The first thing visitors notice about Synergy at Mineola High School is what does not happen here: changing classrooms when a bell rings, earning traditional letter grades, toiling on homework, sticking to fixed schedules for each student.
Instead, on a Tuesday morning in late February, school looked like this: Students grabbed breakfast at Synergy鈥檚 monthly 鈥渄iner鈥� featuring social worker Suzy Moeller in a red apron, serving up waffles and fruit salad. Then they headed to the main classroom鈥攁 wide open space in the building that until recently housed a bank鈥攑ulled out devices, and started doing classwork. Lessons had been uploaded into the cloud by Synergy鈥檚 teachers, who spend most of their day in the classroom ready to help when students get stuck.
A big screen displayed the subject each student was working on and for roughly how long. Instead of desks in rows, students sat on couches and at expansive drafting or high top tables. There were two all-gender restrooms, put in at the behest of students.
The whole setup feels more tech startup than high school classroom. And in many ways, it is.
Synergy鈥攆or now, an alternative offshoot of the only high school in this nearly 3,000-student Long Island district鈥攊s the brainchild of Michael Nagler, the superintendent of the Mineola school district. He designed the model with his school-hating, computer science whiz teenage son in mind.
Though his son attends school in a neighboring district, Nagler knows plenty of Mineola students who love learning but find aspects of high school鈥攍ack of autonomy, bullying, stuck in a class with 30 other students鈥攕tifling and overwhelming.
So the Mineola team turned the district鈥檚 credit-recovery program, which had generally served kids in danger of not graduating, into a school that strives to give students far more say over when and how they learn, combined with career exploration, hands-on experiences, and mental health supports.
Adrian Pollak, a sophomore with green spray-painted hair, is thriving as a self-described Synergy 鈥済uinea pig鈥� in the program鈥檚 first year.
鈥淚 couldn鈥檛 focus at all鈥� in traditional classrooms, Adrian said. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 feel safe or competent enough to ask for help when I needed it. I do like this a lot better. I like that there鈥檚 a tiny bit of independence, more than you would have at the high school for sure.鈥�
For now, Synergy鈥檚 roughly 30 students are, like Adrian, those for whom traditional high school wasn鈥檛 a good fit. But the district鈥檚 long-term play isn鈥檛 for a specialized micro-school for a few dozen kids. Nagler and his staff see Synergy as a model for the future of high school, in Mineola and maybe far beyond.
They believe that many students鈥攅ven those with solid grades and few behavior issues鈥攁ren鈥檛 well served by spending 40 minutes in one subject, then another, with little regard for their strengths, weaknesses, and interests.
鈥淚 have six hours and 55 minutes with my high school kids,鈥� said Nagler, a New York state superintendent of the year. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a lot of time. They should be able to do whatever they want to do. But we鈥檙e still stuck with a system that you can only work in 40-minute blocks. Some kids need more, some kids need less. How do you do that? Technology should make that very easy. That should not be a big deal.鈥�
If high school indeed needs a shake-up, districts across the country are better positioned to experiment than ever before. Far more now have 1-to-1 computing environments and swift broadband connections, thanks to billions in federal pandemic-relief dollars. Educators have had a chance to see the possibilities of a different kind of school in action.
No one dares touch the structure of high school. And basically, that's what we're messing with, the structure of high school. And the people that typically gravitate toward it are people that had difficulty in high school and are actively looking for an alternative, right? But that's not who it's designed for. It's designed for every kid.
This school is 鈥榓bout what works for you鈥�
Nagler and his staff are quick to point out the contrast between Synergy and the chaotic asynchronous virtual learning that dominated the pandemic鈥檚 early days.
鈥淚 think a lot of people get the impression like, 鈥極h, this is just online learning. This is COVID,鈥欌�� said social worker Moeller. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not. It鈥檚 teaching kids how to learn. There are people [all over] this building, and we鈥檙e teaching the learners: 鈥楾his is where you go to when you need help. You don鈥檛 get frozen. This is where you go to when you need to sit on the couch and like vent or problem-solve. You鈥檙e not alone.鈥� And that鈥檚 very different.鈥�
At Synergy, most of the schedule is taken up by 鈥淲IN鈥� time, which stands for What I Need, another signal that students have much more control over how they use their time and how they learn than they would in a typical high school.
