Gateway Timeline
The History of Gateway
The Gateway story has its roots in 1973 when Dr. Alfred Gellhorn, a leader in medical education and Dean of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, accepted an invitation to come to the City College of New York (CCNY), to create a "Center of Excellence." With an initial grant from the philanthropist Leonard Davis, Dr. Gellhorn established the Sophie Davis School of Biomedical Education with a mission to recruit and train physicians from underserved minority populations and encourage new doctors to work in communities most in need.
In its first year, Sophie Davis' enrollment was 50 percent black and Hispanic. However, the high school preparation of many of these students was inadequate in science and math and the attrition rate of minority students in the early years of Sophie Davis was 35 percent or higher. This showed Dr. Gellhorn and his faculty that a serious effort to broaden access to medical education was going to have to start earlier in students’ academic careers.
Dr. Gellhorn turned to Dr. Morton Slater, who in 1975 became Chair of the Admissions Committee at Sophie Davis, and Elisabeth Iler, JD, Sophie Davis' Director of Recruitment, to create the Bridge to Medicine Program, introducing college level math, science and English courses in the 12th grade.
In the years that followed, Dr. Gellhorn, Dr. Slater and Ms. Iler continued their pioneering efforts. In 1986, concerned that so few minority students from low income families were graduating from medical school, the trio launched the Gateway to Higher Education Program. In collaboration with the New York City Board of Education, Gateway established its first four-year programs at high schools in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island. In 2001, Gateway partnered with the City College of the City University of New York to become the Gateway Institute for Pre-College Education.
1979
Under the direction of Dean Alfred Gellhorn, the Sophie Davis School for Biomedical Education at City College launches Bridge to Medicine to encourage minority high school seniors to pursue careers in science and medicine. Elisabeth Iler, JD, and Morton Slater, PhD, are tapped to create the program and recruit students.
1973
Dr. Alfred Gellhorn establishes the Sophie Davis School of Biomedical Education at the City College of New York with a mission to recruit and train physicians from underserved minority populations and encourage primary care doctors to work in communities most in need.
1982
Recognizing the limits of working with students already in the senior year of high school, Elisabeth Iler and Dr. Morton Slater establish the Macy Medical Professions Program, providing a key learning experience and the foundation for the first Gateway programs.
1986
The Gateway to Higher Education opens with funding from the Aaron Diamond Foundation, the New York City Board of Education, and New York State’s Science and Technology Entry Program. The first schools to launch are Brooklyn Technical HS (Brooklyn), Jamaica HS (Queens), John F. Kennedy HS (Bronx), and Port Richmond HS
1985
Building on the success of the Bridge to Medicine program at Sophie Davis, the Gateway team launches a second program in Queens. Like its predecessor, the one-year program was designed to encourage and prepare disadvantaged high school seniors for college, especially pre-med programs.
1986 continued
(Staten Island). The four programs enroll a total of 135 ninth graders and include advanced classes, year-round enrichment programs, parent participation, dedicated faculty and coordinators and professional development workshops.
1989
As part of its college preparation agenda, Gateway launches its first annual College Fair. Representatives from approximately twenty-five colleges meet students from the five Gateway programs to provide information on various aspects of the college application process.
1988
The Gateway program at Erasmus Hall in Brooklyn is launched. It will be phased out in 2003 with the establishment of the STAR Early College High School. The last Gateway class graduated from Erasmus in 2006, graduating 299 students during its 18 year history.
1990-1991
The first Gateway students graduate from Port Richmond, JFK, Brooklyn Tech, and Jamaica.
Gateway receives its first funding from the Sherman Fairchild Foundation, which has continued its support over the years.
1994
In partnership with the Mount Sinai Medical Center, the Queens Gateway to Health Sciences Secondary School opens. It is the first New York City public school to combine 7th through 12th grade students in a curriculum dedicated to health science and Gateway’s first stand-alone school.
