PRIVATE HIGH SCHOOL IN JACKSON HEIGHTS, QUEENS · GRADES 9- 12
Small By Design. Serious About What Comes Next.
At Garden School, high schoolers learn in classes that average fewer than 15 students, work with teachers who know exactly how they learn, and graduate with individualized college counseling, up to 60+ college credits, and 100% college acceptances.
Give Your Teen a High School Where They're Known by Name and Still Challenged Every Day
Choosing a high school in New York often feels like choosing between two extremes: a large public or specialized school with a big name and big classes, or a private school that costs more without clearly doing more. Garden School is the third option. Founded in 1923 and the only independent Nursery–Grade 12 school in central Queens, Garden keeps its Upper Division intentionally small — about 300 students across the whole school — so teachers can push each student in the way that student actually needs. Families who come to Garden from larger schools tell us the difference is immediate: they can reach a teacher the same day, their teen is in discussions instead of lectures, and the academic foundation finally feels solid.
Classes under 15 students, with teachers who are actually reachable
Core Upper Division courses typically average fewer than 15 students, which means discussion-rich classrooms and no hiding in the back row. Parents get direct access to teachers and the Upper Division team - the single biggest relief for families arriving from larger schools where messages went unanswered.
College-level work without the test-prep arms race
Students can take Advanced Placement courses and dual-enrollment classes through SUNY and St. John's University, earning up to 60+ college credits before graduation. No admissions test grind, no citywide exam determining your teen's future — just challenging coursework matched to the student in front of us.
Individualized college counseling starting in 9th grade
College planning begins freshman year, one-on-one, with a counselor who knows the whole family. The Class of 2025 earned more than $7.5 million in merit scholarships and matriculated to schools including Princeton, Cornell, and Macaulay Honors - with 100% college acceptance.
Depth of learning, not just coverage
Garden teaches one idea from several directions - lab work, writing, discussion, and real application - so students build understanding that holds up in college. Writing and math labs are available to high schoolers who want extra traction, and specialists teach every core subject.
More than meets the eye inside an unassuming Jackson Heights building
New art studios with Renaissance, Impressionism, and portfolio courses. Updated science labs, robotics and 3D printing, a new fitness center, a heated indoor pool, an outdoor garden, and a radio station run entirely by high school students. Families are consistently surprised by how much is behind the front door.
Room to be a joiner, a leader, or a starter - often all three
Three seasons of varsity sports in the ISAL league, a full club program, Model UN, debate, and international and Nantucket trips each year. At Garden's scale, students don't have to be the best in the borough to make the team, run the club, or get the solo. They just have to show up ready.
Garden's high school is a great fit for families who want...
A high school in Queens where their teen is known by every teacher, not counted by a homeroom number
Real academic challenge - AP, dual enrollment, honors-level discussion - without a pressure-cooker culture
A college process that starts in 9th grade and is guided one student at a time
A place where a teen can play a sport, lead a club, and try the arts in the same year
A globally diverse, close-knit community that reflects the Jackson Heights neighborhood around it
A straightforward commute inside Queens - plus private door-to-door bus transportation
"We moved our son here in 9th grade because we couldn't get anyone on the phone at his old school. Now his teachers email us before we even think to ask." -Parent
