Schools That Work
The magic show
Dec 11, 2008 4:18 PM
Teachers, administrators at Queens school wave wands of learning
Teacher Roberto Evangelista molds the young minds of Tenzing Ukyab (left) and Patricia Paredes, who do some molding of their own.
[For more photos, go to "The magic show" gallery]
A few blocks from the Jackson Heights station on the Number 7 IRT subway line sits a nondescript building that once housed a famous Queens department store.
On the 37th Avenue side of the building, retail stores beckon the casual stroller.
There are no signs directing visitors to a magic show in the neighborhood and it isn’t until a corner is turned onto 81st Street that the entranceway to a special place is visible.
The door is opened and then the fun and learning begin, as they do every day for students, administrators, parents and educators at the Renaissance Charter School, which houses grades K-12.
How much magic is there inside the building? A student put it all in perspective: “Where else does a teacher tell you that your homework assignment is to write a song?”
The teacher is also the UFT chapter leader, Sandra Fritz, who said the school works well because teachers are encouraged to have leadership positions and administrators are open to new ideas.
Teachers (back row, from left) Raymond Johnson, Martha Bolivar and Chapter Leader Sandra Fritz look in on students writing movie reviews as part of their classwork.
“There is potential for growth,” she added, “and our educational creativity is honored.” Another part of the success, Fritz said, “is that we are a union school; teachers know that their rights will be respected.”
The collaboration is such that Gwen Clinkscales, one of the school’s two co-principals, couldn’t remember the last time a union grievance had been filed.
“We talk to each other so much every day that any disagreements are settled before it ever gets to that point,” the former teacher and UFT chapter leader said.
Clinkscales also noted that administrators teach. “You can’t know what is going on in the classrooms unless you are there,” she said.
It’s gym time for teacher John Vanek and his 1st-graders.
Renaissance was founded in 1992 by a group of parents and teachers and was part of New Visions for Public Schools. Two of the founders, Sandra Geyer and Monte Joffe, are still on the school’s board of directors and two other founders, Maura Malarcher and Nancy Condyles, still teach there.
The other co-principal, Stacey Gauthier, said that staff turnover is “very low” and told the story of teacher Henry Cisler, who retired only to find himself still drawn to the school. He is back a few days a week imparting his knowledge of and enthusiasm for Shakespeare.
“What makes this school work,” she said, “is that everyone knows their voices are heard.”
But staff members aren’t the only ones who think Renaissance is a great school. Both the K-8 and high schools received School Progress Report grades of A and, in the 2007-08 Learning Environment Survey, 91 percent of parents answered that they were either “very satisfied” or “satisfied” when asked about the “education your child received this year.” In addition, nearly 90 percent of parents answered “very satisfied” or “satisfied” when asked if they were given “opportunties to be involved in your child’s school.”
It’s no wonder there is a waiting list of nearly 1,500 students hoping to get in.
Former students Girelle Guzman (left) and Jose Mane — both of whom now work at the school — share memories with teacher Edward Tam (right). Guzman is the internship and community involvement coordinator and Mane is a teacher.
Geraldine Neary, co-president of the PTA, said she sends her three children to the school because “parents are welcome there. The teachers and administrators want our input and everyone knows everyone.”
She said parents also like the smaller class sizes where “students are not just a number. Teachers get to know the students better and if they see a problem with them falling behind, they can give them more attention.”
Because of the innovative minds at the school, there is no such thing as a typical day, but on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, students and their teacher, Everett Boyd, were eagerly waiting for news about when their CD — a musical achievement that had its origins in the music lab — would be ready. The CD, which will be sold to help raise funds for the school, contains songs with original lyrics and cover versions of other songs, including ragtime, classical, reggae, hip-hop, pop and jazz numbers.
In one of the common spaces, students are busy talking, connecting to the Internet via their wireless remotes and planning the next “town hall” meeting where school and community issues are discussed.
The school has a full-time director of development, Rebekah Oakes, who has scored more than $650,000 in grants. Her son is a student at the school, as are the daughter of one co-principal and the grandkids of the other co-principal.
One credo at the school is “We grow our own teachers,” whether they are former student teachers or former students. One of those is Jose Mane, who graduated in 1999 and counted the days as he planned his return “to the place that shaped me.”
Science teachers Janna Ostroff (front left) and Riaad Etheridge (back left) guide students Maria Mendoza and Stanley Garate through a lesson.
As he spoke, one of his former teachers, Edward Tan, walked by with a huge satisfied smile.
Another former student teacher, Sean Conlon, is now chair of the School Leadership Team.
James Lawlor, a speech therapist, said the key to the school’s success is the flexibility of the staff and the fact that “everyone goes beyond the call of duty.”
His thoughts were echoed by special education teacher Janice Crofton, who said her students were integrated into regular education classes.
“It was seamless,” she said, and praised the staff for its support.
The fun is contagious, whether it is the hearty laughter of students and their teacher doing improv or grammar schoolers writing a film script with the help of video cameras and computers, or English students planning to take over the world.
If they do as good a job with the world as they have with their school, the world will be a much grander place.
