Science. It’s in our name, it’s in our mentalities, and it’s embedded in our curriculum. At a school where STEM seems to be the focus, is it possible to thrive as a humanities student? Is it possible to nurture a passion for English, social studies, and the arts? Is it possible to resist the pressures to conform to a science heavy curriculum?
Discussions regarding the importance of integrating a strong humanities curriculum span beyond the sphere of Bronx Science and into countless STEM heavy schools of higher education. MIT emphasizes their caution to “not train students with a ‘split brain,’ where their STEM work lives separately from the kind of critical ethical and sociopolitical reasoning or emotional maturity.” A study by Professors Wiebke Denecke and Tristan G. Brown highlights how students trained in both fields are better equipped to solve complex global problems and communicate across cultures.
Integrating humanities in high schools is arguably more important than doing so in college, as the four years of high school are a time where students can discover what they are interested in and begin to hone in on a niche topic. Students and teachers at Bronx Science have had a diverse set of experiences as they grapple with the curriculum at a school that is traditionally STEM focused. While some had their interests utterly transformed, others solely strengthened what they were already passionate about.
When I came to Bronx Science, my passion for writing overruled my strengths in math and science. I loved working with numbers and problem solving, but I leaned more towards the side of learning where I could express my interests and thoughts through carefully constructed pieces of writing. I jumped at the first opportunity to continue to explore this passion by attending weekly meetings for the Dynamo literary magazine and later, as a sophomore, joining the journalism class and writing for The Science Survey. My commitment to my competitive dance team outside of school, however, prevented me from joining teams like Speech and Debate or Model UN, teams where many of my peers were able to nurture or find their love for humanities.
Jonah Bonin ’26, who currently serves as the captain of the Congressional Debate team, came to Bronx Science with more of a focus on math. While many nurture and strengthen their love for math and STEM at Bronx Science, Jonah recalls, “Bronx Science had the opposite effect on me than it did on most people. It made me more humanities focused than I was [before] I came here.” His passions slowly began to skew towards the humanities fields, especially after taking Holocaust Leadership and A.P. World History. The combination of intriguing humanities classes and the commitment that goes along with debate slowly turned Bonin’s interests towards the humanities.
While he plans to pursue public policy or international relations in college, Bonin highlights the prospect of a minor in physics. This year, I’ve taken Honors Precalculus and A.P. Physics 1 alongside Bonin. Each day, we spend periods six to eight working through different approaches to physics problems and making connections between formulas in math and concepts in physics. Had I not known Bonin well enough to know about his fervor for policy and writing, I never would have predicted his preference for humanities as he never discounted Precalculus or Physics as classes that were unimportant.
To prompt his love for the humanities, Bonin highlights the endless opportunities to nurture his interests at Bronx Science. “Most obviously the Holocaust Museum and the Speech and Debate team… two things Bronx Science has that are amazing opportunities that we are able to pursue,” Bonin said.
These resources have ultimately pushed him towards the humanities during his time at Bronx Science, but still, he leaves the door open for other interests to arise. “I just go by what classes I like being in the most, because I am interested in math and physics and I think that stuff is cool, but right now I think that humanities and history is cooler.” Bronx Science gives us the opportunity to take a variety of classes, to see what interests us and to excel in all areas, even those that are not our favorites.
While Bonin’s experience with the Speech and Debate team veered his interest further in the direction of humanities, his co-captain Siena Ruske ’26 discusses her shift away from the artistic and humanities based topics of her extracurriculars during her time at Bronx Science. As she pursues the study of both the violin and Speech and Debate after school, she told me, “I knew I wasn’t going to go into music, and I was interested in going into politics during my ninth grade and sophomore years. But it wasn’t as much of a Bronx Science thing that deterred me, it was more that I didn’t want to be involved in the grimy side of politics.”
This year, Ruske narrowed down her interest in psychology to something quantitative and exact by detailing specifically on neuroscience. While she didn’t shift what she was interested in entirely, she described that “maybe when you’re surrounded by a bunch of people who are going into something scientific, it motivates you to go into a STEM focused field too.”
However, Ruske rejects the notions of peer pressures playing a part in her shift in focus to STEM. Instead, she highlights the general societal shift to focus on STEM, raising the question of whether this shift to STEM is even a result of Bronx Science culture or if it’s a result of greater culture shift as countless humanities fields are overcome by AI.
As many Bronx Science students do, Ruske is choosing to take her interests with neuroscience into a professional lab this summer to be able to conduct research alongside a mentor in her field of interest. While the research program at Bronx Science is centered around STEM fields, it can create a fruitful intersection between humanities interests and STEM interests for many students.
Evelyn Morris ’26 is conducting her research project in the field of computational law where she is able to combine her love for persuasion and mathematics. Although she came into Bronx Science more STEM focused, she deemed herself more math heavy due to the lack of resources for humanities at her previous schools. But at Bronx Science, she was able to combine all her interests in one. “Once I started getting involved in the research, there were just so many paths I could go down, especially taking American Studies this year I got really into writing and humanities,” Morris said.
