SRN LEADS/Stanford University: School Redesign Network — Leadership, Equity & Accountability in Districts & Schools

The JREC Story

The Julia Richman Education Complex: The JREC Story

A collection of materials describing a successful effort to transform a failing urban high school

"Very simply stated, the Julia Richman Education Complex is the best example in the United States of a multiplex, a group of very effective schools that share a common facility."

— Tom Vander Ark, Former Executive Director, Education
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

This collection of materials presents the story of the successful transformation of New York City's large, comprehensive Julia Richman High School into the Julia Richman Education Complex. From an academically failing, physically unsafe, graffiti-ridden school of 2,600 that graduated only a third of its students, Julia Richman has become a vibrant multi-age complex of six schools, including four high schools that now graduate more than 90% of their students and send about 90% to college.

The case study, DVD and cards of "Frequently Asked Questions", co-authored by researchers at NCREST and Stanford University in collaboration with school leaders at JREC's Urban Academy examine the:

• concept of an education complex
• history of the former high school
• change strategy and policy context for the reform
• specific design features and practices that have come to define JREC
• tensions the schools at JREC must manage
• challenges to the district for sustaining the complex and its success
• lessons learned about how to succeed in creating such a new model high school