Hunter College High School (Hunter High School) is one of the top high schools in New York City, rivaled by Stuyvesant High School, the Bronx High School of Science, and Brooklyn Technical High School. Unlike those schools, Hunter is run by Hunter College, rather than the public NYC Board of Education; however it is publicly funded and therefore charges no tuition.

Admissions

Admission is granted at the seventh grade level only. Each year, approximately 2,500 sixth grade students from the five boroughs of New York City who meet Hunter's standards in reading and mathematics on a fifth grade standardized exam are eligible to take the Hunter College High School Entrance Exam. Around 250 students are accepted into the entering class each year. Some attrition occurs, primarily at the ends of the eighth and ninth grades as students transfer to other competitive high schools, so that total enrollment from grades 7 through 12 is approximately 1,200 students. The yearly graduating class is typically made up of 180 students.

History

Hunter College High School is named after the founder of Hunter College and high school, Dr. Thomas Hunter .

Established in 1869 as an experimental teaching school for students at Hunter College, Hunter has since evolved to be a competitive college preparatory school. Hunter was originally an all women's school, a fact reflected in the name of the "Alumnae/i" association (rather than "Alumni" association), and was made coed in the 1974.

The high school has occupied a number of buildings throughout its history, including one at the E. 68^th St. campus of the College (1940–1970). The current location (since 1977) is at E. 94^th St. between Park and Madison Avenues adjacent to the historical 94th street Armory. The brick facade and near-windowless classrooms has led to it being given the popular moniker of The Brick Prison among its "inmates." As of 2004, the school has been surrounded by scaffolding due to renovation work on the roof and façade.

The current principal is Dr. David Laurenson. Mr. Patrick O'Reilly and Ms. Sonya Mosco are assistant principals. The General Organization (G.O.) is a student-run body which allows students to communicate with the administration and faculty. The G.O., in conjunction with the administration, organizes school-wide events such as Spirit Day, a school-wide outdoor recreation day held in October, and Carnival, held at the end of the year.

The new director of the campus schools, announced on April 14, 2005, is John Mucciolo, currently of Ridgewood High School in New Jersey.

Academics

All Hunter students pursue an academically enriched six-year program of study. The curriculum is a rigorous college preparatory program that includes both required and elective courses, many of which exceed New York State Regents requirements. Courses cover a broad liberal arts field that collectively make up the Hunter College High School diploma.

Students in grades 7 and 8 take a special course called Communication and Theater and students in grades 7-10 must take art and music. At least one of the three foreign language (French, Latin, or Spanish) courses must be taken in grades 7-10. In their junior and senior years, students are allowed to take a number of electives and Advanced Placement courses.

Electives and Advanced Placement courses are offered by one of six academic departments. Electives include International Relations (Social Studies department), Photography (Art & Music), Computer Science (Mathematics), Journalism (English), Physiology (Science), and introductory Italian (Foreign Language). Senior year students are also eligible to take credited courses at Hunter College.

Every junior and senior is assigned a college guidance counselor. The student:counselor ratio at Hunter is much lower than the national average and comparable to that of many private high schools. Today (classes of 2002 through 2004) nearly 99% of Hunter's students go on to college, 25% accept admission to an Ivy League school [1].

Hunter students win many honors and awards during their high school careers [2], including numerous Scholastic Writing Awards. The 2005 Intel Science Talent Search first-place winner was Hunter senior David Bauer ('05).

The Wall Street Journal recently named Hunter College High School the top public high school in the United States (as determined by the number of students accepted into top colleges) [3].

Extracurricular Activities

The dozens of clubs and organizations at Hunter cater to a variety of interests, from politics to film and music to knitting. All clubs and organizations at Hunter are wholly student-run and advised by faculty members.

Hunter has many student publications, including What's What, the official school newspaper since 1922, and its rival independent paper, The Observer. Student-produced magazines include thedeepend (humor), Tapestry (science fiction and fantasy), Radicals (math), and Argus (literary). Hunter also has a strong dramatic arts and musical tradition, with annual productions such as Musical Repertoire, Brick Prison, Hunter Theater Ensemble, Winter Concert, and numerous cultural shows.

Students can choose to furthur pursue their academic interests through school activities such as the Hunter United Nations Society (HUNS), Washington Seminar, Debate Team, and Math Team.

Many students are also on atheletic teams such as the volleyball (Hunter Hitmen), basketball, swimming, and soccer teams. Hunter sports teams compete with other New York City high schools in the NYC Public Schools Athletic League (PSAL).

Notable alumni include rapper Young MC, actress Cynthia Nixon, nuclear physicist Sihyun Kim , writer/entrepreneur Charles Ardai, and Merck CFO Judy Lewent.

External links

• Hunter College High School
• Hunter College High School Alumnae/i Association