The Scarsdale Alternative School a Profile
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THE SCARSDALE ALTERNATIVE SCHOOL 45 Wayside Lane, Scarsdale, New York 10583 a progra m of S c a r s d a l e High S c h o o l Phone: 914 721-2590 Fax: 914 721-2579 e-mail: [email protected] KENNETH BONAMO A PROFILE JJennifer Maxwell Principal Director Scarsdale High School Scarsdale Alternative School THE SCHOOL Very important in the philosophy of SAS is the SAS students are a heterogeneous group of The Scarsdale Alternative School (SAS) was emphasis on participation. At Community typical sophomores, juniors, and seniors from created in 1972 by students, teachers, and Meetings, students and teachers work together to Scarsdale High School. Students range from administrators as an experimental satellite of discuss and make decisions regarding many those who may be National Merit scholars and Scarsdale High School. The Alternative School areas of school life including rule formation and the very top students in the country to those with is housed in a separate building on the High discipline. Both personal and academic concerns more limited academic skills. Students attend School grounds and in a corridor of the main are confronted. The SAS faculty believes that SAS for reasons too numerous and complex to school. SAS consists of 82 students such emphasis on participation is essential for treat in this brief description. Since, however, (sophomores, juniors, and seniors), five full-time the full development of students. High school SAS is an entirely voluntary, self-selecting staff, and a secretary. All SAS students have a students need experiences from which they learn program, all students have in common the desire Scarsdale High School Dean (guidance how to meet responsibilities as citizens in their to be part of the school. counselor), and SAS graduates receive a schools, local community, and ultimately, in their ACADEMIC PROGRAM Scarsdale High School diploma. The schedule is country and in their world. The Scarsdale Alternative School is a college the same as that of SHS; SAS students routinely Efforts to promote students’ ethical and civic preparatory school; generally all of its graduates enroll in classes at the main school. development have gained SAS both New York go on to four-year colleges or universities. SAS PHILOSOPHY State and national validation as an “exemplary offers the courses typically taken in high school The Scarsdale Alternative School was created educational program.” The Scarsdale Alter- in English, social studies, mathematics, and and designed to meet the following goals: native School program has served as a model for science. Small size permits considerable similar programs in other school districts. flexibility in scheduling, allowing some unusual · To establish a workable, democratic school and rewarding experiences to take place such as STUDENTS governance system, a “just community.” courses which combine academic and field Often alternative programs are created for the experience, and team-taught interdisciplinary · To promote students’ social, civic, and moral potential dropout, the slow learner, the gifted or courses. Many SAS classes are small, allowing development in addition to their academic and talented, or those interested in a specific area for individual attention and student intellectual development. such as music and art or math and science. Often participation. students do not elect such programs but rather · To create a sense of community where stu- are placed into them. The Scarsdale Alternative Most students take courses at the main school dents and teachers learn to work together School is NOT an alternative program of this as well, in subjects not offered at SAS. SAS toward agreed upon goals. type. Rather, it is an experimental school whose students participate in student government, · To increase students’ freedom and responsi- students represent a cross section of the larger various clubs, drama productions, publications, bility in pursuing their own education. population of Scarsdale High School. Because athletics, and other extra-curricular activities the school operates as a laboratory school, one of offered at Scarsdale High School. · To make the school less isolated from, and its purposes is to explore alternative structures UNIVERSITY AFFILIATIONS more responsive to, the larger community and curriculum which are potentially useful to outside its four walls. the parent institution and which are at the same SAS enjoyed a long affiliation with the Harvard time consistent with the philosophy and goals of Graduate School of Education. In seeking ways · To emphasize cooperation, and eliminate the SAS. For this reason it is important that SAS to fulfill its commitment to participatory more destructive forms of competition. maintain a representative cross section of the democracy as the governance structure for SAS, Scarsdale High School population. Over the staff became interested in the work of · To maintain the high level of academic years, the School has consistently attracted a achievement and excellence for which Scarsdale is known. diverse student body. Professor Lawrence Kohlberg, the late manage their own time, and communicate what GRADUATES OF THE A-SCHOOL psychologist, educator, and director of the they know to peers and adults in a public forum. Center for Moral Education at Harvard Seniors pursue a question on a topic of interest CLASSES OF 2017 AND 2018 ARE University. Professor Kohlberg’s theory of the by doing traditional research as well as “hands ATTENDING THE FOLLOWING development of moral reasoning has provided on” fieldwork. The project culminates in an COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES an important theoretical underpinning for efforts “exhibition” to the entire school, parents, and invited guests. American University toward increasing students’ civic responsibility and their understanding of an individual’s rights EVALUATIONS Boston University and obligations in a democratic community. The favorable student/teacher ratio and close Brooklyn College of the CUNY SAS is also a member of the Coalition of student/teacher contact encourage frequent Bryn Mawr College Essential Schools. Established in 1984, the informal evaluation. Formal evaluation of Bucknell University Coalition of Essential Schools is a consortium of student performance by the teacher is required at Case Western Reserve schools dedicated to experimentation and the end of each marking period or other learning Claremont McKenna College improvement in secondary school education. experience. Teacher evaluations of the student Colgate University must reflect on the students’ effort and overall With help from teachers in other coalition high George Washington University schools, SAS staff work toward implementing performance. Hamilton College Coalition principles such as personalizing At the end of the school year, all students Lafayette College teaching and learning to the maximum extent assemble a transcript of their year’s work. The Middlebury College feasible, shifting the governing metaphor of the SAS transcript consists of teacher evaluations of school from teacher-as-deliverer-of-instruction Oberlin College the student’s performance in each of the courses Ohio State University to teacher-as-coach, and maintaining a tone of taken by the student during the year, followed by a Pennsylvania State University unanxious expectation, trust, and decency in all reflection on the student’s year written by the aspects of the school. student. Along with each evaluation is a brief Skidmore College SUNY Binghamton INTERNSHIP PROGRAM description of the course. The SAS transcript is Smith College In 1973 the Scarsdale Alternative School began an assessment of a student’s strengths and Swarthmore College its Internship Program in order to make the weaknesses, including reflection on personal overall curriculum reflect the philosophy that and social growth, as well as academic Syracuse University students learn in different ways and that achievement. SAS students who take courses Tufts University experiential learning can be a powerful in the main school have a SHS transcript in Tulane University addition to their SAS record. United States Naval Academy experience for students. The Internship Program is a direct response to one of the original An official copy of both the SAS and SHS University of Maryland, College Park educational challenges set for the school: to transcript is sent to those colleges to which University of Michigan make the school less isolated from and more seniors apply. SAS seniors are evaluated on the University of Southern California responsive to the larger community. basis of these transcripts along with other University of Texas, Austin SAS sets aside the month of January during the information typically required by colleges such University of Virginia school year for the Internship Program. Over as SAT scores, recommendations, personal University of Wisconsin, Madison essays, etc. the years SAS students have aided teachers, Vanderbilt University lawyers, doctors, journalists, administrators, SAT SCORES AND Washington University in St. Louis architects, lab researchers, bankers, television COLLEGE ACCEPTANCE cameramen and directors, publishers, United SAT scores and college acceptances at the GRADUATES OF THE A-SCHOOL States senators and other politicians, account- Alternative School are equivalent to those of CLASSES OF 2017 AND 2018 WERE ALSO ants, businessmen, and others. They have Scarsdale High School. SAS students are as interned locally, in the wider NY metropolitan