The School grew out of a need to provide top-quality education for the children of Columbia University faculty as a recruitment and retention device. Anecdotal evidence from faculty and the provost’s office suggests that The School is fulfilling this role.  In the past five years, The School’s faculty, in collaboration with Columbia faculty and graduate students, has created a wide variety of learning opportunities for students. The efforts range from field trips and class visits to ongoing collaborations that are shaping The School’s curriculum.  Each year during “Brain Awareness Week” for example, Columbia graduate students in neuroscience visit fourth and sixth grades, conducting workshops featuring the brains and brain stems of various animals. Faculty from Columbia’s School of Public Health are pivotal members of The School’s Gender and Sexuality Education committee. The School’s science faculty and Columbia’s chemistry department have created a winter holiday science lecture and hands-on demonstration that is open to families from The School and all families involved with Columbia. The School is home to a spin-off of the university’s popular Café Science evenings where working scientists discuss their research with children and their families. We intend to continue seeking opportunities for mutually beneficial relationships between Columbia University faculty and students and faculty at The School.
 
Our proximity to the university allows easy access to many of Columbia's facilities. We have enjoyed annual all-school field days at Baker Field, where the fifth-grade Greek Olympics are held. Students have used the facilities at Dodge Fitness Center and the Teachers College pool, and the eighth-grade graduation ceremony is hosted in the rotunda at Low Library.  Our relationship with Columbia’s Teachers College is two-fold. We work with student teachers and host student observers, and our own teachers do coursework and pursue advanced degrees at the college. It is largely through the connection with Teachers College that The School has pursued the research components of its mission.