New York City Charter School of the Arts

In the fall of 2016 the New York City Charter School of the Arts (City School of the Arts) will open its doors to 102 students in Lower Manhattan. Beginning with the 6th grade, we will add an additional grade each year until we reach our capacity of 306 students ranging from grades 6-8. Our mission is to inspire a diverse community of young people to engage with the arts as a pathway to rich and rigorous academic learning and a creative, purposeful life.

Arts-based learning has been proven to boost academic achievement in math, science, history and literacy, while helping students build capacities like problem-solving, critical thinking, empathy, resilience and willingness to engage across differences. Our creative, academically challenging program is designed to meet the needs of all learners and is uniquely well-suited to supporting English Language Learners and students with learning differences. City School of the Arts is not a traditional “art school”, but rather a high-performing, academically-focused school where the arts and the imagination are used to help a new generation of young leaders create, learn and thrive.