Miscellaneous
The attendance rate is the highest in NYC. Scores on standardized examinations are also high when compared to other public high schools; in the year 2005-2006, Harrisites had average scores of 628 and 632 on the SAT verbal and math sections, respectively, compared to 551 and 565 for what the city deems "similar schools" and 444 and 467 for students citywide.
In Harrisite lingo class periods are known as 'bands' for the school believes there should never be an end to learning. In between bands classical music plays to signal the end of class. There is also a 'five minute bell' to alert teachers to start wrapping up their lessons. In 2000 Eileen F. Lebow published a history of the original school, The Bright Boys: A History of Townsend Harris High School (ISBN 0-313-31479-9).
Read more about this topic: Townsend Harris High School