Bernardo Ascona, Fellow

Union Square Academy for Health Sciences

Manhattan, NY

Bernardo Ascona, founding Principal of Union Square Academy for Health Sciences, began his career as a Social Studies teacher in the Northeast Bronx. He was chair of the School Leadership Team, club advisor, mock trial coach, organizer of student Olympics, and coordinator of a small learning community. He was an Assistant Principal of Supervision of Social Studies and Organization for four years in the South Bronx. His distinguished work led him to be chosen principal by Region 2 in New York City. At Renaissance High School for Musical Theater and Technology, in 2005, he started by building a strong organization around teaching and learning that continued with his Assistant Principal as successor. He became Executive Principal at Washington Irving High School in 2008. He brought in grants to build community and improve learning. He led the turnaround efforts in large and small high schools. His work to expand equity and access has brought to each school new resources, energy and passion for students, and high parental involvement. He is currently the founding principal of the Union Square Academy for Health Sciences  (U. S. A.) in Union Square, Manhattan, New York, which focuses on health careers in pharmacy and dental. He has led this Career and Technical Education (C. T. E.) school to create the first pharmacy technician program in New York City.  He has led a community that has had graduation rates from 84% to 94% over the last ten years.

In June 2022, Bernardo was honored by the High School Principals' Association (HSPA).

David Edelman, Ally

Peer Collaborative Teacher
Union Square Academy for Health Sciences

Manhattan, NY

David Edelman is a Social Studies teacher and staffed as a Peer Collaborative Teacher. David provides instructional coaching and mentoring in addition to teaching Government & Economics. His classroom serves as a learning lab for fostering civic engagement and elevating student voice. David teaches at Union Square Academy for Health Sciences, a new, unscreened public high school with a Career & Technical Education focus in NYC. It was David’s service in AmeriCorps NCCC, a yearlong national service program similar to the domestic Peace Corps, that solidified David’s desire to follow in his mother’s footsteps and become a public school teacher. David was invited by Representative Carolyn McCarthy in 2007 to testify before Congress to reauthorize AmeriCorps and advocate for the GIVES Act. These experiences helped foster his desire to center learning on student led activism and civic engagement. His students’ recent activism aimed at improving access to clean, lead free drinking water has received international attention, was covered by WNYC, and has led to the installation of new environmentally friendly fountains with bottle fillers and filtration systems. David’s students have been analyzing water quality in homes and at schools since their fountains first tested positive for elevated lead levels in 2017. David received the Alfred P Sloan Teaching Champion Award for Economics Education in 2019 for his teaching, which has greatly enhanced students’ personal finance skills. You can learn more about David, his teaching, and see examples of his students’ civic action at his website www.cagebustingclassrooms.com