Helen Street School

• Location: Hamden, Connecticut
• Web site: www.hamden.k12.ct.us/helenstreet/
• Principal: Richard Balisciano
• Featured teacher: Pamela Mancini, visual art teacher
• Grades: K–6
• Number of students: 400

Each morning, all the students at the Helen Street School walk to school, where the old-fashioned school bell greets them on their way in. The tight-knit community strives to provide a safe environment that meets the social, emotional, physical, aesthetic, and academic needs of its students. The curriculum emphasizes various learning styles and the importance of the individual.

The school stresses cooperation in both classes and community. With funding from the state’s department of education, the school runs an internship program with nearby Quinnipiac University. Graduate students work as both student teachers and interns throughout the course of two years. In 2002, about 30 Quinnipiac students joined the elementary school, working with the children in small groups and offering after-school tutoring.

Information provided by Helen Street School. Current as of July 2002.