The Big Fix › School Profiles
A year inside three struggling New York City high schools as they work to serve their students better. This project is a collaboration between GothamSchools, WNYC, and Big Apple Ed.
Christopher Columbus High School
Now one of five schools sharing one building in the Bronx, Christopher Columbus High School was once a huge neighborhood school with several thousand students. It currently enrolls about 1,190 students, roughly 43 percent of whom are Latino and 35 percent are black. Columbus has an unusually large number of high-needs students. A quarter of its students are not fluent in English and a quarter require special education services.
The city tried to close Columbus last year for poor performance — its graduation rate is about 47 percent — but the teachers union successfully sued to keep the school open. In a few months, the city will launch its second attempt to close Columbus, this time as part of the Obama administration’s goal to shutter the country’s lowest performing schools. Columbus is one of 23 other schools slated to receive federal school improvement grants. Some of these schools could get the less intensive “transformation” approach used at Chelsea and Grady, but most will either be closed next year or lose half of their teaching staffs and principals.
District:11
Type: Public
Grades: 9-12
Principal:Lisa Fuentes
Address:925 Astor Avenue Bronx, NY 10469
Phone:718-944-3400
Estimated Enrollment 2010-11
1,190
Avg Class Size 2008-09
27.2
Progress Report Grade 2009-10
D
Budget
In New York City, schools’ budgets are largely dependent on how many students they enroll and how needy those students are. Columbus’s enrollment has dropped precipitously in the last several years, from 1,961 students in 2006 to 1,190 this year. At the same time, the percentage of high-needs students has shot up. Four years ago the school was 14 percent special education students. Today it’s 25 percent. Despite the influx of struggling students, Columbus’s budget has gone from about $14.5 million in 2006 to about $10.5 million this year. Unlike the transformation schools, Columbus is not receiving federal funds to improve student achievement this year. Instead, its budget has been cut by over $1 million from the year before.
Federal School Improvement Grant
$0
Read more about the School Improvement Grants.
Budget Principal Controls 2010-11
(before grant)
$10,416,179
Avg. spending per General Ed Student 2008-09
(includes all other city spending)
$15,670
2009-10
$12,529,369
2007-08
$13,534,703
2008-09
$12,532,824
2006-07
$14,009,994
News Stories
Latest Story - July 7th, 2011
As closure looms, Columbus teachers plan curriculum revamp
Christopher Columbus High School students wait to receive their diplomas at graduation in the Lehman College auditorium.Tamjid Chowdhury, this year’s valedictorian of Christopher Columbus High School, said in his graduation speech that the fight to save his school from closing had ironically provided some of his favorite memories.
Tamjid Chowdhury, this year’s valedictorian of Christopher Columbus [...]
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Recent Stories on Christopher Columbus High School
- › As closure looms, Columbus teachers plan curriculum revamp Read
- › At Grady, transformation funds change school’s look and feel Read
- › At mostly male Grady High School, top graduates are women Read
- › Staff at Chelsea High School say new investments have paid off Read
- › After night schools faded, Bronx high school opened its own Read
The Big Fix
Gotham Schools
Academic Achievement
Columbus High School’s four-year graduation rate has risen in the last few years, but it remains far below the city’s average. In 2007, 39.7 percent of students graduated in four years and last June, about 47 percent received diplomas. Because the school enrolls many recent immigrants and students who do not speak English, administrators and teachers place more weight on the six-year graduation rate. In 2009, the six-year graduation rate was 54 percent.
Demographics
All demographic data shown is for the 2010-11 school year unless otherwise noted.
In the last decade, Columbus’s demographics have followed the changes in its Bronx neighborhood. Whereas it was once primarily Italian and Jewish students, it is now predominantly Latino and African-American. It also has a large number of students from Albania, Russia, Korea, Vietnam, and Laos.
Percentage Male
65%
Percentage Female
35%
Limited Eng Proficiency
25%
Receiving Public Assistance
71-80%
Free or Reduced Lunch
86%
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Copyright Notice
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.