graduation rate of the four schools in the George Washington Educational Campus.

"If given time [the school] will continue to see improvement." Rosenbaum said Monday. "It has become clear that the decision to propose this school for closure is one that is political, personal or a combination of the two."

Former and current officials also voiced support for keeping the school open Monday. Former City Councilman Robert Jackson called the Department of Education's process a "sham," City Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez defiantly claimed "we're not closing this school," and Borough President Gale Brewer argued that "the numbers do not show that performance is as poor as some indicate."

"This school is now a much-loved community school and it is trending upward in graduation and college readiness," Brewer said Monday.

The Panel for Educational Policy will vote on whether or not to close the school following the 2017-2018 school year on Feb. 22, according to the Department of Education. If the Panel for Educational Police votes to close the school, current students will be able to transfer to higher-performing schools in Manhattan or any of the three other schools in the George Washington Educational Campus.

Photo by Patch