William E. Grady High School Saved From Closure!

Earlier today we reported on Sheepshead Bay High School’s ongoing fight for survival from the Department of Education’s ax. Meanwhile, another local high school threatened with the same fate has been granted a reprieve.

The Department of Education has announced that seven of the 33 schools slated for closure under the “turnaround” reform model have escaped the measure, having improved sufficiently over the past year to warrant removal from the list. Brighton Beach’s William E. Grady High School (25 Brighton 4th Road) is one of the seven.

Grady High School students and faculty led a spirited fight against the plans, including student walk-outs and protests that highlighted the school’s achievements, including jumping from a D grade to a B in the latest school progress reports.

All of the seven schools on the list have received A’s and B’s on their progress report. The six other schools saved are Harlem Renaissance High School, Intermediate School 136 Charles O. Dewey, School for Global Studies, Cobble Hill School Of American Studies, W.H. Maxwell Career and Tech High School and Franklin D Roosevelt High School.

Sheepshead Bay High School and John Dewey High School remain slated for closure. The Department of Education will decide whether to close the schools on April 26.