BROOKLYN HIGH SCHOOL OF THE ARTS SHOWS

OBAMA TAKING CLINTON IN STUDENT PRIMARY VOTE

MAY 6, 2008  -- Brooklyn H.S. of the Arts (BHSA) held its own Democratic primary this morning to coincide with Indiana’s and North Carolina’s, and their poll shows Obama will be the Democratic candidate in this fall’s Presidential election.  Is the vote of these high school students indicative of the nation?  We’ll see …

Upon entering the school this morning BHSA’s Political Club handed out ballots to all students, freshmen through seniors, who were asked to check off their choice of Barak Obama or Hillary Clinton.  Before the counts were in, a few exit poll comments, from not specifically stating the candidate to being very explicit  included: “My candidate has more experience” and “My candidate deserves it more”, to “I voted for him because he’s the first African American to run for President” and “I believe in his beliefs and that he can make a change and make a great President – better than the other (candidate).”  Are these politically savvy students on the mark?

In the weeks preceding their counting of the crucial votes, Political Club members had presented themselves – in a role-playing format  to all social studies classes.  Pretending to be the actual candidates the students laid out each contender’s views on the issues and answered questions from their audiences.  A lot of research went into their presentations, but the Political Club was certainly up to it.  Since its inception this semester BHSA’s Political Club has been meeting once week to host outside speakers like Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz; hold serious political discussions, and participate in a variety of role-playing of prominent political figures.

Brooklyn H.S. of the Arts offers fine and performing arts solely to talented Brooklyn students.  It’s also still the only high school in the country offering preservation arts to its student population.  BHSA is an arts audition-only school, but as today’s election shows, BHSA’s additional emphasis on academics definitely extends to current events; not to mention other clubs’ activities that focus on writing, literature, leadership, manners and community works. 

For more information on Brooklyn H.S. of the Arts visit www.bhsaonline.org,  www.wcbsfm.com (WCBS-FM Cares, “Partnership”), or call (718)-855-2412.

345 Dean Street, Brooklyn, NY  11217 * Fax (718) 852-8734 * Phone (718) 855-2412

"Spring is in the air"

BHSA’s SPRING CONCERT SCHEDULE

Thursday, May 15th Orchestra Concert at BHSA
   345 Dean Street, Brooklyn, NY  11217
   7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
   Tickets: $10 Adults/$6 Child/$3 BHSA Student with I.D.

Friday, May 23rd Dance Concert At BMCC
   199 Chambers St., New York, NY  10007
   7:00-10:00 p.m.
   Tickets: $12 Adults/$6 Child/$4 BHSA Student with I.D.

Wednesday, June 4th Band Concert at BHSA
   345 Dean St., Brooklyn, NY  11217
   7:00-10:00 p.m.
   Tickets: $10 for all

Thursday, June 12th Art Exhibition at BHSA
   345 Dena St., Brooklyn, NY  11217
   5:30-7:00 p.m.
   Tickets: Free

Friday, June 13th Vocal Concert at BHSA
   345 Dean St., Brooklyn, NY  11217
   6:00 – 8:00 p.m.
   Tickets: $10 Adults/$6 Child/$3 BHSA Student with I.D.

For More Information call: 718-855-2412, ext. 1390

 

 

 BHSA HIGHLIGHTS

As Brooklyn H.S. of the Arts launches into its Spring 2008 Semester, with concerts, exhibitions, community performances and the graduation of the Class of 2008 on June 28th in the offering, there are a few highlights from this school year’s fall/winter semester that should be noted.

• BHSA’s Instrumental Music Department has joined the National Music Honors Society offering the school’s young performers additional opportunities to use their talents to enrich community organizations.  The students themselves choose to entertain at senior citizens centers, children’s hospitals or other neighborhood organizations as part of this community outreach program.
• On Monday, January 14th, members of the BHSA Jazz Ensemble were guests at a rehearsal of the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra led by Wyaton Marsalis.  They had the chance to observe, first hand, the way the professional musicians worked out the details and rehearsed the music of Duke Ellington.  At the break, the students had the thrill of discussing the music and taking pictures with Lincoln Center’s professional jazz musicians.
• BHSA’s Senior Chorus performed in January at St. Paul’s Community Baptist Church in Brooklyn and were --  surprisingly -- treated to a lavished supper by Pastor Youngblood as an informal ‘thank you’ for their standing ovation performance.
• An out of state school visiting BHSA to use this arts school as a model for the arts school they’re forming, filmed the students from the Vocal Music Department and interviewed both teacher and students for their views on Vocal Music curriculum.
• On the academic side, English3/4 students gathered a better understanding of the Holocaust by reading Elie Wiesel’s ‘Night’. After which many students actually wrote to Dr. Wiesel describing their empathy, impressions and feelings about his writing and the atrocities that occurred during World War II.  These same students also had the chance to express their love of writing by composing poems fashioned after their study of famous poets from Wordsworth to Angelou.  Meanwhile, English 5/6 students studied Shakespeare’s ‘Othello’, translating and performing the final act of the play with their own modern flair that added 2008 touches to this classic drama.  These same students also began conducting Socratic Dialogues, based on their analysis of classic short stories such as Kate Chopin’s ‘The Story of an Hour’,  which made them wonder and debate whether or not Ms. Mallard was morally right to feel happiness at the death of her husband.
• Also on an academic level it should be noted that BHSA English A.P. Teacher Alicia Davis had a 100% passing rate for her classes that took the January ’08 English Regents.  This is an unprecedented fourth time in a row that her classes have attained a 100% passing rate in this Regents.
• On the Fine Arts front, three-year Jacob Lawrence Scholarships for Parson’s School of Design Pre-College Program were awarded to two BHSA 10th graders, Dudley Desrosiers and Guillermo Restrepo.  Two-year Portfolio Prep Scholarships went to 11th graders Mark Gonsalves, Desiree Camacho and Caroline Deroseng.
• Senior Gail McLaurin attended Pratt’s Saturday Art Program on partial scholarship this fall; while Kadeem Dolphy and Pedro Recarey attended the Cooper Union Portfolio Prep Classes throughout the fall semester.
• Five BHSA 10th grade art majors  completed FIT’s OEOP fall semester Pre-College Program. Guilllerno Restrepo, Roshanna Davidson Carry, Nicole Coard, Lorteshia Smith and Chris Berke will now graduate to FIT’s  more advanced spring semester of the same program, preparing them for possible admission into the much coveted Fashion Institute of Technology after graduation.