IS 291 – Roland Hayes has been in Bushwick since 1974, serving the community as a large middle school for many decades. Today, 291 educates 300–320 students annually. Since 2015, Principal Janice Bruce has been the instructional leader. Guided by the belief that a quality education is the right of all children, Principal Bruce has collaboratively transformed 291 into an early high school where students prepare for Regents exams in the eighth grade. 291 offers a diverse program that challenges, supports, and accelerates learning outcomes through equitable access to a rigorous curriculum in literacy, math, science, and social studies, infused with the arts and leadership. Gifted, multi-lingual, special needs and students who need a second chance at middle school success practice “HAWKS” values, to be: hard-working, accountable, well-rounded, kind, steadfast/safe/successful—which guide them through high school, college, or a career. The school is supported by the Office of Community Schools which provides consistent access to social services. In the fall of 2021, the long-awaited health center will open its doors making 291 an on-site health care service for all students. At IS 291, we channel the ingenuity of Roland Hayes by turning struggles into triumphs.
Paradise Lost & Found: Bushwick is a snapshot of this section of Brooklyn during the tumultuous 1980s and early 1990s. Carrying a point-and-shoot camera to her job as an art teacher at IS 291 – Roland Hayes, Meryl Meisler’s images—kept secret for decades—are a personal memoir. Upon her retirement from teaching, she began releasing them into the world.
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