Frank Sinatra School of the Arts
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| Frank Sinatra School of the Arts | |
| Address | |
|---|---|
| 30-20 Thomson Ave., 6th Floor Long Island City, New York, 11101 USA |
|
| Information | |
| Founder | Tony Bennett |
| Principal | Donna Finn |
| Students | ≈600 |
| Founded | September, 2001 |
| Homepage | http://www.fssahs.com |
The Frank Sinatra School of the Arts is an arts high school located in Long Island City Queens, New York. It was established by Exploring the Arts, a charitable organization co-founded by Tony Bennett. It offers studio courses in instrumental music, vocal music, fine art, film, dance, and drama. In order to be admitted to the school, a student must audition for one of the art programs; grades are also a deciding factor.
Students have six periods of academic classes and three periods in their studio.
All students within the school are able to try out for advanced ensembles such as the Musical Theater program (usually beginning in 11th grade) or jazz band. In 2009, when the school will move to their permanent building, the students will be allowed to take film.
Due to the high profile of the school and the leadership of Tony Bennett, the school's graduation ceremonies have had many famous keynote speakers. Such include: Class of 2007, Kevin Spacey, Class of 2006, Former N.Y. Governor Mario Cuomo, Class of 2005, Wynton Marsalis, and Class of 2004, Jerry Seinfeld
[edit] History
The Frank Sinatra School of the Arts was founded in 2001 by the singer Tony Bennett, to honor his good friend Frank Sinatra. The school was originally in the fourth floor of the IDCNY building in Long Island City, where the small student population walked down a single bright blue hallway to get from class to class. In February 2004, FSSA moved across the street to the sixth and seventh floors of the Queens Atrium Building. (DeVry's Long Island City campus and two other smaller high schools are located in the eighth floor building.)
During the 2006-2007 school year, the FSSA Wind Ensemble was awarded a Level VI: "Gold with Distinction" medal from NYSSMA. This is the highest award given for performance adjudication. The band played the Liberty Bell March by John Philip Sousa, Incantation and Dance by John Barnes Chance, and Sketches on a Tudor Psalm by Fisher Tull. The performance date was June 1st, 2007 at New York University.
In January 2009, the school will move to a new permanent building which is located in Astoria, Queens. It will be near the American Museum of the Moving Image and Kaufman Astoria Studios. In that building, students will be allowed to take film, thus adding a new studio to the FSSA family.
[edit] Faculty
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Donna Finn | Principal |
| William Stevens | Assistant Principal of Administration |
| Sofia Apostolidis | Assistant Principal of Instruction |
| Jacqueline Pridgen | Assistant Principal of Guidance |
| John Billera | Dean |
| Addison Love | Dean |
| Luba Ash | Guidance Counselor |
| Felicia Valeta | Guidance Counselor |
| Catherine Marchetta | Parent Coordinator |
| Alicia Fry | PTA President |
| Name | Studio |
|---|---|
| Eli Kronenberg | Instrumental Music (Wind Ensemble & Concert Band) |
| William Stevens | Instrumental Music (Jazz Ensemble) |
| Ken Lieberson | Instrumental Music (Symphonic Orchestra) |
| Laura Epstein | Instrumental Music (String Orchestra) |
| Heidi Best | Vocal Music (Chorale & Concert Choir, Opera Workshop, Chamber Ensemble, & Women's Ensemble) |
| Tom Sandri | Vocal Music (Musical Theater, Men's Ensemble, Keyboard) |
| Ira Rosenberg | Drama |
| Robert Frisch | Drama |
| Ani Udovicki | Dance |
| Olivier Heuts | Dance |
| Jane Kahn | Art |
| Gaetano LaRoche | Art |
| Nicole Spata | Art |
| Name | Subject |
|---|---|
| Sandra Cohen | Math |
| Addison Love | Math |
| Andrew Ostrowsky | Math |
| Marc Di Iorio | Math |
| Fae Ruiz | Math |
| Abdel Elmousoui | Math/Programing |
| Raquel Charter | Spanish |
| Stephen Eller | Spanish |
| Rita Sanneux | Spanish/French |
| Robert Budnick | English |
| Jennifer Suker | English |
| Albert Colón | English |
| Samantha Schisler | English |
| Julie Hoffman | English |
| Carol Gilio | English |
| Loren Steele | Science |
| Iraklis Dimoulas | Science |
| Cary Lightbourne | Science |
| Sandra McNeil | Science |
| Errol Quest | Science |
| Matthew Lange | History |
| Roger Erskine | History |
| Lisa Greenwald | History |
| Stuart Deutsch | History |
| Robert Sckalor | History |
| Mr. Medea | Physical Education |
| John Billera | Physical Education |
| Matthew Pullano | Physical Education |
