Better Together: Our Approach to Family Partnership
It’s only October, but Harlem Academy families have already come together for secondary school placement meetings, game nights, conversations about chess and summer camp opportunities, and their first round of parent-teacher conferences – and that’s on top of the typical orientation and curriculum nights.
Why so much, so early?
Family partnership isn’t something we leave to chance. We see it as essential to student success as rigorous academics and character formation. Our families aren't simply invited to participate in their children's education. They're active partners in making it successful. We build that partnership in three important ways:
These events, combined with regular communication and transparent access to assignments and grades, help families stay connected to what students are learning. Because students remember what they think about, this visibility allows parents to ask meaningful questions and spark conversations that reinforce classroom learning at home.
LISTENING AND LEARNING TOGETHER
Family partnership isn’t something we leave to chance. We see it as essential to student success as rigorous academics and character formation. Our families aren't simply invited to participate in their children's education. They're active partners in making it successful. We build that partnership in three important ways:
SHARED EXPECTATIONS
Required participation in orientation, curriculum night, and early-fall conferences establishes shared expectations and pinpoints growth opportunities while there’s still time to make a difference.
Required participation in orientation, curriculum night, and early-fall conferences establishes shared expectations and pinpoints growth opportunities while there’s still time to make a difference.
These events, combined with regular communication and transparent access to assignments and grades, help families stay connected to what students are learning. Because students remember what they think about, this visibility allows parents to ask meaningful questions and spark conversations that reinforce classroom learning at home.
LISTENING AND LEARNING TOGETHER
Our monthly Family Connection Meetings bring families and school leaders together to share strategies and resources. This month, families who have participated in our sleepaway camp partnerships will join our placement director to share their experiences with families interested in exploring these opportunities. Other meetings help families apply strategies from teacher professional development and explore other relevant topics like navigating social media safely.
Just as importantly, we learn from families through ongoing dialogue. Our fall survey (happening now!) allows us to respond to feedback during the school year, not simply collect it for the next.
FUELED BY TRADITIONS
We build community and mark growth through regular Celebrations of Learning and special events, such as our Blazer Ceremony and Eighth Grade Dinner. We also gather for Friendsgiving, game nights, and Family Gratitude Day. These shared traditions deepen trust, strengthen relationships, and nurture the sense of extended family that defines Harlem Academy.
When you hear about Harlem Academy's remarkable outcomes – from $1.8 million in annual secondary school scholarships earned by our most recent graduates to 94% of alumni matriculating at four-year colleges – it’s easy to focus solely on what happens in the classroom. But at HA, we know that family partnership is just as essential to that success. That is why we invest so deeply in building strong connections from day one.
FUELED BY TRADITIONS
We build community and mark growth through regular Celebrations of Learning and special events, such as our Blazer Ceremony and Eighth Grade Dinner. We also gather for Friendsgiving, game nights, and Family Gratitude Day. These shared traditions deepen trust, strengthen relationships, and nurture the sense of extended family that defines Harlem Academy.
When you hear about Harlem Academy's remarkable outcomes – from $1.8 million in annual secondary school scholarships earned by our most recent graduates to 94% of alumni matriculating at four-year colleges – it’s easy to focus solely on what happens in the classroom. But at HA, we know that family partnership is just as essential to that success. That is why we invest so deeply in building strong connections from day one.
Harlem Academy
655 St. Nicholas Avenue
New York, NY, 10030
P (212) 348-2600
F (212) 348-3500
info@harlemacademy.org
Make a Tuition Payment
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655 St. Nicholas Avenue
New York, NY, 10030
P (212) 348-2600
F (212) 348-3500
info@harlemacademy.org
Make a Tuition Payment
Financial and Privacy Information
Site Map
Harlem Academy is an independent school (grades K-8) that drives equity of opportunity for promising students, guiding them to thrive at the highest academic levels and one day make a mark on the world.