What Books and Their Covers Have in Common With New York City Public Schools

Don't just a book by its cover, or a public school by its cocaine.

Photo courtesy Arvind Dilawar

Joseph Pulitzer Middle School, better known as I.S. 145, and Stuyvesant High School, often referred to simply as Stuy, are arguably on opposite ends of the New York City public school spectrum.

I.S. 145 in Jackson Heights, Queens, was rumored to be one of the worst schools in the city during the late ‘90s and early 2000s. It bore many of the stereotypical characteristics of an “inner city” school: Low-income minority students; high teacher turnover; poor standardized test scores; conspicuous lack of resources; overcrowding so extreme that classrooms were halved with makeshift walls to accommodate two classes.

Stuy, on the other hand, was reputably the best public school in New York City during the early 2000s. Admission was (and still is) based solely on an exam, and only the top performers are accepted. These students travel from the edges of New York City to Stuyvesant’s ten-story building in Manhattan’s Financial District, where their educations are forti…