Students check in every morning with a mentor teacher and outline their plan for the day: What subject first? Where to finish up? How many lessons to progress through? While each teacher has designated office hours, students can ask just about any staffer for one-on-one help or work in a small group with concepts they鈥檙e struggling over. Later, during a daily 鈥渃heckout,鈥� mentors go over whether students accomplished their plan and help pinpoint roadblocks.
Students can take extra time with material that鈥檚 difficult for them. They can also do a deep dive into a passion if they keep up with their other classes.
鈥淪ynergy is all about individualizing schooling,鈥� said Becca Brisson Earley, 15. 鈥淚f a kid has ADHD or anxiety, they鈥檙e gonna learn differently. That鈥檚 really what the school is about, what works for you.鈥�
Some of Synergy鈥檚 students have learning differences. Others struggle with significant mental health concerns. Some flat-out refused to attend school in previous years.
The supports extend beyond the teachers. There鈥檚 Moeller, whose office is just off the main classroom. She has regular appointments with students who need consistent counselor contact, but her office is open to any Synergy kid.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a reset,鈥� Becca said. 鈥淚 know that I can go into that office, share whatever I need to share, and I can come out OK.鈥�
The school also gives students a break from traditional academics, in part through a workshop, also attached to the main classroom, where Synergy students help a local entrepreneur test out his newest project: teaching children the principles of physics and pulley systems through building skateboards. The students are testing and perfecting his curriculum, while mastering science standards in a hands-on environment.
鈥淣ot only are they learning how to put this motor and pulley system together, but they鈥檙e learning about what pulleys do,鈥� said Whittney Smith, the district鈥檚 director of instructional technology, assessment, and Synergy.
The program plans to hook every student up with a work-based learning experience. One already has a gig at a local law firm. Synergy is on the lookout for a place where Adrian can explore a passion for snakes. Becca wants to teach her fellow students about a therapeutic technique she learned from Moeller.
Becca, who wants to be a social worker someday, envisions her future students having a rough day and saying to themselves 鈥溾�業鈥檓 gonna go talk to Becca, that鈥檚 what I need right now,鈥欌�� the way she does with Moeller.
Synergy鈥檚 teachers keep her focused on that aspiration, she said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e really good at reminding me what my end goal is. My goal isn鈥檛 to pass the regents,鈥� New York鈥檚 subject-matter standardized tests, Becca said. 鈥淢y goal is to pass the regents so I can get to social work鈥� and help other kids.
Synergy鈥檚 embrace of significant student autonomy paired with mental health and work-based learning is unusual in K-12 schools, said Amanda Morin, an educator and the author of The Everything Parent鈥檚 Guide to Special Education.
鈥淚t鈥檚 rare to have all of those pieces together like this,鈥� Morin said, based on a reporter鈥檚 description of the program. 鈥淲hat fascinates me about this setup is the wraparound support of it. In my mind, that鈥檚 the ideal, giving kids all of these different ways to look at learning.鈥�
When learners aren鈥檛 doing what they鈥檙e capable of doing
But not every student is flourishing. A cadre of about four lean on couches in the back of the open classroom, never seeming to get on task, unless teachers peel them off and sit with them one-on-one.
Later, during a 鈥渟eminar鈥� with six students in a smaller classroom about the motivations behind European imperialism, one history buff student rattles off a detailed explanation of how colonization fueled the economies of countries like Spain and Great Britain, while appealing to their sense of racial and cultural superiority. It鈥檚 hard to imagine this student as his teachers described him last year: flailing academically, avoiding class participation, devoid of confidence.
Another student, though, has her head on the table, an earbud dangling out of one ear. She refuses to budge, even when Melissa Eurich, the social studies teacher with whom she鈥檚 built a rapport, prods her with gentle questions.
Still, this student and others at Synergy have shown significant improvement in behavior and attendance, even if they are not performing where they need to academically, Synergy鈥檚 staff members emphasize.
Moeller recalled how another girl recently almost came to blows with one of her classmates, then backed down. Later, she told Moeller that last year she would have lost it, but that this year, she didn鈥檛 want to get into trouble鈥攁 sign of real progress, Moeller said.
鈥淲hen we look at their history, they are thriving,鈥� Moeller said. 鈥淎re they thriving to what we believe are their capabilities? No. The hard part of teaching autonomy and independence is what do we do when the learners aren鈥檛 doing what we know they鈥檙e capable of doing?鈥�
Sometimes, the team steps in and gives more direction. For instance, if a kid says they鈥檒l get through a certain number of lessons and doesn鈥檛 come close, teachers will say something like: 鈥淲e gave you a choice, and three days in a row, you made a really lousy one. So today, we鈥檙e doing small-group work鈥� in order to help the student focus, Moeller said.
