Middle School Success with Henry Street’s Help
By Nicole Fogarty
MSSC Program Coordinator Shalema Henderson, far left, with two MSSC Students. Right, NYC High School Directories stacked high.
Applying for a seat in a New York City high school is a confusing and daunting process, and one that can flummox even the savviest individuals. The starting point is studying the 677-page tome listing all 439 high schools, followed by tests, applications, school visits, portfolio development and more. Students can become so overwhelmed that they often choose schools based on where friends are going or proximity to home instead of selecting the high school that’s best for them.
To help students and their families negotiate the complicated high school admissions process, Henry Street Settlement operates a Middle School Success Center (MSSC), — one of only two funded through a Department of Education pilot program in New York City—located in the Corlears Education Complex on Henry Street.
Finding a quality high school is critical. A recent comparison of two public high schools on the Lower East Side revealed that at one school 92 percent of students graduated “college-ready,” compared to just seven percent at the other school.
Now in its second year, Henry Street’s MSSC which occupies a small office tucked between classrooms, is unmistakable: thick purple books— the New York City High School Directories— are piled high in a corner, and the walls are plastered with students’ goals, campus visit dates, and lists of different high schools and their application requirements.
Through academic support, family engagement, leadership and skill building, campus visits, individual and group counseling, and art and audition prep, every student receives personalized support in applying and gaining admission to the high school that’s the best fit.
The results are impressive. In the year before the program began, not one student from the three middle schools in the Complex received offers to specialized high schools. During its inaugural year, 15 percent of the students who took the specialized high school entrance exam received offers. Additionally, 79 percent received an offer to a school with a graduation rate of 70 percent or higher.
Students are also aware of the importance of the MSSC. “It’s great that it starts so early [in seventh grade]. I can’t imagine coming in without it and not knowing anything… you have so much work to do and it’s so competitive, everyone should definitely come here for help,” said one eighth-grader.
Program Coordinator Shalema Henderson echoed this sentiment, adding, “Where you go to high school affects your whole life.” She is tasked with guiding these students through the high school application process with the help of the students’ guidance counselors, families and a small team of volunteers.
One aspect of the program that has contributed to its success is Peer Leadership, where middle schoolers themselves serve as an additional source of support. Students can apply to be peer leaders within the program and, if accepted, are trained and given a caseload of three to four students at a time. Some peer leaders are responsible for recruiting, spearheading trips to open houses, distributing flyers or designing posters for open house trips; others assume the role of counselor, meeting with students individually and in groups to help them make lists of potential high schools.
“By teaching middle school students to educate their peers about applying for high schools, we are empowering young people to make more informed choices regarding the types of schools they pursue, and ultimately the world of possibilities that are accessible to them,” said Matt Phifer, Henry Street’s Director of Education Services.
Additionally, the program engages high school students in the Settlement’s Expanded Horizons College Success Program, who host events and discussions for current middle schoolers and providing them with another important resource: someone who’s been through the process.
“If you know someone who’s been through it, it can help,” said Henderson, noting that the events with Expanded Horizons scholars are popular with the middle schoolers.
For Henderson, however, success isn’t just measured in numbers and statistics: “We had one student come in who recognized that he needed help. He knew where to seek help and he did —that’s success.”
