New Dorp High School will hold an open house on Wednesday, October 21, from 6 to 8 p.m. at its building at 465 New Dorp Lane on Staten Island. The evening is aimed at families weighing high school choices for next fall, and students and parents can tour the building and meet staff.

Eight small learning communities under one roof

New Dorp organizes its students into eight smaller learning communities, each built around a field of study. According to the school, they are the Academy of Communication and Media Arts, the Academy of Fine and Dramatic Arts, the Corporate Center for Business and Technology, the Future Preparatory Academy, the Institute of Forensic Science and Criminology, the Institute of Health Sciences, the Law Institute and AFJROTC Program, and the Math and Science Institute.

The structure means a New Dorp student spends much of the day with a smaller group of classmates and teachers who share an interest, whether that is media production, theater, forensics, health careers, law or the Air Force Junior ROTC program. The open house is the place to ask how each community works, what courses it includes and how students are placed.

Clubs, sports and services

The school publishes a full list of its clubs online and points families to it alongside the open house announcement. Students who want to compete can look at New Dorp's teams in the Public Schools Athletic League, the city's public high school sports league, where the school's game calendar and schedules are posted.

New Dorp also lists a school-based health center run with Northwell Health's Staten Island University Hospital, along with a CSI College Now link for students interested in taking college courses through the College of Staten Island while still in high school. Families can ask about both during the evening.

Parents who cannot make it can call the school's main office at (718) 667-8686 or check the school's website, which carries news, the school calendar and pages for each learning community.

Getting there

New Dorp High School is at 465 New Dorp Lane, Staten Island, NY 10306. The Staten Island Railway's New Dorp station sits on New Dorp Lane, a short walk from the school.

The open house runs Wednesday, October 21, from 6 to 8 p.m. No cost is listed for the event. For details on clubs, teams and the learning communities, visit newdorphs.org.

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