When a student consistently falls off track, the team meets with families to develop a plan. That can help students when there is a strong support network at home, but it鈥檚 much less effective for those whose home environments are troubled.
鈥淲e鈥檙e telling them, 鈥榊ou can learn differently,鈥� and it鈥檚 a shock,鈥� said Garry Desire, a district instructional leader who helped design Synergy. 鈥淪ome of them are lacking the executive-functioning鈥� skills to help them succeed, he said. 鈥淔or the kids who already have that, though, this is working great.鈥�
鈥榊ou launch before you鈥檙e perfect鈥�
Creating asynchronous lessons, then serving as on-demand tutors means a big workload for Synergy鈥檚 teachers. Previously, Eurich taught at a demanding New York City charter school where she spent at least eight hours a week lesson planning. At Synergy, it鈥檚 more like 12.
鈥淚t feels like a startup, right?鈥� Eurich said. 鈥淲hen you first start a startup, you鈥檙e not gonna have all the things you need exactly in place to make it work. I think the biggest struggle in digitizing instruction is for it to be engaging.鈥�
Nagler and district leaders readily agree that the quality of the online lessons that students complete in class need work.
鈥淲e definitely need to make lessons more robust, more interesting,鈥� Smith said. 鈥淎nd put more multimedia in there.鈥� The district will spend part of the summer, for instance, tagging videos teachers can use to build their lessons.
The team also envisions seminars like the one Eurich taught on imperialism as voluntary classes built around engaging topics, such as the lasting impact of slavery on America鈥檚 Black population or how disease spreads during a pandemic. But for now, they鈥檙e run more like mini classes, filling in the content gaps of the online-only courses and getting the academic peer interaction that is hard to deliver outside a physical classroom.
Nagler knew that the model needed work before the school year began. But he felt strongly that the district shouldn鈥檛 wait to get started.
鈥淵ou launch before you鈥檙e perfect,鈥� Nagler said. 鈥淎nd if you have a culture that believes in mistakes and a culture that believes in iteration, then you鈥檙e unstoppable.鈥�
鈥業t鈥檚 designed for every kid鈥�
The next phase for Synergy is a potentially big one: Instead of just inviting students that counselors, teachers, and school leaders feel would benefit from the approach, the district will open the school to any student who wants in. Staffers and plan to allow prospective students to spend time at Synergy before making a decision. They鈥檒l talk extensively about the school鈥檚 mission with parents.
鈥淭he biggest struggle will be convincing people that it鈥檚 equal鈥� to a traditional high school, Nagler said. Still, he believes the move could add about 20 more students to Synergy. He sees the mentorship piece as central to the model and believes that can easily be scaled to meet higher demand for the progam.
There鈥檚 another imperative behind the rethink, said Jennifer Maichin, a district instructional leader who also worked on Synergy鈥檚 design. Like other districts, Mineola knows it is preparing students for jobs that don鈥檛 yet exist, in an era when knowledge is a smartphone click away.
To compete in that world, 鈥渨e鈥檙e giving them the competencies of resilience, being able to manage their own time and navigate obstacles and take initiative when things aren鈥檛 going their way,鈥� Maichin said. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e gonna be an independent learner, but we鈥檙e gonna guide you on how to do that.鈥�
Some current students, Adrian included, worry the planned growth will make Synergy more like the traditional environments where they struggled.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e very protective of it,鈥� Nagler conceded. 鈥淐ertain kids think they found their home, and they鈥檙e afraid it may change.鈥�
But Nagler doesn鈥檛 think that will be the case. 鈥淚f we get bigger, I鈥檓 just going to have more teachers. The connections they have will still be the same.鈥�
Nagler estimates the 鈥榯ipping point鈥欌�攚hen the number of students opting for Synergy鈥檚 model eclipses those choosing traditional high school鈥攚ill come in about five years, when students who have been part of another Mineola innovation鈥攃ompetency-based grading鈥攁re entering high school. Some on his staff, however, expect it will take longer.
Either way, Nagler believes the district will get there.
鈥淣o one dares touch the structure of high school,鈥� Nagler said. 鈥淎nd basically, that鈥檚 what we鈥檙e messing with, the structure of high school. And the people that typically gravitate toward it are people that had difficulty in high school and are actively looking for an alternative, right? But that鈥檚 not who it鈥檚 designed for. It鈥檚 designed for every kid.鈥�
