James Monroe High School (New York City)

James Monroe High School is a former comprehensive high school located at 1300 Boynton Avenue at East 172nd Street in the Soundview section of the Bronx, New York City.

Opened in 1924, the original school ran for seventy years before being shut down in 1994 for poor performance. The original building now houses seven smaller high schools: the Monroe Academy for Visual Arts and Design (H.S. 692), the Monroe Academy for Business and Law (H.S. 690), the High School of World Cultures (H.S. 550), The Metropolitan Soundview Highschool (X521), Pan American International High School (X388), Mott Hall V (X242) and the newly opened Cinema School (first opened its doors for the 2009–2010 school year). The building also used to house an elementary school, The Bronx Little School.

The building was designed by William H. Gompert, who was the New York City Superintendent of School Buildings. The building was built by the T.A. Clarke Co., and is substantially identical to a handful of other high school buildings that were built in the city at the same time.

Notable alumni

Hall of Famer Hank Greenberg

• Danny Aiello, actor, who attended Monroe for two weeks before dropping out to enlist in the National Guard.
• Saul Bass, noted graphic designer, movie title sequence designer, and film maker.
• Edward J. Bloustein was the seventeenth president of Rutgers University.
• Milton Cardona James Monroe graduate 1963. Popular Conguero who recorded with Willie Colon, Hector Lavoe and Tito Puente.
• Darren Carrington ('84), former NFL player 8-year veteran (Broncos, Lions, Chargers, Panthers). Played in two Super Bowls
• Cornelius H. Charlton, U.S. Army soldier and Medal of Honor recipient in the Korean War
• Judy Craig, Patricia Bennett, and Barbara Lee of the singing group the Chiffons.
• Jules Feiffer (‘47), cartoonist for the Village Voice, won the Pulitzer Prize in editorial cartooning.
• Paul A. Fino, GOP Congressman and State Senator, representing the Bronx
• Art Fleming ('41), original host of TV's Jeopardy! and former Monroe football star.
• Stan Getz, pioneer jazz musician in cool, bossa nova and modern jazz. During hot Bronx summers, Getz developed a love for swimming at Crotona Park.
• Nathan Glazer, sociologist who co-authored Beyond the Melting Pot.
• Hank Greenberg ('29), major league baseball player with the Detroit Tigers, AL MVP, and a Hall of Famer. Greenberg led Monroe to the PSAL basketball championship in 1927 and to the PSAL baseball title in 1929. He was a three-sport All-City selection at Monroe in soccer, basketball and baseball.
• Lenny Hambro, jazz musician (woodwinds), notably with the bands of Gene Krupa, Glenn Miller, Machito, and Chico O'Farrill.
• Jonathan Harris ('31), actor, the conniving Dr. Smith in the television series Lost In Space, who graduated from Monroe at age 16.
• Robert Johnson is the first Black American to serve as District Attorney Bronx County (since January 1, 1989) in the history of New York State; graduated from James Monroe High School. In 2005, he became the longest serving District Attorney in Bronx County history. Mr. Johnson is a United States Navy Veteran.
• Martin J. Klein ('39), a historian of modern physics and the Senior Editor of The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein (Princeton University Press) from 1988 to 1998; the first winner (2005) of the Abraham Pais Prize—the first major award for the history of physics.^[1]
• Karen Koslowitz, New York City Council Member representing Queens
• Ed Kranepool ('62), major league baseball player, signed by the Mets just days after his 1962 graduation from Monroe, one of the original New York Mets and a member of 1969 World Series Champs
• Leon M. Lederman ('39), Nobel Laureate in Physics in 1988
• Juliet Man Ray, dancer and model, wife and muse of the artist Man Ray^[2]
• Judith Merril, science-fiction author and editor
• Stanley Milgram, social psychologist
• Danny Monzon ('64), carried the baseball torch handed to him by Kranepool and then went on to play for the Minnesota Twins
• Malloy Nesmith, Sr ('88), renowned streetball player. Nesmith played professionally overseas and in the USBL and has been featured in numerous Nike commercials that display his ball-handling skills. He played collegiately for Utah State University before earning a tryout with the Golden State Warriors of the NBA in 1995. He was the final player released by the team that summer.
• Estelle Reiner - (1932)], wife of Carl Reiner, mother of Rob Reiner, and actress in When Harry Met Sally, who said, "I'll have what she's having."
• Regina Resnik, opera singer and actress, sang at Metropolitan Opera
• Michael Russnow, Writers Guild of America screenwriter and member of its Board of Directors (1990–1994) with credits such as "The Waltons," "Barney Miller," "Family Ties" and "Dynasty."
• Nancy Savoca, Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Award-winning filmmaker
• Paul R. Screvane, President of the New York City Council (1961–65), NYC Sanitation Commissioner and unsuccessful Democratic primary candidate for NYC mayor in 1965 (losing to Abraham Beame).
• Art Shay ('39), photographer for Life, Time, Fortune, Sports Illustrated, Saturday Evening Post'; Author and Playwright. Member of National Racquetball Hall of Fame. Awarded Distinguished Flying Cross, Five Air Medals, French Croix de Guerre.
• Robert Strauss, Academy Award nominated supporting actor for his work in "Stalag 17."
• Doris Wishman, a filmmaker.
• Wilbur Young ('67), former defensive lineman in the National Football League.
• Philip Zimbardo, a social psychologist.
• Frank Waters, CEO and Co-Founder of 1209 Enterprise, LLC (1989-1992) Popular Business Networking organization assisting African-Americans in developing relationships through largely attended events called SuccessNET Quarterly with George C. Fraser. Also created 1209 Arts, The 1209 Affair and 1209 University.
• Harry Bartfeld ('33), scientist who served as Professor of Medicine, NYU School of Medicine, and Chief of Cell Biology, St. Vincent's Hospital.

References