School of the Future is an example of New York City public education that works. SOF has been cited by the Department of Education, the Chancellor's office, the Coalition of Essential Schools, and various press as a model for the new small schools initiatives in NYC. We are proud to have an extremely diverse community of students who learn from one another in a demanding and supportive environment.

We are a small secondary school that serves children from 6th grade to 12th grade. Over 80% of our middle school students stay on in our high school. We enjoy the unique opportunity of fostering our students’ growth from the time they leave elementary school, to the time they get accepted into college.

We are a community of enthusiastic learners and our staff comprises dedicated, intelligent and caring professionals. SOF is a college preparatory school that offers rigorous academics geared towards college expectations. SOF exemplifies the principles of the Coalition of Essential Schools - small class size; teaching students to use their minds well; teacher collaboration, and knowing our students well as learners and individuals. Students are afforded many special opportunities to expose them to the richness of world beyond school - internships, courses at local colleges, foreign exchange trips, camping trips, and trips to other US cities.

We have dynamic teachers who are committed to making school a meaningful and exciting experience for our students. Our staff has been recognized locally (NYC District 2 Teacher of the Year 2002, Principal of the Year 2002, Bertelsmann Innovative Educator of the Year 2003, Univision Teachers of the Week 2003, Social Studies and Science model site for the Department of Education 2006) and nationally (Radio Shack Teacher of the Year 2004) for their talents and commitment to excellence in education. Also, the Blackboard Awards honored our middle school this fall as "Rising Star Middle School" and recently we were named in the press as one of the top five 6-12 schools in NYC.

SOF helps students to become active participants in their own learning. We graduate students who are ready for the world with a critical mind and deep understanding of current dilemmas and problems. Close to 100% of our graduating seniors go on to college, many with scholarships. Over the past three years, the Posse Foundation with full, four-year scholarships has honored ten of our graduates. In order to graduate, our high school students must complete 4 exhibitions - independent research, culminating in a paper that is presented to a panel of students, teachers, and parents. Our alumni always note that exhibitions prepare them for college writing! Similarly, 8th grade students have to complete a portfolio reflection, where they present a portfolio of work as evidence that they are ready for high school to a panel of 6th and 7th grade students.

SOF also enjoys rewarding relationships with various community partners. Our fully-funded After School Program, sponsored by The Educational Alliance, offers teacher-directed homework help, small group instruction as well as a wide variety of special interest classes - painting, drumming, salsa, photography, Lego Robotics, and spoken word to name a few. Other partners include Hall Farms for Arts Education, the Gramercy Neighborhood Associates, Community Word, Learning Leaders, and NASA. We also are proud to mentor student teachers and interns from NYU, Hunter, Columbia, Fordham, City College, Parsons, and Pace among other distinguished teacher training programs.

We hope you enjoy your virtual tour of our school via this Web site. It is truly an extraordinary place! Tours are available in the fall of each school year. Please see our Admissions section for the most up-to-date information.

Sincerely,

Stacy Goldstein, MS Director