REACH's official launch at The Fredrick Douglass Academy High School in Central Harlem was a tremendous success. Hundreds of Advanced Placement students from participating schools joined principals and other leading NYC educators in attendance, and they were fired up! Frederick Douglass Academy was a great host and its principal, Dr. Gregory Hodge, was a fabulous spokesman for the REACH program -- he thinks it will double the number of students passing AP exams at his school this year (and there were 86 passes last year)!
Articles appeared in the NY Times, NY Sun, NY Daily News and Washington Post, which are linked to below. Also, there was extensive coverage by national and local TV and radio stations (also linked to below). We have linked some of those broadcasts below.
Chancellor Joel Klein headlined the program, highlighting the need for innovative programs like REACH and commending CUP and The Pershing Square Foundation for their leadership and initiative. Other speakers included: Assemblyman Denny Farrell, head of the Ways & Means Committee; Assemblyman Darryl Towns, chairperson of the NYS Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus; Malcolm Smith, NY Senate minority leader; Ernest Logan, President of the Council of School Supervisors & Administrators; and Robert Jackson, chairman of the Education Committee of the NYC City Council. Other notable guests included Assemblymen Keith Wright (Harlem), Adam Clayton Powell III (Harlem), Karim Camara (Brooklyn) and Hakeem Jeffries (Brooklyn). CUP Chairman Tarrus Richardson also addressed the students, the program.
The program was MC'd by Jared Cotter, American Idol finalist and host of The Sauce (Fuse-TV), who opened the program by signing the national anthem.
Click here to see pictures from the event
Here are links to various news articles:
The New
York Times
The New York
Sun
The New York
Daily News
The Washington Post
Click here to read a transcript of Chancellor Klein's remarks
Here are links to videos of Chancellor Joel Klein's remarks and local TV coverage of the REACH launch event: