I’m sometimes bothered by how often The Spectator bashes our school and its policies. One would think that, as Stuyvesant students, readers and writers alike would get tired of the notion that our school has an endless list of things to complain about. Thankfully, someone—or, rather, an entire publication—noticed that we do a great many things right. Recently, U.S. News & World Report named Stuyvesant the 15th best public high school in the nation and number one in New York.
According to the U.S. News & World Report Web site, ranking was determined by three criteria: performance on standardized state testing in math and reading adjusted for relative levels of income, performance of disadvantaged students, and involvement and performance in college-level courses, measured by Advanced Placement (AP) exam grades. The report used scores from the 2005-2006 school year.
Jealousy from less acclaimed schools is to be expected, but grumbling from within the Stuyvesant community seems like a bolt from the blue. An alumnus I spoke to recently, when told about the ranking, said, “I knew [Principal Stanley] Teitel was running the place downhill.” There are also those who don’t think we deserve to be ranked, claiming Stuy is average and that we just so happen to be a shinier penny in a box of dirty pennies.
Don’t get me wrong; I think there are problems with our school. While our rights as students could be better protected, and we could have a bigger voice when it comes to decisions that affect us, it’s important to realize the administration has our best interests at heart. Ranking 15th in the country is cause for celebration, not condemnation for not ranking higher.
Our administration manages to maintain high academic standards, evidenced by our consistently high standardized test scores. Of the 1,288 AP exams taken at Stuyvesant in 2006, 89% received a grade of three or higher. Of the 5563 Regents exams taken at Stuy in the 2005-2006 year, 69% received a grade of 90 or higher.
No matter how deserving we may be, it is impossible for us to be top on the list because of the amount of students we’re obligated to accept every year. We don’t just have to score well on Regents and APs; we have to keep many kids scoring well.
But if we cut class size in order to attempt a rise in prestige, we would lose two qualities aside from academics that make us great: diversity and relative accessibility. To get into Stuyvesant, a student simply has to live in the city and take a test. To get a kid into some of the top suburban schools that ranked higher, a family must buy a million-dollar home and live within certain school districts.
It’s high time we compliment the Stuyvesant student body and its administration for a job well done.