After joining the Mock Trial and Moot Court teams, her fervor for arguing enhanced but her love for math still remained. At Bronx Science, Morris told me, “It’s easier for me to get involved in both STEM and Humanities, and through my research, I’ve actually combined them, and honestly, that’s my favorite.”
Combining interests in STEM and humanities is a rigorous yet intriguing path to follow. Similar to Morris’ contrasting interests in mathematical computation and law, Sophia Birman ’26 plans to major in applied math and international relations in college. She keeps both her interests equally rigorous, but unlike Morris’ strategy of intertwining interests, Birman keeps hers relatively separate. “I’m more STEM focused in my classes, and I’m more humanities focused in my extracurriculars. I think that’s just the way that the opportunities surrounding both of these areas came about at Bronx Science for me.”
Birman partakes in Speech and Debate, journalism, and judicial board, but also takes AP Physics along with multivariable calculus. The pressure to conform to STEM in all areas minimally affected Birman. She told me, “I understand that everyone is on their own path here at Bronx Science.” Still, she admits there was an extent to which the STEM heavy workload of those around her influenced her choices for next year’s classes. “I was choosing between taking two history classes or taking two math classes, and I was probably pressured by a lot of people to take another math class, because that was perceived as more rigorous. But still, I’m happy with the choice I made, and I made it on my own,” Birman said.
In an attempt to solve the issue that Birman discusses about less opportunities to take extra humanities classes, and more elective classes in STEM, English teacher Mr. Chris Ziegler started the class for graphic novels last year. “I wanted to contribute more variety to the English Department’s courses. Before this year, there had just been standard courses that didn’t offer as much flexibility as I’ve seen at some other schools.”
Teaching English at Bronx Science, Ziegler argues, “It’s a stereotype, being a STEM school that students are less interested in the humanities. I’ve had countless students that have been amazing in English class, that have been enthusiastic. I definitely don’t think that humanities here is a black hole.” Still, he acknowledges that some students are likely more STEM based, but continues that “if that’s what’s happening in their head, it doesn’t limit them from giving effort in my class.” He highlights a trend similar to the one depicted by Bonin as he was able to thrive in difficult math and physics classes despite it not being his primary interest. It’s evident that Bronx Science students are able to excel in many areas, and that they are supported by the administration at Bronx Science.
To that extent, the administration heavily encouraged the prospect of Mr. Ziegler’s graphic novel class. While Mr. Ziegler came up with the specifics regarding the proposal of the class, the English Department Assistant Principal, Ms. Alessandra Zullo Casale, was extremely helpful in realizing his ideas. The class is composed of juniors and seniors who take it as their sole English class, and Ziegler highlights that its a “great opportunity for students to incorporate their interests in visual art and literature–it’s a blend of the two, a fresh spin on an English class.”
Just as Mr. Ziegler strives to incorporate aspects of art into his curriculum, some students with a peaked interest in the arts have found a way to incorporate their creativity in their more STEM classes through projects and other more open-ended assignments. “I try to find an outlet in all of my classes, some way to put a creative twist on things that are more scientific,” said Avery Pflueger ’26.
Pflueger has always been more inclined towards the humanities, and has experienced pressures to pursue interests in STEM after coming to Bronx Science. “I had never been interested in neuroscience and psychology before I came to Bronx Science, but I ended up joining the psych and neuro club, and I figured this was my ‘in’ into STEM stuff. I was looking for some sort of outlet that would help me conform to the idea of being a STEM student, but I realized I’m just not.”
Pressures to conform to a STEM heavy schedule evidently affect students in different ways. While some keep their interests separate focusing on humanities at times and STEM simultaneously but independently, others still dabble in a variety of fields, finding ways to incorporate their love for the humanities into what they’ve learned in science classes.
In my three years at Bronx Science, I’ve managed to merge my interest in humanities and STEM through the field of research. Working at the Manne Institute after school, I’ve conducted my own independent research and have thrived in watching my interests in biochemistry come to life outside the classroom. However, research also alludes to a lot of extra reading and writing, and in this sense I’ve been able to combine my love for journalistic writing and chemical sciences.
After speaking with the students and faculty of Bronx Science, it’s evident that the notion that Bronx Science is solely a STEM school is a harsh stereotype that undermines that eagerness of our student population. As students take advantage of all the opportunities presented to them both through classes and extracurriculars, they nurture what is interesting to them, whether that happens to be something in the field of STEM or not.
Teaching English at Bronx Science, Ziegler argues, “It’s a stereotype, being a STEM school that students are less interested in the humanities. I’ve had countless students that have been amazing in English class, that have been enthusiastic. I definitely don’t think that humanities here is a black hole.”