Steps from the waterfront that overlooks Manhattan’s iconic skyline, high schoolers shuffle into an office building where educators have erected a boastful sign: “Best Kept Secret in Brooklyn.”
Brooklyn Laboratory Charter High School can most certainly be counted among the borough’s hidden gems for its innovative approaches to challenges that now plague schools nationwide.
Getting students back on track to graduate. Decreasing absenteeism. Supporting students’ and teachers’ well-being, all while preparing for the end of pandemic relief funds next year.
Two Brooklyn-raised Black women, who reflect much of the student body at the small 9th to 12th grade college prep school, are leading Lab Charter High School into a new era coming out of the pandemic, revamping the status quo that left many educators exhausted and students dissatisfied.
Leaders and staff went to the drawing board, mining for solutions that filled gaps and brought joy back into school.
Brooklyn Lab Charter’s social workers visited nearly 100 homes to find students, as absenteeism soared post-pandemic. Each student has a personal advocate both at school and with their families, an advisor who starts each day with a non-academic meeting to build relationships and discuss health or current events over free breakfast. Free photobooths, music, dinner, sports and games await those who show up on-time at weekly “No-Tardy Parties.”
Two teachers now lead each class, at least one of whom is special education certified, as the school adopts an all-inclusion-model. Morning office hours and a 6-week night school offer more chances for students to bridge academic gaps made worse by the pandemic. Teachers are now paid to lead and attend professional development sessions.
“I’m really proud of the work that we’ve done to strengthen us where we need to be strengthened,” said CEO Garland Thomas-McDavid, who became a career educator after growing up in a low-income Brooklyn…
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