Great Neck Village High School

Village School (commonly VS) is the oldest public alternative high school in New York State.[7] It was judged very good by the Center for the Study of Educational Alternatives at Hofstra University.[8] The American School Board Journal gave the Magna Award to the School for its excellent, unique, high school program.[9] As a member of the Coalition of Essential Schools, the Village School and its staff work closely with other member schools and with the education faculty of Brown University.[8] The Village School is officially recognized by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools and certified by the New York State Education Department.[8] There are about 50 students enrolled in the Village School each academic year.[8]

Village School
Location
614 Middle Neck Road
Great Neck, NY, 11023
USA
Information
Type Alternative high school
Established 1970[1]
School district Great Neck Union Free School District[2]
Principal Stephen Goldberg[3]
Administrative Assistant Diane Schneider[3]
Faculty 6.0 (on FTE basis) (as of 2007-08)[4]
Enrollment 46 (as of 2007-08)[5]
Student to teacher ratio 7.7 (as of 2007-08)[4]
Information 516-441-4900[6]
Website

Village School is one of three high schools in the Great Neck School District, which includes Great Neck North High School and William A. Shine Great Neck South High School.[10] VS offers its 46 students[5] an individualized system where students earn credits as they meet curriculum goals that have been established by their teachers.[8] Original, performance, and published documents are assessments of these goals have long been part of a Village School student's academic history.[8] About 99 percent of the students continue their education at four-year schools.[11]

The alternative school provides education for grades 9-12.[11] Many types of students attend the Village School. The Village School's catalogue describes the students saying,

All have at least average ability, some have exceptional learning abilities and artistic talents, while others have special educational needs. Students who may have felt lost and isolated in a large school often thrive in the smaller and more personalized setting of the Village School.[7]

The school describes itself as a "college preparatory public high school dedicated to encouraging academic success through a non-traditional, innovative curriculum".[12] Co-founder Arnie Langberg has been called "one of the most important pioneers in the field of public alternative education."[13] The admissions process at Village School is comprehensive.[11] Each student takes part in an on-campus interview and is accompanied by a parent.[11] The children are hand picked and visit the school twice before being considered a candidate for this program.[11]

References

  1. History; URL accessed May 3, 2009.
  2. NYS Admin Listing; URL accessed November 29, 2009.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Faculty; URL accessed May 3, 2009.
  4. 4.0 4.1 Village School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed May 3, 2009.
  5. 5.0 5.1 The New York State School Report Card Village School, accessed May 3, 2009
  6. Page 18; URL accessed November 29, 2009.
  7. 7.0 7.1 [1] Archived 2011-05-16 at the Wayback Machine Village School, accessed May 16, 2007
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 [2] Archived 2009-12-29 at the Wayback Machine Great Neck Public Schools Web site, PDF document titled "Great Neck Public Schools: "The Village School, accessed November 29, 2009
  9. "Magna Awards presented today"[dead link], American School Board Journal, April 16, 2007. Accessed October 18, 2007. "Great Neck (N.Y.) Public Schools -- Village School."
  10. [3] Archived 2010-01-07 at the Wayback Machine, accessed November 29, 2009
  11. 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 Village School Archived 2010-05-22 at the Wayback Machine, The Village School: An Alternative Means to Education. Accessed November 12, 2007.
  12. [4] Archived 2010-04-19 at the Wayback Machine Great Neck Village School official Web site, accessed April 28, 2007
  13. [5] Archived 2007-03-17 at the Wayback Machine The quote is from Jerry Mintz, founder of the Alternative Education Resource Organization, in an interview Mintz conducted with Langberg, "Radio Interview With Arnie Langberg on the Night of the Littleton Tragedy" appearing in The Education Revolution Magazine, Summer 1999, accessed May 3, 2009