The Bank Street School for Children, an independent, coeducational nursery through 8th-grade school on the Upper West Side, believes that children learn best in environments suited to their specific ages and stages of development and that this kind of learning happens best in person.
As New York City continues along the path to reopening, Bank Street School for Children has been developing extensive safety precautions and plans in order to offer their students in-person instruction. While some families have opted for virtual programming, the majority are planning for their children to return to Bank Street under the new safety precautions, including smaller class sizes, social distancing measures, and guidelines for wearing face coverings and hand-washing. Bank Street has consulted with a range of experts, including doctors, architects, engineers, and air safety consultants, and hired an environmental health and safety consulting firm, to provide specific guidance surrounding their planning for the 2020-21 school year.
Bank Street has also repurposed the use of its indoor spaces, typically used by other Bank Street programs such as the Bank Street Graduate School of Education, to make social distancing possible and to minimize overall contact.
Bank Street has indicated they will only reopen once both the city and state have allowed schools to do so and they have met all health and safety protections that align with CDC guidelines.
The application for the 2021-22 school year goes live on their website school.bankstreet.edu on Thursday, August 20. Virtual Open Houses are available as an opportunity to learn more about their community and approach to learning.
Some spaces are still available for this fall. Limited financial aid is available. Email sfcadmissions@bankstreet.edu for more information.