2015-2016 Blackboard Award Honoree: Midtown West School

Editor’s note: To read profiles of all 2015-2016 Blackboard Awards honorees, click HERE!

Midtown West School
Principal: Ryan Bourke
Pre-K-5
328 West 48th Street
Award: Outstanding School

Describe your school’s core educational philosophy.

The curriculum and learning at Midtown West School is organized around our Social Studies core curriculum. From the very early age of 3 or 4, Midtown West students engage in an experiential, inquiry-based approach to learning that requires them to act as researchers, authors, mathematicians, etc. Throughout their years here, students hone their learning stance by participating in many rich activities, including a variety of field trips designed to expand their learning opportunities within the greater NY area. Classes regularly participate in in-depth projects that include lengthy studies of the community, state, and world. Our primary educational goal is to create intellectualists who are competent at solving real-world problems and not hesitant to wrestle with complex ideas.

Tell us about a few of the school’s achievements or distinguishing programs.

Midtown West is a school that focuses on the arts. We firmly believe that it is fundamental for students to develop a love for learning. Our emphasis on music, dance, art, and theatre allow students the opportunity to experience a holistic education. We are also proud of our focus on community. In order to best support the social and emotional development of students—and to foster positive relationships with families—we employ a looping system in which our students spend two years with each teacher.

What’s new?

As of this year, we are proud to include two pre-K classrooms at Midtown West. Welcoming these young students into our community allows us to further develop our early childhood program by providing another year of educational experiences. We are also very proud of our achievements in health and wellness. Our school worked with the American Heart Association to help transform our garden into an active Teaching Garden. We have also installed a hydroponic garden in the Science Lab that connects directly to our newly built Teaching Kitchen.

What do you love about your school?

I love the sense of family here at MTW. Serving as principal is a genuinely rewarding experience… Teachers and parents rally around the many initiatives offered by Midtown West. Students, families, and staff love being a part of the Midtown West community and show their dedication in all they do.

The Cathedral School

The Cathedral School is a Nursery School, Pre-K 4, and Kindergarten through 5th grade co- educational day school that offers a nurturing environment while preparing young minds for a rigorous academic education rooted in the principles of Hellenism. The curriculum integrates the most up to date educational methods while adhering to the ancient Greek tradition of paideia which views education as character formation, responsibility and the pursuit of excellence in all forms.

Long Island Speech

At Long Island Speech, we recognize the value of every person and are guided by our commitment to excellence. We believe that everyone has the right to better communication in order to improve their quality of life. Our mission is to provide exemplary speech/language and feeding services for each of our patients by our highly qualified clinicians, making a positive difference in the lives of our patients so that they may achieve their highest potential. Through the commitment of our staff, we can maintain a quality of presence and tradition of caring; which are hallmarks for Long Island Speech. Our vision is to be the absolute best speech therapy service provider throughout both Nassau and Suffolk counties. We aspire to be the provider of choice in our industry.&nbsp;We have 9 affiliated offices across Long Island, all participating with most major health insurance companies. We also offer evening and weekend hours. Call 844-5-SPEECH to schedule your first appointment.

FlexSchool

Our mission is to provide an engaging&nbsp;learning experience in a supportive environment where students are free to explore their&nbsp;passions, embrace their challenges and find a community of teachers and friends who&nbsp;understand and accept them as they are. Academics: To meet the unique needs of gifted and 2e learners &ndash; students who may have co-occurring&nbsp;learning challenges along with their gifts &ndash; we provide a gifted-level curriculum with built-in&nbsp;scaffolding, developed by credentialed experts in both gifted education and special education,&nbsp;as well as subject-area experts. Small, discussion-based classes ensure our students can&nbsp;engage in stimulating conversation with intellectual peers while receiving individualized attention&nbsp;and support. Talent Development and Experiential Learning: Central to our program is our strengths-based, interest-based approach to learning. All&nbsp;FlexSchool students pursue personal passion projects and choose from a diverse menu of&nbsp;enrichment activities and electives designed to support exploration and talent development. Our&nbsp;signature FlexFriday experiential learning program provides essential connections between&nbsp;classroom learning and the real world. Executive Functioning and Learning Support: All FlexSchool students have access to an extensive range of accommodations, including&nbsp;breaks as needed, daily executive functioning support, flexible seating, extended time, assistive&nbsp;technology and more. Learning Specialist support is available on every FlexSchool campus. Social-Emotional Learning and School Counseling: Our caring team of certified school counselors, under the guidance of a consulting psychologist,&nbsp;provide robust social-emotional learning and social pragmatics programming. Students are&nbsp;welcome to visit the school counselor at any time &ndash; no appointment necessary. FlexSchool&nbsp;counselors also maintain a collaborative relationship with parents and outside providers. Rolling admissions: We understand that student needs don&rsquo;t always neatly align with the academic calendar, so&nbsp;FlexSchool admits students on a rolling basis. To learn more, join FlexSchool founder Jacqui&nbsp;Byrne live via Zoom for a Virtual Open House. To receive a call from our admissions team,&nbsp;inquire online, email us at [email protected] or call 908-279-0787.