Upward Bound High School in
Hartwick, New York
Hartwick is a town located in Otsego County, New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town had a population of 2,110. The Town of Hartwick is located in the middle of the county, southwest of the Village of Cooperstown.
History
The ...
was the first
alternative education
Alternative education encompasses educational philosophy differing from mainstream pedagogy and evidence-based education. Such alternative learning environments may be found within state, charter, and independent schools as well as home-based ...
program in
Otsego County, New York
Otsego County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,524. The county seat is Cooperstown. The county's population center is Oneonta. The name ''Otsego'' is from a Mohawk or Oneida word m ...
. Created by then-English teacher and principal Mike Newell and Mark Rathbun, Upward Bound High school was first located in the basement of a
Unitarian church in
Oneonta, New York
Oneonta ( ) is a Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in southern Otsego County, New York, Otsego County, New York (state), New York, United States. It is one of the northernmost cities of Appalachia. Oneonta is home to the State Un ...
.
Created in the mid-1980s, Upward Bound High School strived to create an environment for "at-risk" high school students more conducive to learning than a traditional publicly run school. One strategy used by the school was the instituting of a maximum class size of eight students.
Though the school has ostensibly disappeared, the program still continues, with less of an eye toward individuality. After the move to Hartwick, Upward Bound students had their own
campus
A campus traditionally refers to the land and buildings of a college or university. This will often include libraries, lecture halls, student centers and, for residential universities, residence halls and dining halls.
By extension, a corp ...
and building.
Always a part of the Otsego-Northern-Catskills BOCES program, Upward Bound most recently joined the local occupational education center in their own wing of the facility. With this transformation, and more closely controlled operations by new BOCES management, much of the founding staff has been displaced.
External links
* Otsego Area Occupational Cente
Alternative Education
Alternative schools in the United States
Defunct schools in New York (state)
Schools in Otsego County, New York
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