Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School Explained

Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School
Streetaddress:500 19th Street
City:Brooklyn, New York City, US
Religion:Roman Catholic
Trustee:Myles Davis '67
Principal:Thomas P. Arria
Faculty:40
Type:Private, coeducational
Tuition:$8,950 per year
Grades:9–12
Slogan:Your Children, Our Students, the Nation's Future
Motto:Erudio pro Excellentia
Motto Translation:Educating for Excellence
Accreditation:Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools[1]
Mascot:Falcon
Patron:St. Francis of Assisi
Team Name:Falcons
Yearbook:The Pagoda
Newspaper:Highpoint
Established:1962
Status:closed
Closed:2014
Enrollment:520
Enrollment As Of:2013
Free Label:Dean of Girls
Free Text:Josephine Herman
Free Label1:Dean of Boys
Free Text1:Manuel Fernandez
Free Label2:Admissions Director
Free Text2:Deanna Philippe
Free Label3:Athletic Director
Free Text3:Peter Goyco '84

Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School was a private, Roman Catholic high school in the Windsor Terrace neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York.[2] Open from 1962 through 2014, it closed following a period of steeply falling enrollment and with an estimated $4 million in outstanding debt.[3] [4] Now called the Bishop Ford Educational Complex, the building is used by New York City Department of Education to house a pre-kindergarten school and two middle schools.[5]

History

Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School was established in 1962 by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn. It was named after Bishop Francis Xavier Ford, a Brooklyn native and Maryknoll missionary who was martyred in China in 1952.[6] It was decorated in a Chinese-themed style, with a large red pagoda on its roof, signs with letters in a font meant to suggest Chinese characters, and a red-and-gold tiled lobby with light fixtures shaped like pagodas.

The school was built on the site of the former 9th Avenue bus and trolley depot, used until 1956 for trolleys, and for buses until 1959 following a fire, with bus routes moved to the 5th Avenue (today's Jackie Gleason Depot) & Ulmer Park Depots.

Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School was a Division I high school and had an active PTA and many clubs, activities, and sports. Some of the clubs included the International Society; Martial Arts Club; Science Club; Art Club; Student Activities Committee; Student Council; Newspaper and Yearbook. Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School's sports included cross-country, track and field, swimming, basketball, baseball, football, bowling, soccer, cheerleading, volleyball, and softball as junior varsity and varsity teams.

Following a period of falling enrollment that saw the student body decrease 75%, from 1,347 students in 2006 to 499 in 2014, the school abruptly closed at the end of the 2013-14 school year. It was one of a number of Catholic schools to close around that time, faced with increased competition from public and charter schools.[4]

The school building is now used by the New York City Public School system for pre-k and middle schools. The religious symbols, such as a large cross that once stood above the entrance of the school, have been removed from the school building.

Notable alumni

Filming Location

The building was used as a filming location for several commercials and music videos.

Rock band R.E.M.'s music video "All the Way to Reno (You're Gonna Be a Star)" was shot at Bishop Ford in 2001, directed by Michael Moore.[17]

Rapper Drake's debut music video "Best I Ever Had" was shot at Bishop Ford in June 2009.

Record producer Mike WiLL Made It's debut music video "#23" was shot at Bishop Ford in August 2013. The music video features Mike WiLL Made It, singer Miley Cyrus, and rappers Wiz Khalifa and Juicy J.

The school building appears in several early shots in the 1975 film Dog Day Afternoon, which was filmed nearby.

Bishop Ford Educational Complex

The building now houses three public schools:

Notes and References

  1. Web site: MSA-Commission on Secondary Schools . May 27, 2009 . MSA-CSS . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110514215741/http://www.css-msa.org/search.php . May 14, 2011 .
  2. News: Bishop Ford HS coach Ray Nash dragged into ugly legal battle involving loan to son, Peter J. Nash . New York . Daily News . Michael . O'Keeffe . April 24, 2010.
  3. Web site: Spencer . Kyle . A Catholic High School Abruptly Loses Its Fight to Stay Open . . March 18, 2021 . April 20, 2014.
  4. Web site: Brooklyn's Bishop Ford H.S. Closing in June. WNBC. April 14, 2014. February 27, 2015.
  5. Web site: Pre-Kindergarten Directory Update - Brooklyn. schools.nyc.gov. New York City Department of Education. 1 June 2016.
  6. Web site: Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School History. August 1, 2007. Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School website. BFCCHS. https://web.archive.org/web/20070630215246/http://www.bishopfordhs.org/about_us.htm. June 30, 2007. dead.
  7. Web site: Hoop dreams in hands of new coach Braica. SFC Today. October 17, 2010. August 30, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120308084645/http://sfctoday.com/sports/205-hoop-dreams-in-the-hands-of-new-coach-braica.html. 2012-03-08. dead.
  8. McGoldrick, Meaghan. "Bensonhurst actor to channel the past in new documentary", Brooklyn Reporter, November 20, 2015. Accessed April 15, 2024. "The Bishop Ford graduate is hoping to debut his first-ever documentary, Cruisin' 86th Street, shortly after the premiere of his most recent feature film, Back in the Day (the gritty tale of a half Italian-half Puerto Rican teen with a passion for boxing growing up on the streets of Bensonhurst that stars himself, Alec Baldwin, Danny Glover and Shannon Doherty, among others), slated for theaters early next year."
  9. Web site: Alumni notes. Falcon Flash. Spring 2006. 11. 2012-08-31. https://web.archive.org/web/20121030105750/http://www.bishopfordhs.org/News/Falcon%20Flash_Spring%2006.pdf. 2012-10-30. dead.
  10. Web site: John Halama. baseball-reference.com. August 30, 2012.
  11. Web site: Armond Hill. basketball-reference.com. August 30, 2012.
  12. Duffy, Thom. "Will.i.am, Jimmy Iovine Speak on Entrepreneurial Spirit At USC’s Iovine & Andre Young Academy Commencement", Billboard, May 12, 2018. Accessed April 15, 2024. "In the neighborhood known then as Red Hook and now as gentrified Carroll Gardens, Iovine attended a Catholic elementary school, Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary and then Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Windsor Terrace."
  13. Web site: Charles Jones. basketball-reference.com. August 30, 2012.
  14. Web site: Charles Jones. eurobasket.com. August 30, 2012.
  15. Web site: Brian Nash and Rich Glesmann Named to the Men's Basketball Coaching Staff. Duquesne Dukes. August 30, 2012. April 12, 2012.
  16. News: The odd couple: Former downtown rivals Ferry and Nash reunited at Duquesne. August 30, 2012. Brooklyn Daily Eagle. May 8, 2012.
  17. Book: Black, Johnny. Revival: The Story of R.E.M.. 2004. Winona, Minnesota. 0879307765. 258.
  18. Web site: Gould . Jessica . Some Parents Worry More Pre-K May Mean Less Space For Everyone Else . wnyc.org . WNYC News . March 18, 2021 . April 3, 2019.
  19. Web site: Brooklyn Urban Garden Charter School (BUGS) . InsideSchools.org . Inside Schools.
  20. Web site: Spivack . Caroline . Middle School Lauded for Autism Program Moves to Windsor Terrace . dnainfo.com . DNA Info . March 18, 2021 . September 6, 2017 . October 21, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191021053836/https://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20170906/windsor-terrace/ms-442-relocates-brooklyn-urban-garden-charter-school-pre-k-280/ . dead .

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