Developing A Community School - Snyder High School

Henry Snyder High School, is located in the Greenville section of town. The neighborhood has been an integral part of Jersey City’s history. Snyder High School serves 66% and 83% of families living below the poverty line, respectively. Snyder High School serve large numbers of students representing subpopulations at disproportionate risk for problem behaviors and dropout, including Black, Hispanic, and economically disadvantage students, and the student population at these schools are more racially segregated than of the city at large. Black and Hispanic students comprise 87.4% of the student population at Snyder HS with 66.8% of the student population of the student population of Jersey City Public Schools. Approximately 85% of our students receive free and reduced lunch. The majority of our Latino students are first generation in the United States. Within their homes, Spanish is the primary language. It is further substantiated by 20% of those students identified as ELL, which due to The Every Student Succeeds Act, require four years of monitoring. Additionally, we also have a small percentage of students who have refused bilingual services and are currently enrolled. As a result, Black, Latino and recently immigrated students and families (who comprise the vast majority of those served by these school) are most affected by challenges, resulting inequities include: lack of access to health care; lack of access to health insurance; lack of nutritious food; lack of safe, secure housing; lack of quality academic and extracurricular enrichment opportunities for students; and high suspension, chronic absenteeism and teen pregnancy rates. Children in these schools face a multitude of psychosocial stressors that directly affect their ability to achieve academic success such as violence, high levels of unemployment, poverty, gang activity and drug addiction. As we focus on educating the whole child, social and emotional education is a priority in our community. By addressing the need for equity amongst our students and their families, opportunities to support basic needs like housing, nutrition, employment and mental wellness are a must if we expect our children to succeed educationally in our efforts to close the achievement gap.