The Urban Assembly identifies themes that excite students and encourage them to recognize the connections between academic achievement, college and careers. Research shows that drawing such connections in adolescence significantly increases the likelihood that a young man or woman will complete college. We integrate a school’s theme into every aspect of the curriculum so that it not only illustrates the relevance of academic concepts but also helps students imagine themselves as successful working professionals.

Themes advance learning in the following ways:


A theme provides a substantive context in which different subjects relate to each other in a rigorous interdisciplinary program.

Case Study: The New York Harbor School
Students at the New York Harbor School study global and American maritime history to fulfill their history requirements. Their required Living Environment class focuses on marine biology, while English courses include literature such as Treasure Island, Moby Dick and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn that is set largely on the water. Through the school’s partnership with the South Street Seaport Museum, students spend a day of classes each week on the waterfront or aboard a 125-foot schooner in New York Harbor, where they learn physics as they observe the boat’s speed, motion and complex system of pulleys and levers, and sharpen their math skills by using ratios to determine the height of the tide.
Case Study: The Bronx Academy of Letters
The Bronx Academy of Letters uses literary texts in every class. In social studies, the Vietnam War comes alive in classic nonfiction accounts such as Michael Herr’s Dispatches and Neil Sheehan’s A Bright Shining Lie. In science, students read It Must Be Beautiful: Great Equations of Modern Science, a collection of twelve essays, and K.C. Cole’s First You Build a Cloud: And Other Reflections on Physics as a Way of Life. Math students read biographies such as Sylvia Nasar’s A Beautiful Mind: A Biography of John Forbes Nash, Jr. and plays like David Auburn’s Proof. Students also keep a journal in all their classes as well as a cumulative portfolio of their written work.


When successful adults visit school or a class travels afield to a workplace, students learn how their academic knowledge can advance their professional futures.
Case Study: Academy for Careers in Sports
In 2005-06, guest speakers at the Academy for Careers in Sports included Jay Cross, president of the New York Jets, who discussed the management structure and job categories of a professional football team; Bill Abrahamson, general manager of the Sports Center at Chelsea Piers, who outlined the jobs, from marketing to facilities management, available at a sports complex; Dr. Gerard Varlotta, of NYU’s Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation, who introduced students to the field of sports medicine; former NBA All-Star Bob Lanier, who described his off-the-court experiences as chairman of the NBA’s Stay in School Program and president of the NBA’s Players Association; and Dan Marguilies of the Thornton-Tomasetti Group’s LZA Technology Division, who discussed the design and construction of playing fields and stadiums.
Case Study: The Bronx Academy of Letters
Field trips at the Bronx Academy of Letters in 2005-06 included visits to a poetry slam at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe and the headquarters of the Daily News. The school also hosted 21 weekly Writers Forums where speakers ranging from poets and authors to publishers and political speechwriters read their work, described their jobs, and discussed the literature that influenced them the most.


Partner institutions in the public, private and nonprofit sectors, trained adult mentors and internships in the working world expose students to professional environments and challenge them to apply their classroom skills to real life.
Case Study: The Academy for Careers in Sports
In 2004-05, freshmen at the Academy for Careers in Sports were paired with mentors at the Park Avenue headquarters of Major League Baseball. Since then these students have spent one afternoon a week with their mentors, who work in every area of the organization, including the legal, marketing, media and sales departments. In addition to providing moral support, the mentors help students with academics, college preparation and career exploration.
Case Study: The Bronx School for Law, Government and Justice
At the Bronx School for Law, Government and Justice, juniors spend one afternoon a week and seniors spend three afternoons a week interning with a law firm, a corporation, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. Students share their experiences in a weekly internship seminar. Sites where students are currently interning include the New York State Attorney General’s Office, the Bronx District Attorney’s Office, News Corporation, and the law firm of Kaye Scholer.