1992
With funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) develops the Health Professions Pipeline Initiative (HPPI). Gateway receives one of the first grants and becomes a national model to increase underrepresented minorities in health professions.
1995
In collaboration with the DNA Learning Center at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Gateway opens the first DNA lab in a New York City public high school at Brooklyn Technical High School.
1998
Mount Sinai School of Medicine and Gateway sponsor the Gateway Summer Teacher Institute, a 77-hour interdisciplinary curriculum that served 100 teachers from 17 New York City high schools. The Jewish Foundation for the Education of Women offers Gateway’s women students four-year college scholarships.
1997
Gateway directors Elisabeth Iler and Dr. Morton Slater are among the six recipients of the prestigious Sloan Award for Public Service, sponsored by the Fund for the City of New York.
Yale Medical School welcomes Gateway seniors to its summer program for future doctors.
1999
Gateway launches new programs at Adlai E. Stevenson HS (Bronx) and Bayard Rustin School for the Humanities (Manhattan). The After-School program opens at Queens Gateway, offering students a range of activities from tutoring to sports, art, and dance. The Gateway Summer Teacher Institute expands to include middle school teachers.
2001
Gateway is designated the Gateway Institute for Pre-College Education at the City College of New York, launching new programs at Lafayette HS and Science Skills HS. Gateway designs a Living Environment professional development workshop used throughout the public school system.
2000
Gateway launches Life Sciences for 6th to 12th grades. Working with the Mount Sinai Medical Center, classes feature medicine and pediatric residents teaching biology classes and regular on-site instruction for the students at Mt. Sinai. Gateway inaugurates its Environmental Science Project with Sterling Forest State Park.
2002
Gateway begins a new high school program at Clara Barton HS. It launches with a pre-entry summer program, including classes in math, science, and writing, and enrichment outings to Prospect Park and Liberty Science Center Gateway establishes a Student Council to coordinate activities among the schools and programs.
2003
Gateway launches two new stand-alone schools: STAR@Erasmus and GSERT@Stevenson. Both schools replace programs that have been phased out as a result of the ongoing restructuring of the NYC Department of Education.
2002 continued
Gateway publishes its first edition of Gateway Voices, a literary and visual arts journal composed entirely of Gateway students’ art and writing.
2004
Forty-two Gateway students, representing almost all of the programs and schools and Bridge to Medicine, participate in the 18th Annual Symposium on Career Opportunities in Biomedical Education in Atlanta, Georgia. A Gateway student wins the coveted Robert N. Black Senior Scholarship Award for his presentation.
2006
Gateway’s first graduating class at Clara Barton HS includes both the Class of 2006 valedictorian and salutatorian. In fact, 15 of the top 25 graduates are Gateway students.
Of the 20 Gates Millennium Scholars in New York City, 20 percent are Gateway students.
2005
Gateway launches a new program at Lehman HS with 50 ninth graders.
The First Annual Summer Placement Fair is held at City College. Representatives from more than 25 organizations shared information with over 250 students from schools and programs throughout the Gateway network.
2007
Gateway launches its first program outside of New York City at John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics and Science in Roxbury.
Gateway receives grants from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Bristol-Meyers Squibb Foundation for different initiatives targeting nutrition and fitness.
Phone: 212 650-6088 Fax: 212 650-6484 Email: gateway@ccny.cuny.edu
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© 2012, Gateway Institute for Pre-College Education
2008
Gateway opens two new programs at Enterprise, Business and Technology High School (EBT) in Brooklyn and Francis Lewis High School in Queens.
Gateway was selected as a featured “Program that Works” by the Business Higher Education Forum, a consortium of Fortune 500 CEOs, academic presidents, and foundation executives.
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2009
Gateway granted a planning grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York to explore expansion of the Gateway model to other cities.
Gateway also received a planning grant from the NYS Department of Health to create a medical pipeline.
2010
Gateway opens programs at four new schools in Queens: Bayside High School, Benjamin Cardozo High School, and Excelsior Preparatory High School, and George Washington Carver High School for the Sciences.