YWCA of the City of New York

High School Programs

IMG_0043In 2002, the YWCA of the City of New York launched its High School After School Program at Murry Bergtraum High School for Business Careers in response to the 9/11 attacks. Since then, the YW has served over 3,000 teens from all five boroughs with academic enrichment, mentoring, career and college exploration, counseling, service learning opportunities, arts and recreation. In 2008, the YW expanded services to Independence High School, an alternative school for over-age and under-credited students working toward their diplomas.

Support YW High School Programs Today

YW high school programs are designed to empower students in their academics, career and life. Students explore and develop their sense of self through the arts, expand on their school learning through real world experiences, learn problem solving through positive peer relations, community service, and leadership development, and connect with caring adults through small class sizes and personalized guidance. The YW also helps students strengthen their ties to school by offering academic credit for specialized classes and working closely with the schools to provide personalized guidance as students make important life decisions.

The YW High School Programs’ success is primarily dependent upon the generous contributions from individual supporters. Please consider making a donation.

Program Sites

Murry Bergtraum High School for Business Careers

411 Pearl Street, New York, NY 10038
212.964.9610 x249

Independence High School

850 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10019
212.262.8067 x141

Sean Baucom Performs Spoken Word at Soirée

On Thursday, June 24, the attendees of the YWCA-NYC Sixth Annual Summer Soirée were treated to a powerful spoken-word performance by Sean Baucom, student at the YW’s After School Program at Independence High School in Hell’s Kitchen. Read more…

Murry Bergtraum Career Tour Series: Goliath RF

New York City is filled with hidden treasures off the beaten path. For instance, did you know that one of the top 50 sneaker boutiques in the world, according to Dime Magazine, is located in Spanish Harlem? This same sneaker boutique, Goliath RF, hosted the third YWCA-NYC Career Tour for the students of Murry Bergtraum High School for Business Careers. Read more…

Murry Bergtraum Career Tour Series: Duke’s NYC

What better way to start off the summer than through a trip to one of the city’s greatest barbecue hot spots? As the third in a series of Career Tours at the YWCA of the City of New York, the students at Murray Bergtraum After School Program had the opportunity to take a peek of the restaurant industry through a well-known New York staple: Duke’s NYC. Read more…

Murry Bergtraum Career Tour Series: Promises, Promises

Skipping lines and roaming backstage may seem like a luxury that only A-listers share — but at the YWCA-NYC Career Tour at the Broadway smash hit Promises, Promises, every student from Murry Bergtraum High School for Business Careers left feeling like a VIP. Read more…

Murry Bergtraum Career Tour Series: City Hall

It has been said that there are 8 million stories in the naked city. Thanks to the YWCA-NYC Career Tour Series for students at Murry Bergtraum High School for Business Careers, I can share a few stories you may not know about City Hall. Read more…

Behind the CoverGirl Smize: Career Tour at Grey Group

The YWCA-NYC Career Tour Series for students in the after school program at Murry Bergtraum High School came to an end with an invitation to visit the “famously effective” global advertising agency Grey Group on May 17, and there was no better way to demonstrate the ins and outs of the industry than through a case study of one of Grey’s biggest clients: CoverGirl. Read more…