Families choose Grace Church School for its strong academic tradition and its climate of diversity, acceptance and understanding. In addition to rigorous academics, creative expression through the arts, and a commitment to athletic excellence, students grow in our community of active, vital learners. Life at Grace Church School is full of opportunities for self-exploration, learning across ages, and seeing the world through a diverse lens.

Student Groups

List of 10 items.

  • Book Buddies

    Middle School students read to younger students once a week. This time-honored program gives the younger students a chance to bond with an older student. Book Buddies also help their personal friend in JK and K during Holiday Shopping.
  • Cross-Grade Connection

    CGC is an informal weekly discussion group that allows 8-10 students in grades 5-8 to interact and learn from one another while discussing topical issues. CGC groups are led in tandem by a junior peer leader and a Middle School faculty member. Students remain in the same group with the same faculty leader throughout their 4 years of Middle School.
  • Gender Groups

    All students in grade 6-8 meet bi-weekly in single gender groups facilitated by Middle School faculty.  Groups discuss gender-related issues, stereotypes, what it means to be authentic and to make good decisions. In 2015 a third group was formed, an all-gender group, where 6-8 students regardless of gender identity are welcome to drop into meetings throughout the year.  At all gender group meetings, students are encouraged to explore the idea of a gender spectrum, looking beyond the restrictive notion of a binary gender system. All three groups serve as a springboard for exploring identity, as well as the challenges facing all of us regarding gender, gender images in the media, online communication and healthy relationships.
  • High School Clubs

    Clubs in the High School are student-run and generated and faculty-supported. An 80 minute period is devoted to clubs once a week on Lab Day; clubs can always arrange additional meetings. Current offerings include Improv, Writing, Photography, GirlUp!, Adventurous Audiences, Student Ambassadors, Students Active for Gender Equality (SAGE), Glee, Debate & Rhetoric, Culinary Arts, Casino, and World Issues, among others.
  • Lunch Prep & Service

    Grade 9 students participate by advisory, on a rotating basis, in a month-long lunch preparation course with the school's chef, where they learn everything from kitchen hygiene and knife skills to proper chopping techniques and how to follow a recipe. Grade 10 students help serve lunch to their peers and faculty on a rotating basis.
  • Middle School Clubs

    Students in the Middle School may choose from a variety of activities that meet during the school day to complement their classroom learning. Previous offerings have included: Photo Club, Makerspace, Debate Club, and Current Events, among others.
  • Middle School Electives

    Elective courses are non-graded and enable students to interact across grades and build new relationships. Students choose from a long and varied list of elective courses, and participate in electives each of the three trimesters.
  • Middle School Gay-Straight Alliance

    The Middle School Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) is a forum for students in 5th through 8th grades to discuss issues of gender and sexuality diversity and identity. Aligning ourselves with the GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network) curriculum, students lead Middle School-wide initiatives to bring awareness to bullying and homo/transphobia, while actively supporting the LGBTQ community to create a more inclusive school for everyone.  
  • Peer Leadership

    Peer leadership is a 2-year program at Grace that begins in 11th grade and continues through the 12th grade year. Junior peer leaders lead the 5th-8th grade weekly discussion group “Cross Grade Connection (CGC),” along with one faculty member, once a week, allowing students of different ages to interact and learn from one another while discussing topical issues. Juniors begin to formally explore the concept of leadership by practicing self-awareness and effective communication skills while moderating groups, and by following a course in student leadership.
    In 12th grade, these same peer leaders pair up to lead 9th graders by advisory independently in weekly groups, which are intended to ease the transition to high school and provide positive role models within the community. Senior peer leaders continue to follow a formal leadership course, that they help create, on Lab Days throughout the year.
     
  • Student Government

    Middle School Student Government:  Students in fifth through eighth grade elect representatives each year who work with the Assistant Head of School to carry out food drives, student carnivals, and special events.  Meeting weekly, students develop and implement community building projects and practice leadership skills.
     
    High School Student Government:  High School students designed their own "Student Committee" in our inaugural high school year, focusing on collaborative leadership.  The Committee elects officers to our Town Hall-style government each fall.  Students work to identify the needs of the high school student body, share service and school spirit opportunities, and organize events, such as dances, for classmates.  They practice leadership and communication skills while discussing school issues with classmates via their own school-hosted website. 

School Day at a Glance

Grade  Arrival Dismissal
JK-K 8:15 am Mon-Fri 2:40 pm
1 8:20 am Mon-Fri 2:50 pm
2 8:20 am Mon-Fri 3:00 pm
3-4 8:15 am Mon-Fri 3:20 pm
5-8 8:12 am Mon-Fri 3:20 pm
9-12 8:00 am Mon-Fri 3:20 pm

Lunch

Lunch at Fourth Avenue is family-style with a teacher at each table. Students clear the tables and help set lunch for the following shift. At the Cooper Square campus, high school students enjoy a flexible cafeteria and serve lunch in their advisories on a rotating basis.













Junior Kindergarten  Grade 8  86 Fourth Ave. New York, NY 10003 (212) 475-5609  | Grades 9 – 12  46 Cooper Square New York, NY 10003 (212) 475-5610
Grace Church School is a co-educational independent school in downtown Manhattan, New York City
providing instruction for over 700 students in Junior Kindergarten through Grade 12.
Grace Church School © 2021