‘FAME’ SCHOOL INFAMY
Admissions ‘bias’
Who’s got talent? For decades, Fiorello LaGuardia HS has had it — spinning out a glittering gallery of alumni from Suzanne Pleshette and Liza Minnelli to Adrien Brody and Jennifer Aniston, along with great artists, dancers and musicians.
But now the “Fame” school — immortalized as a breeding ground for glory in two movies, a TV series and a Broadway musical — is tinkering with its successful student-selection system.
Some teachers say the changes were imposed without their input — and could tilt the illustrious school in the wrong direction.
“I believe that the city should be made aware of these threats to a stellar school, one that should be considered and treated as a jewel,” one instructor told The Post on condition of anonymity.
The Upper West Side school held auditions Saturday for hundreds of Brooklyn students. Among the most criticized changes were the sudden elimination of “callbacks” — asking the most promising candidates to return for a second look, insiders said.
“The departments used to do their auditions mimicking the professional world,” one said. “After initial auditions, students received callbacks, which gave us an opportunity to invite the best ones to return. This process allowed us to offer places at the school for the most talented students.”
In another shift, instrumental music students are no longer asked a series of 10 questions — including whether they got private lessons outside of regular public schools.
The reason? “It creates bias,” administrators told teachers.
But teachers say it’s important to know whether a student had such advantages or is less accomplished but exhibits natural talent.
“The one with the lesspampered background may be the stronger student because they achieved more with less,” a staffer said.
The essay system was also overhauled. Upon arrival for auditions, students first write a brief essay on why they want to attend the coveted school and what they hope to achieve.
Teachers used to read the essays — which reveal a child’s motivations — during the audition. Now the essays are shipped off to academic teachers for evaluation.
One music instructor told a faculty meeting last week the essays should not be “graded on grammar and usage” or non-English speaking immigrants like famed Israeli violinist Itzhak Perlman “would have failed.”
As they emerged from auditions Saturday, some students were “pretty shook up.” Others felt exhilarated.
“I hope to do more dance — a lot more of it,” said Sabine Adelia, 13, from Brooklyn Heights, who has taken ballet, African and modern dance lessons since age 3, and dreams of performing at Lincoln Center.
Admission is based on audition scores or an art portfolio and on-the-spot drawing. High grades and state test scores are also required. Some teachers and parents believe the school has increasingly valued academics over artistic ability.