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Do we have an elevator?
-Unfortunately, no. AfYW is a 5th floor walk-up which ensures that students and staff get a good dose of exercise on their way up to school every day!

Do students have to wear uniforms?
-Students can wear whatever they want to school as long as their outfits are appropriate.

How often do students get progress reports?
-Report cards are distributed officially 4 times a year, but students receive informal progress reports at least every month.  Teachers upload these informal reports to Edline where parents can log-in and view them as well.

Will my child take any courses besides writing?
-Absolutely. Students take a full college preparatory curriculum including a four-year scope and sequence in English, Math, Science and History, two years of Spanish, and several credits of Art, Drama, and Physical Education.

Does AfYW offer AP courses?
-Yes! We offer an open enrollment AP English Course in the 12th Grade.

Do students take Regents' exams?
-Yes. As they are New York State graduation requirements students take Regents exams, though on a day-to-day basis inside classrooms teachers focus on project-based instruction and inquiry as a means to teach the skills and content necessary to succeed on these exams.

What extra-curricular activities are available?
-Please see the After School Activities listing for a full list of in-house extra curricular activities offered this year.

How many performances/plays does the school put on per year?
-We put on a big Talent Show during the Fall semester and produce a play in the school auditorium during the Spring semester.

What are the school hours and length of classes?
-Check our Schedules page to see the daily bell schedule.

Is AfYW a screened school?
-No, any student interested in attending Young Writers can interested can apply to our school like most other NYCDOE public schools.

How many students are in each class?
-We do everything we can to keep classes small. In the 9th grade, our largest grade, class sizes are about 26-28 students. By the time students are in the 11th and 12th grades their classes are usually around 20 students.

What is the student teacher ratio?
-With just over 400 students in our school and 30 teachers on staff our teacher to student ration is about 1:14

What support is available for parents and students around the college process?
-We have a full-time College-Bound counselor who works closely with each of our Seniors through every stage of the college application process. Additionally, there are college preparatory units taught as part of the advisory curriculum in 10th-12th grades.

What support is available if a student falls behind in his classes?
-Apart from individualized academic counseling that takes place in Advisory, teachers provide students with regularly updated progress reports throughout the year. We also have after school Homework Center at least twice a week for all grades and most teachers spend hours at school at the end of the day working to support struggling students.

Answers Coming Soon:
How is writing infused in the curriculum?
What is Advisory?
Why do adults in the school community go by first names?
How will the school communicate with me about my child's progress?
Are students tracked in advanced classes?
What kind of technology is available at AFYW?
What's the graduation and college rate?
How are students grouped?
Hows the neighborhood?
How do we service special education students/IEP?
Why do we allow students to call us by first names?
What is advisory? Who contacts parents?
What partnerships we have, especially with colleges?
What are the names of colleges past students were accepted into?
What are the different ways to get to the school?
How strong is our parent involvement?
Are parents allowed to come up to school at anytime?
Why we don't allow students to take regents in their 9th year?
How is our school different than other non-writing school? What makes our school a writing school?
What type of writing do students focus on?
How are the students prepared to take regents exam?
If my child has taken regents in eight grade already how will his/her schedule look like for 9th grade?
Can my child graduate with an advance regents diploma in your school?
What languages do you offer?