Greetings! The students, families, faculty and administration welcome you to the Hunter College Elementary School website. Our school’s history began as the Hunter College Model School in 1870 as a teacher-training resource and was restructured in 1941 as Hunter College Elementary School for intellectually talented and gifted students. For over 80 years, HCES has been a model for gifted education. We pride ourselves on providing a safe, positive learning environment with a rigorous instructional program that meets the needs of our students. We value and foster respect for diversity, and create a community of inclusion for our students and families.
Our extraordinary faculty provides educational experiences and opportunities to meet the needs of the whole child. HCES offers an extensive core curriculum that is fully integrated with ‘specialty’ programming that broadens and deepens the students’ educational experiences. The programs include: chess instruction, dance/movement, modern language, integrated technology, library, music, physical education, studio arts, theater and visual arts. The framework of our curriculum is based on standards and benchmarks developed by our faculty using the national standards in gifted and talented education (provided by NAGC) along with guidelines provided by nationally recognized organizations (i.e., Next Generation Science, Shape America (PE), International Society for Technology in Education). Our curriculum evolves based on the needs of our 21st century learners and most recently the school has developed a STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics) initiative. The faculty engages in meaningful professional development to incorporate research-based instructional practices to support student learning.
We have partnerships with National Dance Institute (NDI), Diller Quaile School of Music, in addition to various organizations throughout NYC. In addition, we provide the students with a robust after school program (Hawk’s Nest) that offers over 40 enrichment classes.
Parents and Families work in partnership with the faculty and administration to provide opportunities and resources to support the school. The PTA and parent volunteers organize fund-raising and community building opportunities throughout the school year and volunteer in the classrooms on a regular basis. We work together to develop the individual potential of each student in a collaborative environment with an emphasis on social responsibility, leadership, civility and ethical behavior. We hope to inspire curious, resilient, hard-working, civic-minded, compassionate, life-long learners.
As you click through the pages of our website, I hope you can see a glimpse inside our extraordinary school----how much our students love the challenging learning environment, the dedication of our faculty/staff to create an outstanding educational institution and the commitment of our parents/families as we all strive to make our school and the world a better place.
A proud member of the HCES community, Dawn Roy
Upcoming Events
Jun
19
Juneteenth (School Closed)
Jun
20
Last Day of School: 1/2 Day
Sep
4
1/2 Day for K and 1
Sep
4
First Day of Classes
Sep
23
Rosh Hashanah: School Closed
Oct
2
Yom Kippur: School Closed
Oct
3
PD Day: No School for Students
Oct
13
Italian Heritage/Indigenous People's Day: School Closed