Aftermath of the Fire
May - June 1968
The New Rochelle High School fire became a national story when it was covered that night on "The CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite" and on the front page of the next day's New York Times in an article entitled "Fire Ruins School in New Rochelle."
Teachers and administrations from the Office of the Superintendent of Schools, New Rochelle High School, Isaac E. Young Junior High School and Albert Leonard Junior High School met at City Hall the following day, Saturday, May 18, to plan for the remainder of the school year.
Placement for the school's 3,200 students needed to be found. Offers for use of instructional space came from Iona College, the College of New Rochelle, Fordham University and Pace University. Fort Slocum, an island in Long Island Sound, was considered as a site as well as the use of portable classrooms. All of these suggestions were rejected. |
The plan forward that was implemented utilized the two junior high schools on a split sessions schedule. High school juniors and seniors would attend Albert Leonard Junior High School in the morning and Albert Leonard students in the afternoon. Isaac E. Young Junior High School students would have morning classes and high school sophomores would attend Isaac E. Young in the afternoon. New Rochelle's vocational training program was moved to Mount Vernon High School. This plan insured that term-end exams, New York State Regents and graduation exercises would be held as scheduled.
The high school teachers met in City Hall on Monday, May 20, to receive their new assignments. Instruction began at the alternate sites, both junior high schools, the following day.
Teachers prepared for the resumption of their classes having lost any teaching materials stored in their classrooms. Students did not know if their locker contents could be retrieved or if they would finish the semester without their books. This was a week of considerable anxiety for teachers and students.
Teachers prepared for the resumption of their classes having lost any teaching materials stored in their classrooms. Students did not know if their locker contents could be retrieved or if they would finish the semester without their books. This was a week of considerable anxiety for teachers and students.
On Wednesday, May 29, shortly after 8 am in Albert Leonard Junior High, the fire alarm rang requiring everyone to evacuate. Sirens were heard as fire engines approached and there was a frightening sense of having experienced this before. A suspicious fire in papers and books in a ground floor reading room was quickly extinguished. Ceiling panels were scorched and a ceiling light fixture melted by the fire's heat. Students and teachers returned within minutes of the fire being put out.
At 9:15 am, the Police Commissioner announced that a sixteen year old senior had been arrested at the junior high following this latest fire and charged with first-degree arson for the May 17 blaze that destroyed the high school. The teen had been under surveillance by authorities. Word of this arsonist's capture resulted in a great sense of relief.
At 9:15 am, the Police Commissioner announced that a sixteen year old senior had been arrested at the junior high following this latest fire and charged with first-degree arson for the May 17 blaze that destroyed the high school. The teen had been under surveillance by authorities. Word of this arsonist's capture resulted in a great sense of relief.
The Standard Star newspaper reported that New Rochelle High School "is insured at $7,640,000 and its contents at $818,000." Fire insurance would fund the rebuilding of the high school.
The Class of 1968 held its graduation ceremony on June 23, 1968, in front of the charred remains of the school, with the smell of burnt wood in the air. Each graduate departed the commencement with memories of their high school years and of the school that once was.