Brooklyn Elected Officials Join Proud Families to Salute Medgar Evers College Prep as 2010 Inspiration Award Winner
May 2010
 |
 |
 |
|
|
Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz and District 35 City Council Member Letitia James were among the proud faces in the crowd as Medgar Evers College Preparatory School was honored with a 2010 College Board Inspiration Award.
During the school assembly on April 19, Markowitz issued a proclamation stating, “I thank everyone present for helping to make Brooklyn a better place to live, study, and become a responsible and thoughtful adult, and for investing their time and energy in the greatest call of all, the children of today, our leaders of tomorrow.”
Medgar Evers College Prep is named for slain civil rights activist Medgar Evers, whose 1963 murder was dramatized in two Hollywood films, Ghosts of Mississippi and Mississippi Burning, and is located in the working-class, predominantly African American neighborhood of Bedford Stuyvesant. Less than 10 years ago, the school had a 60 percent graduation rate and less than 15 percent of its students graduated with New York State Regents diplomas.
In 2001, Michael Wiltshire was hired as the school’s principal, and he instituted a curriculum that emphasized academic rigor. In an effort to further create a school of excellence, effective and motivated teachers were recruited.
In 2002, the school offered one Advanced Placement Program® (AP®) course; today, the school offers a total of 17 AP courses. In 2009, the graduation rate was 95 percent, with more than 90 percent of students graduating with Regents diplomas and students being accepted to more than 100 colleges and universities.
Medgar Evers College Prep boasts a state-of-the-art music room, and the school’s marching band and modern dance ensemble both gave impressive performances at the awards ceremony.
Return to Top
