Impacting Greenwich for 11 Years!
Horizons at Brunswick School works every day to advance educational equity in Greenwich. We serve K–8 Greenwich public school boys from under-resourced communities who perform at or below grade level upon kindergarten entry. Our program inspires the joy of learning with high-quality academic and cultural enrichment and builds nine-plus-year community relationships between students, teachers, families, and schools.
The Good We Do
Our Mission
- Enrollment – Greenwich Public School boys performing at or below grade level
- Nine Year Relationships – Academic continuity throughout the summer months
- Earlier – A Kindergarten start when summer learning has great impact
- Goal – Readiness for the next grade each fall at their own school
Why We Do It
The Challenge
The Problem
Nearly 7% of Greenwich residents live below the poverty line, and 20% of Greenwich public school students qualify for free or reduced-price lunches. Research shows on average, students are 4-5 months behind in reading and math as a result of the pandemic. These challenges are multiplied for students from communities experiencing educational inequity. Two-thirds of our students enter our program performing below grade level.
The Opportunity
With input from the Greenwich Public Schools, we identify and address the needs of our students* to help close the opportunity gap in our community. (*During the school year, our students largely attend Julian Curtiss, Hamilton Avenue, New Lebanon elementary schools and Central and Western middle schools.)
The Result
Students improve in reading and math scores over the course of our six-week summer session. Schools see an increase in attendance. Students gain a love of learning, a basic understanding of water safety and swimming skills, and improved self-esteem.
The Only Program Like Ours in the Community
How We Are Different
Serving under-resourced public school boys who need an extra leg-up academically, our program ensures each boy advances to the next grade level and, at the same time, becomes inspired by the joy of learning.
Enrollment
With the help of Greenwich public schools, we target boys performing below – or barely maintaining – grade level and qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.
Earlier
Our program begins the summer following Kindergarten when summer learning has great impact.
Nine Year Relationship
Students attend our 6 week summer session and then 6 Saturdays during the school year over a nine year period. Building relationships between students, their families, and the Greenwich Public schools, we strive to provide access and opportunities for students to experience the joy of learning.
Goal
While other programs in our area define success as admission to private school or help with homework after school, our goal is to keep struggling students at or above grade level so they are ready for the next grade level each fall, and ultimately, attend Greenwich High School.
Individuals and Families Served
Our students come from primarily the four schools in Greenwich that receive federal Title One funding – Julian Curtiss, New Lebanon, Hamilton Avenue, and Western Middle School. With support from our donors, we have been able to expand our reach into other public schools in Greenwich, ensuring we are finding the students who will benefit from the access and opportunity that we offer.
Horizons Students Local Public Schools
Race/Ethnicity of Horizons Students
Highest Level of Education for Horizons' Parents
A Documented Need in our Community
Greenwich Community
Identified Needs
Every 5 years, the Greenwich United Way conducts a Needs Assessment Survey indicating the most pressing areas of concerns in Greenwich with the hope that the community can use this information to develop impactful solutions. The most recent assessment, conducted in 2020, identified several areas of concern related to education including:
Economic Disparity
There is significant economic disparity within the Greenwich Public School district. Twenty percent of all Greenwich public school students qualify for the federal free or reduced-price lunch program. In some schools, more than half the student body qualifies. But in other district schools, this group makes up just 1% of the student body.
Opportunity Gap
The "opportunity gap" draws attention to the conditions and obstacles that students face throughout their educational careers. The United Way Assessment cites, "English proficiency, community wealth, familial situations, and other factors contribute to or perpetuate lower educational aspirations, achievement, and attainment for certain groups of students... Data shows racial disparities within our public school system with average test scores for Black and Hispanic students lower in English, Math, and Science than their White counterparts."
Addressing Education
Although interviewees recognized education as an area where persistent inequality in Greenwich presents some of its greatest challenges, they also cited it as an "area of opportunity in which unequal outcomes for Greenwich residents can be most effectively addressed."
We Have the Ability to Address This Need
The Program
With a nine-year commitment, each student attends:
Six Week Summer Program
• Daily High-Quality Curriculum focused on
Reading, Writing, STEAM and Arts
• Sessions with Reading Specialists and Math Interventionists
• Swimming and Water Skills Instruction
• 4:1 Student-Teacher Ratio
•
Sports, Chess, Art, Yoga/Mindfulness, Food Inspirations, Martial Arts
• Two Healthy Meals and Two Snacks Daily
• Full Bus Transportation
• Weekly Field Trips
• Curriculum Designed to Support Greenwich Public Schools' Academic Goals using Best Practices from the public schools and Brunswick School
School-Year Program
• Six Family Education Saturdays during the School Year
• Continuing Academic Enrichment for Students
• STEAM Challenges
• Healthy Breakfast and Snacks
• Bilingual Educational Parent Workshops
• Weekly Tutoring Sessions with Manhattanville College Masters' Students
• Weekly Tutoring Sessions with Local High School Students
Leadership
Board of Directors
- Jeffrey Pribyl, Chair
- Angelique Bell, Vice Chair
- Frank Carroll, Treasurer
- Kirsten Riemer, Secretary
- Nancy Better
- Robert Blanch
- Gretchen Bylow
- Jill Bayer Ciporin
- Lisa Errico
- Patrick Fels
- Ellen Flanagan
- Sally Mann
- Lourdes Marti
- Lisa G. Matthews
- Amy McGrath
- Trish McGuire
- Jill Oberlander
- Betsy O'Reilly
- Suzanne Peisch
- Angela Riera
Ex Officio:
- Thomas W. Philip, Head of School, Brunswick School (Voting Member)
- Non-Voting Members:
- Marianne Ho Barnum, Executive Director
- Kathleen Harrington
- Thomas Murray
- Kathleen Signer
Advisory Council:
- Jamie Better
- Terry Boyd
- Jill and John Coyle
- B. Cort Delany
- James DeNaut
- Maryellen & Ed Feeley
- Carlos Hernandez
- Alexandra Marks
- Jeanne Savitt
- Charles M. Shaffer III
- Robert Taylor
- Dee Winokur
Make a difference in Greenwich.
Help us today.
Annual Giving
With a long and strong commitment to the Greenwich Community, Brunswick School generously provides the use of its facilities and supportive infrastructure. All program expenses, including salaries, are funded by private philanthropy.
Endowment
Our goal is to build a $5 million endowment that would underwrite approximately one half of the Horizons annual operating budget moving forward. An anonymous donor has pledged $1,000,000 as a seed gift for our endowment.
Contact
- Marianne Ho Barnum, Executive Director
- Horizons at Brunswick School
- 203-625-5809
- mbarnum@brunswickschool.org
