"At East Flatbush Ascend, we are a beautifully small and tight-knit community where our scholars, families, and staff feel connected. We foster a love of learning by ensuring that we, as educators, love learning ourselves. When we are passionate about what we teach, that passion is contagious, and it inspires our scholars to engage deeply.

Ascend is a really special place where we believe deeply in the inherent excellence of our scholars. That belief isn’t just words in a mission statement—it informs everything we do, from how we teach to how our community feels.

My long-term vision is that we become an incredibly successful academic community where all of our scholars are reading and doing math on or above grade level—while still holding onto the joy, affirmation, and sense of belonging that make our school special.

Being a principal is the best job in the world because I have the opportunity to be really close and embedded within our school community. I get to interact with scholars, families, and teachers every single day while continuing the work that excites me—supporting scholars as readers and critical thinkers. I believe that when children are excellent readers and critical thinkers, they are able to achieve their wildest dreams and change the world.

I define success as incredible amounts of growth—intellectual, social, and emotional—paired with growing confidence and self-concept. Whether for a scholar or a teacher, success is about being able to look back and say, ‘I’ve come so far, and I’m proud of myself.’

My hope for our scholars is that they are able to achieve every hope and dream they have for themselves, that they feel empowered to take on reimagining and changing the world in ways we can't even begin to predict. And as educators, we will do everything in our power to make that happen."

-Hannah Chapman