Boys and Girls High School

Administratively joined when it was founded in 1878, Boys and Girls High School existed as two separate schools for much of the 20th century. Both institutions, particularly Boys High School, were considered gems in the city’s school system and were viewed with great pride in the community. The merged Boys and Girls High School continues to be a seen as a “symbol of excellence” in Bedford-Stuyvesant.

Boys and Girls High School is considered the oldest high school in New York City that began as a public school. Originally opened in 1878 as a part of the Central Grammer School at Court and Livingston Streets, the girls division was moved just eight years later to a new building on Nostrand Avenue in Bedford-Stuyvesant. In 1891 the two schools were formally separated, and the next year Boys High moved into a new building on Marcy Avenue not far from Girls High. In 1976 the two schools were merged again in a new building on Fulton St.

The historic Boys High and Girls High buildings were both designed by architect James W. Naughton. The earlier (1886) Victorian Gothic style Girls High is now the oldest surviving structure built as a high school in New York City. It has been restored and now houses the Brooklyn Adult Learning Center. The 1892 Boys High Building was also designed by Naughton, and was conceived to be a major architectural monument as befit one of the most important educational institutions of the time. Romanesque Revival in style, the building has a dramatic roofline with gables, dormers, a round tower, and a corner bell tower. Long a visual centerpiece of Bedford-Stuyvesant, the Boys High building was restored in the 1990s and now houses the Street Academy, an alternative high school, as well as several other educational programs. Both buildings are New York City Landmarks.

Boys High graduates include writers Norman Mailer and Isaac Asimov, composer Aaron Copeland, architect Morris Lapidus, Lawrence Spivak of Meet the Press, and American Reform Judaism leader Rabbi Alfred Gottschalk. Girls High alumna include singer Lena Horne, actress Florence Eldridge, and Shirley Chisholm–the first Black woman to serve in Congress. Boys High also has had a strong reputation for athletics and over the years its basketball team included such legends as Connie Hawkins and Lenny Wilkins.

Girls High closed in 1964. In 1976 Boys and Girls High were joined once again in a new modern building on Fulton Street–creating what continues to be amongst the largest African American high school populations in the United States. Between 2,300 and 3,500 students enroll annually. As in the past, the re-merged school is an integral part of the Bedford-Stuyvesant community. The Black Rodeo is held at the school each year, a local football league uses its field, and, until recently, it was the site of the International African Arts Festival. It was also one of the first places Nelson Mandela stopped on his historic first visit to the United States in 1993. Many credit the late Frank Mickens, who served as principal from 1986 until he retired in 2005, with turning the school around after a period of difficulty. Mickens cut absenteeism and raised graduation rates, although some of his methods were considered controversial. As of 2004, Boys and Girls High School could again boast about its academic success, with 85% of its graduates going on to college.

Graduation rates declined after Mickens left, and progress has been shaky in recent years. But the school, with its long history in the community, continues on. During the 2010-2011 academic year, 2013 students were enrolled in grades 9 through 12, with an average attendance rate of 73.4%. The athletics programs are continually high-acheiving, and for the 2011-2012 academic year, student-athletes will be required to serve thirty hours of community service, as well as pass their first period classes and a certain number of Regents exams, to participate in sports. As of 2011, Boys and Girls High School offers a gifted and talented honors program, a peer tutoring program, and the Arthur Ashe Science Skills program.