Ben Shuldiner
Encyclopedia
Ben Shuldiner is an American social activist and educator. Upon founding the High School for Public Service: Heroes of Tomorrow
in Brooklyn
, New York
, he became the youngest high school Principal in New York state history. In 2005, he received the Jefferson Award for "Greatest Public Service by an Individual 35 or Younger."
as an undergraduate, he became involved in labor activism and was selected to join the inaugural class of the AFL-CIO
’s Union Summer, where he worked organizing day care workers in urban Chicago
. On campus, he co-founded Harvard’s Progressive Student Labor Movement to fight for living wages for university employees and also served as a sports writer for The Harvard Crimson
. In addition to his primary study of History of Science
, he took graduate-level education courses to earn his teaching credentials and graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1999. Shuldiner began his teaching career in England teaching history and poetry after winning the Stowe-Harvard Fellowship. He soon returned to New York and began teaching history at Erasmus Hall, a troubled inner-city high school, and doubled the passing rate of his students on the Regents Examinations
. His experience at Erasmus solidified his belief that New York CIty students deserved a better education than the public school system was providing.
opened on the George W. Wingate High School
campus in Crown Heights, Brooklyn
in the fall of 2003. The school was founded as one of eight New Visions schools opened in Brooklyn that year in an effort to replace failing high schools with smaller, more successful ones. When the school opened, Shuldiner became the youngest public high school principal in the history of the state of New York. The school enjoyed rapid success and today boasts extraordinary passing rates on the Regents Exams, a 98% graduation rate in 2010, and a unique on-campus urban farm program.
Sue Kelly for the 19th Congressional District of New York
. His campaign was focused on ending No Child Left Behind and creating a single payer national health care program. Shuldiner lost the nomination to fellow Democrat John Hall
, who went on to beat Kelly in a close election.
, “Greatest Public Service by an Individual 35 Years or Under.” In 2011, he was an Honoree in the Outstanding Young Educator program by ASCD. Shuldiner is also an adjunct professor at Baruch College
.
High School for Public Service: Heroes of Tomorrow
High School for Public Service: Heroes of Tomorrow is a New York City public high school in Brooklyn, New York, founded in 2003. In addition to its academic curriculum, HSPS encourages its students to become involved in their communities through public service learning...
in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, he became the youngest high school Principal in New York state history. In 2005, he received the Jefferson Award for "Greatest Public Service by an Individual 35 or Younger."
Early life and education
Shuldiner (b. April 19, 1977) was raised in New York, though his family moved considerably when he was a child due to his father Joseph Shuldiner's involvement in the movement to improve public housing (Joseph Shuldiner eventually became an undersecretary of housing in the Clinton Administration). When Ben Shuldiner attended Harvard UniversityHarvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
as an undergraduate, he became involved in labor activism and was selected to join the inaugural class of the AFL-CIO
AFL-CIO
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, commonly AFL–CIO, is a national trade union center, the largest federation of unions in the United States, made up of 56 national and international unions, together representing more than 11 million workers...
’s Union Summer, where he worked organizing day care workers in urban Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. On campus, he co-founded Harvard’s Progressive Student Labor Movement to fight for living wages for university employees and also served as a sports writer for The Harvard Crimson
The Harvard Crimson
The Harvard Crimson, the daily student newspaper of Harvard University, was founded in 1873. It is the only daily newspaper in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and is run entirely by Harvard College undergraduates...
. In addition to his primary study of History of Science
History of science
The history of science is the study of the historical development of human understandings of the natural world and the domains of the social sciences....
, he took graduate-level education courses to earn his teaching credentials and graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1999. Shuldiner began his teaching career in England teaching history and poetry after winning the Stowe-Harvard Fellowship. He soon returned to New York and began teaching history at Erasmus Hall, a troubled inner-city high school, and doubled the passing rate of his students on the Regents Examinations
Regents Examinations
Regents High School examinations, sometimes shortened to the Regents, are mandatory in New York State through the New York State Education Department, designed and administered under the authority of the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York...
. His experience at Erasmus solidified his belief that New York CIty students deserved a better education than the public school system was providing.
Foundation of HSPS
In 2002, Shuldiner and co-founder Marisa Boan received a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to build a high school that better reflected their vision of a fair public education system, and the High School for Public Service: Heroes of TomorrowHigh School for Public Service: Heroes of Tomorrow
High School for Public Service: Heroes of Tomorrow is a New York City public high school in Brooklyn, New York, founded in 2003. In addition to its academic curriculum, HSPS encourages its students to become involved in their communities through public service learning...
opened on the George W. Wingate High School
George W. Wingate High School
George W. Wingate High School is a defunct comprehensive high school in the Prospect-Lefferts Gardens neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. It was closed down in June 2000 due to poor academic performance. The school was then divided into four small schools. The school was named for George Wood...
campus in Crown Heights, Brooklyn
Crown Heights, Brooklyn
Crown Heights is a neighborhood in the central portion of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The main thoroughfare through this neighborhood is Eastern Parkway, a tree-lined boulevard designed by Frederick Law Olmsted extending two miles east-west.Originally, the area was known as Crow Hill....
in the fall of 2003. The school was founded as one of eight New Visions schools opened in Brooklyn that year in an effort to replace failing high schools with smaller, more successful ones. When the school opened, Shuldiner became the youngest public high school principal in the history of the state of New York. The school enjoyed rapid success and today boasts extraordinary passing rates on the Regents Exams, a 98% graduation rate in 2010, and a unique on-campus urban farm program.
Political aspirations
Shuldiner was one of six Democratic candidates in the 2006 election to defeat incumbent RepublicanRepublican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
Sue Kelly for the 19th Congressional District of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. His campaign was focused on ending No Child Left Behind and creating a single payer national health care program. Shuldiner lost the nomination to fellow Democrat John Hall
John Hall
John Hall may refer to:American government:* John Hall , U.S. Representative from New York and former member of the band Orleans...
, who went on to beat Kelly in a close election.
Awards and honors
Shuldiner has received national recognition for his public service achievements. A lifelong hemophiliac, he was selected as the keynote speaker for the 2003 annual conference of the National Hemophilia Foundation. In 2005, he was chosen from a nationwide pool as the recipient of the prestigious Jefferson Awards for Public ServiceJefferson Awards for Public Service
Jefferson Awards for Public Service were created in 1972 by the American Institute for Public Service as "a Nobel Prize for community and public service".-American Institute for Public Service:...
, “Greatest Public Service by an Individual 35 Years or Under.” In 2011, he was an Honoree in the Outstanding Young Educator program by ASCD. Shuldiner is also an adjunct professor at Baruch College
Baruch College
Bernard M. Baruch College, more commonly known as Baruch College, is a constituent college of the City University of New York, located in the Flatiron district of Manhattan, New York City. With an acceptance rate of just 23%, Baruch is among the most competitive and diverse colleges in the nation...
.