Ms 250 West Side Collaborative Middle School

I am so grateful we were able to join the 163 community. My son is now in 1st grade. Though neither of his parents speak Spanish, he's come so far thanks to dual language. He's now a reader and though started behind, his teacher noticed, got him a tutor, and worked regularly with us to get him on grade level, all at no cost to us. I feel a true partnership with the teachers and administration. And, the PTA puts on dozens of events throughout the year bringing the community together. From Friday movie nights to our big ticket items in the spring, I am just so happy we are a part of this vibrant community.

Why Studio? At Studio, emotional grounding is the basis for academic development. We did not understand this until our now 9 y/o joined Studio in 2022. In fact, we did not fully comprehend the meaning of Studio’s motto “an education from the inside out,” which is intrinsic to its curriculum, until our son started to manifest his academic strengths and weaknesses. The latter in particular have been the most exciting to witness, for it is because of the emotional grounding and academic support that Studio provides that our son has been able to take on academic challenges with calm resolve. But it’s perhaps Ms. Rotter’s (Head of School) remarkable understanding of child academic development and psychology that Studio has turned into such an integral part of our family and of the way we now approach learning. Unlike other Heads of School, Ms. Rotter knows every single one of the students (and parents) at Studio and, with her team of outstanding educators, develops individualized and highly effective learning strategies and objectives for the family. Each kid learns differently. This fact meets a thriving context at Studio. Moreover, Ms. Mabey’s (Head of Teaching & Learning) curriculum expertise seals academic rigor at Studio. At Parent/Teacher meetings, she teams up with Head Teachers to augment our understanding of our child’s development and to identify strategies to contribute to this development at home. At Studio, we are all developing together. Studio’s curriculum also shines for its interdisciplinarity, combining language (Spanish and English), math, science and history all in “One World.” Children can learn US history along with math principles. Studio’s mathematics curriculum is extremely efficient. Math is not taught as just a set of numbers, but as a language reflected in everyday life. Studio offers a complete education, making connections from the school to home and everywhere in between. Now that we have seen our kid grow older at Studio, we see someone who enjoys learning, who understands his weaknesses and is unafraid to work on them, and someone who understands his strengths and actively works on maintaining them. This is a clear outcome of Studio’s education “from the inside out” approach. This is why we continue to choose Studio.

Beit Rabban has been such an incredible place for our family. As artists, we value creativity, curiosity, and a sense of community, and we see those things woven into our daughter’s experience every day. Not only is she learning Hebrew and Jewish tradition, but she's also learning how to ask thoughtful questions, care about the people around her, and approach the world with imagination and confidence. The teachers bring so much warmth and intention to what they do, and it shows in how happy she is to go to school each morning. We feel incredibly lucky to be part of a community that nurtures both the hearts and minds of its students, and we hope to have the opportunity to send our younger son there as well when he is older.

Our family moved from Park Slope (where there are plenty of highly regarded schools) to the Upper West Side specifically so that our son could start Kindergarten at the Geneva School of Manhattan. Geneva School is unique in being the only Preschool through Twelfth Grade classical Christian school in New York City. In a nutshell, this means that God is at the center of the curriculum through an integrated focus on Truth, Goodness, and Beauty across all subjects. As a result, our son is highly engaged with this schoolwork because it is presented in a way that sparks his wonder. For example, the visual nature of Singapore Math appeals to his intuition, and this is usually the favorite part of his homework. He is learning to read through good books and poetry, and he is also developing his penmanship with a goal of eventually being able to write beautifully in cursive. He is beginning to learn the beauty of the French language, and he is also immersed in beauty every week through the study of music theory and piano at the Geneva Conservatory of Music. Our son is also being encouraged to develop virtuous habits at school, and we are delighted that Geneva School is an extension of the education that begins at home.With God at the center, Geneva School is an oasis where ordinary acts are done with extraordinary love. As new parents, we were welcomed with open arms. During our son’s first week of Kindergarten, the Head of School would sometimes walk him into the building at drop-off to help him feel more comfortable with his new beginnings. The Head of the Lower School also checked in with me and my wife a week later to find out how our son was adjusting to his new class. These are just a couple of examples of the many kind gestures that we didn’t expect but were grateful to receive from the school in our first weeks.As new members of this community, we are increasingly convinced that Geneva School is one of the most successful ecumenical endeavors in New York City. The Geneva School community includes Christian families from across the mystical body of Christ, united around the One through whom we are one (John 17:21-23). Geneva School has been an answer to prayer for our family and we very much look forward to both of our children growing in faith, scholarship, and virtue in this school over the years ahead!

I graduated from Holy Name back in 1975. I was recently heartbroken when I heard that the school had closed. Going there prepared me for High School and College. It was one of those "beacon of lights" for the kids in our community.