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college readiness
July 29, 2009
An Obama nod inspires a recent grad to praise her city school
In a recent speech to the NAACP, President Obama name-dropped a New York City public high school, saying that more schools should emulate Bard High School Early College and push students to earn college credits in addition to their high school diplomas.
A recent BHSEC graduate who now attends Williams College, Kesi Augustine, explains in a Huffington Post column what makes the small, super-selective school on the Lower East Side so special. (A replica opened last year in Queens.) It’s not just that students can earn as much as two years of college credits before graduating, she writes:
The most rewarding part of my experience at BHSEC, however, WAS more than just the Associate’s degree. The school introduced me to critical thinking and writing about my place in the world. Our teachers did not give us the recipe for performing well on state-wide tests and SATs, although we performed well in that respect, too. Rather, our small classes thrived on student energy in open seminar discussions and debates about course material. …
If we are going to strive for the educational equality Obama calls for, every American student should have the education I did. I was more than prepared for success in “real” college, largely owed to what I learned at BHSEC. As a rising sophomore at Williams College, I frequently refer back to my seminar experience at Bard. During my freshman year at Williams, I was not perfect, yet I knew how to approach reading a novel a week, how to write a formal 10-page paper, and how to ask for help when I needed it. I had professors from high school I could ask for advice. I was confident in my ability to survive a difficult class. In contrast, few of my new college friends had this advantage. Students at Williams have often said, “In high school, I didn’t even have to think. Now, it’s all about thinking. I don’t know if I even trust myself to come up with something good.” I wonder how much better they would feel about their schoolwork–and their selves–if their high schools had encouraged independent thinking and critical analysis as Bard did.
In the same sentence of his speech, Obama also praised Medgar Evers College Preparatory School, a high school in Brooklyn with a program similar to BHSEC’s.
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July 29th, 2009 12:29 pm
Worth a repeat:
“Students at Williams have often said, “In high school, I didn’t even have to think. Now, it’s all about thinking. I don’t know if I even trust myself to come up with something good.” ”Wowzers. And that’s at a GOOD school!
Question: Is there any connection between BHSEC and the Bard campus itself — classes or events?
Best wishes, Kesi! Regards to the Moonlight Diner.
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July 29th, 2009 8:25 pm
Do most or many of the education reforms currently under discussion in this country support the BHSEC vision?
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July 30th, 2009 9:46 am
Yes there is a connection between BHSEC and Bard College. SOme of the seminar classes that take place in BHSEC come from Bard. Bard also financially support BHSEC as well, with books and so forth.
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July 30th, 2009 11:05 am
Thanks, CLR.
To be clear, I meant: Do BHSEC students ever have programs ON the Bard campus at Annandale-on-Hudson?
I am recalling Berkeley High School’s partnership with UCBerkeley. Seniors who had maxed out even the Advanced Placement curriculum had an opportunity to take actual UC classes on the Cal campus.
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August 3rd, 2009 9:22 am
Michael M.
No, BHSEC students take all of their classes on the Houston Street Campus. There are some events and seminars that students are invited to but they take all their classes in Manhattan. There are also many times where Professors and artists from the Bard Campus come down to Manhattan to visit the school. There is also an annual trip to Bard College and Simon’s Rock during the Spring.
The Bard Campus is around a 2 hour drive from the BHSEC campus. This is one of the reasons they don’t take classes there.
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