Cristo Rey New York High School is an American college preparatory, Catholic high school located in the East Harlem neighborhood of the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York.
It is a member of the Cristo Rey Network of schools.
The school follows a unique Corporate Work Study Model, which allows students to spend one day per week interning with multinational corporations, including McKinsey, Pfizer, American Express, and JPMorgan Chase.
Since its opening in 2004, the school has produced 943 alumni.
History
The school was established in 2004 as a collaborative effort between the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus, the De La Salle Christian Brothers, and the Jesuits.
It functions in a low-income area of Manhattan to serve families who cannot afford private-school tuition, serving students from under-served elementary and middle schools who may be behind on standardized tests.
The co-founders of the school were Fr. Joseph Parkes, a member of the Society of Jesus and president of the school until 2018, and Bill Ford, the principal of the school until 2019 and nephew of martyr Ita Ford. For his 13 years of involvement with the school, Fr. Parkes received the Catholic Extension Society Spirit of Francis Award in 2017.
Cristo Rey New York is the fifth member of the Cristo Rey Network of high schools, the original being Cristo Rey Jesuit High School in Chicago, Illinois.
There are 37 Cristo Rey schools in the United States, all of which exclusively serve students from low-income families. Other Cristo Rey Schools in the New York Metropolitan area are Cristo Rey Brooklyn High School and Cristo Rey Newark High School.
The school's building at 112 East 106th Street is part of St. Cecilia's Church and Convent, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
General Information
Tuition and financials
The school boasts the lowest tuition for a private school in Manhattan at $2,000 per year. The actual operating costs for Cristo Rey education total more than $17,000 per student. After financial aid, the average amount paid per student is $1,185, which covers around ten percent of their education. About 40 percent of these operating costs are funded by income earned by students through Corporate Work Study Program jobs, while grants and private donations cover the final 50 percent of costs.
Demographics
The school serves a 377-person student body that is 75 percent Hispanic, 20 percent African American, and five percent other ethnicities. Most of these students have attended underserved elementary and middle schools, and their academic performance entering high school is predominantly below grade level. The average family income of students is $31,015.
Curriculum and academics
The school has three main components to its curriculum: college readiness, college access, and college success. A major focus of the school is raising standardized test scores and preparing students for a rigorous college education.
The school also ensures that all students have access to college by providing assistance throughout the entire college application process and ensuring that students obtain sufficient financial aid.
The school. has a 14:1 student-to-faculty ratio.
Alumni success
The school has produced tremendous results in its history. Its 98 percent college enrollment rate is double the national average for low-income students, and its 83 percent college graduation rate is more than five times the national average for students of the same peer group.
Virtually all the school's graduates will become first-generation college students.
Corporate Work Study Program
The Corporate Work Study Program is a distinguishing component of all Cristo Rey schools. Students work one day per week in entry-level positions at an assigned company. The goal is for students to acquire job experience and marketable skills, develop a network of business contacts, gain exposure to a wide variety of career opportunities, and improve in their work ethic and self-esteem. Work is considered part of the curriculum; if a student is dismissed from their job, they are considered to have failed that course.