Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School
Private, coeducational school in Brooklyn, New York City, US
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School was a private, 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]
(Educating for Excellence)
| Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School | |
|---|---|
| |
| Location | |
 | |
500 19th Street Brooklyn, New York City, US | |
| Coordinates | 40°39′23″N 73°58′57″W |
| Information | |
| Type | Private, coeducational |
| Motto | Erudio pro Excellentia (Educating for Excellence) |
Religious affiliation | Catholic |
Patron saint | St. Francis of Assisi |
| Established | 1962 |
| Status | closed |
| Closed | 2014 |
Area trustee | Myles Davis '67 |
Principal | Thomas P. Arria |
| Faculty | 40 |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Colors | Black, red and gold |
| Slogan | Your Children, Our Students, the Nation's Future |
| Mascot | Falcon |
| Team name | Falcons |
| Accreditation | Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools[1] |
| Newspaper | Highpoint |
| Yearbook | The Pagoda |
| Tuition | $8,950 per year |
| Dean of Girls | Josephine Herman |
| Dean of Boys | Manuel Fernandez |
| Admissions Director | Deanna Philippe |
| Athletic Director | Peter Goyco '84 |
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.[3]
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.[3][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
- Glenn Braica (1982): basketball coach, head coach of the St. Francis College basketball team since 2010[7]
- William DeMeo, actor best known for his acting roles in Analyze That, First Kill and The Sopranos[8]
- John Giuca (born 1983), felon
- John Gray (1976): screenwriter and television director, creator of TV series Ghost Whisperer[9]
- John Halama (1990): Major League Baseball pitcher (1998–2006)[10]
- Armond Hill (1971): professional basketball player in the NBA (1976–1984) and first-round pick in the 1976 NBA draft[11]
- Jimmy Iovine (1971): record producer; co-founder of Interscope Records[12]
- Charles Jones (1993): professional basketball player in the NBA and abroad (1998–2009)[13][14]
- Jason Mattera (2001): conservative political commentator and author, editor of Human Events magazine[15]
- Brian Nash (1988): basketball coach who was an assistant coach at Bishop Ford from 1992 to 1993[16][17]
- Marco Oppedisano (1989): guitarist and electroacoustic music composer
- Chaz Williams (1991): basketball player
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.[18]
- 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: