Phase One of Boston Prep's new permanent home at 885 River Street in Hyde Park is nearly complete! Furniture is being set up, and finishing touches are being applied. The school will officially move into the new building on June 27. Boston Prep's new permanent home features many elements foundational to a college preparatory education, including dedicated science labs, a library, integrated, modern technology, and a gymnasium.
The new school year brings not only a new building but new students - more than ever before! Boston Prep was recently granted approval by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to expand our student body by 300 students, from 400 to 700 students over the next five years. In the 2017-2018 school year, Boston Prep's enrollment will increase to 477 students, with our sixth grade class increasing to 88 students across four classes (compared with 50 students across two classes currently) and our ninth grade class increasing to 88 students across four classes (compared with 69 students across three classes currently).
Boston Prep Lottery Applications
The 2018-2019 lottery was Boston Prep's most competitive lottery yet. The number of enrollment applications submitted to Boston Prep has grown by nearly six fold from 258 applications in 2010 to 1,455 applications in 2017. Specifically, the demand for ninth grade seats has increased by nearly 3.5 times since 2013-2014, when students were first admitted in the ninth grade. For the 2017-2018 school year, Boston Prep yielded the highest number of applicants for ninth grade out of all of Boston's charter schools. The increase in maximum enrollment will allow Boston Prep to reply to the community’s demand for greater access to our programs. However, even with increased enrollment, in total, only 12% of applicants were admitted for the 2017-2018 school year, with only 3% of ninth grade applicants gaining admission.
With our growing student body comes the need for more space. Our new facility was built for our existing 400 students. The facility was constructed with flexibility in mind, which will enable us to accommodate the 477 students anticipated next year. However, an additional wing will be required to enable continued growth. The design process has begun for a Phase Two construction project, adding a second wing to the school, which will include additional classrooms, small group instructional space, science labs, a second cafeteria, and an interdisciplinary workshop space for cross-curricular project-based learning. A capital campaign is underway to support the $16 million project, with a $5 million equity goal. Learn more about the project and how to support its construction to enable Boston Prep to grow our impact to reach more of Boston's youth.
