Earl Monroe Basketball School breaks ground on new Bronx facility

Unique school is not seeking to be another pipeline of basketball stars, but rather an institution that uses basketball to assist students with their academics

Architectural renderings of the new 70,000 square foot home for the Earl Monroe New Renaissance Basketball Charter School in the Bronx, New York. Groundbreaking on the new building took place on Wednesday. / IMC Architecture

There are many schools in the United States centered around elite high school athletes and teams, perhaps the most well known being IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. Specifically related to basketball, there are scores of smaller institutions centered around nationally renowned programs where elite players play national schedules with educational programs tailored towards helping their players graduate and establish future eligibility to play college basketball.

The Earl Monroe New Renaissance Basketball Charter School, located in the Bronx, New York, has a different approach to combining basketball and education.

The school, which broke ground on a new 70,000 square foot facility on Wednesday, may eventually produce NBA superstars, but it's goal is to prepare all of its students, which come from New York's most challenging neighborhoods, for success in a variety of professions related to the game of basketball.

The school's motto is "A ball and a book can change the world."

In the mission section of its website the school states, "We’ve set out to ensure that our students’ futures are filled with possibility — whether they play the game or not. We are committed to the belief that the magic and excitement of basketball extends beyond the court into professions that are accessible to our graduates.

"We want them to be inspired not just by players, but by recognizable and respected role models from professions related to basketball."

The school, which was founded four years ago in a subleased building in the Pelham Beach section of the Bronx, has been working towards the building of its new $35 million facility since its launch. In addition to a new 8,000 square foot basketball court with telescopic seating for approximately 400 people, there will be a state-of-the-art weight room, a dance room and a physical therapy training room.

There will be 24 regular classrooms to accommodate a student body which currently numbers 395 and is expected to grow to 440. It will have two specialty science classrooms, an art studio, a library, a media production studio and a green screen broadcast studio.

Brandon Corley, the school's executive director told the New York Times that the new building will accelerate many of the goals the school has had for some time, including the creation of spaces for teaching physical therapy and rehabilitation training and a broadcast studio to prepare students interested in careers in those fields.

“We won’t be playing school,” Corley told the Times. “It won’t be talking about what you would do — ‘If I was the broadcaster at Madison Square Garden, this is how I would handle the game.’ No, you are going to be the broadcaster on Friday night. It’s not Madison Square Garden, it’s Earl Monroe Square Garden.”

The new building's design has been created to reflect the school's basketball focus. The school says it is "inspired by the traditional field house design of the early 1900s, which featured an arched entrance. This element is reflected in the design of the schools’ entrance, prominently located on the corner of 152nd Street and Elton Avenue. The angular glazing that will be wrapped around and above the main entrance leading into the lobby is an interpretation of this concept. The architects were also inspired by traditional brick facade designs of American schools from the 1920s and 1930s and incorporated a modern adaptation of it into the current design."

At the original ribbon cutting ceremony at the opening of the current school in 2021, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver emphasized that successful basketball careers are not limited to players.

"There are more than 1,000 jobs off the court, within the ecosystem of the game, for every player in the NBA and WNBA," said Silver.

The school's namesake and Legacy Trustee, Earl "The Pearl" Monroe, had a legendary NBA career with the Baltimore Bullets and New York Knicks. He broke new ground in the area of ball-handling with flashy moves that players have modeled and expanded upon in the generations that have followed since his playing days in the 60s and 70s.

A member of the National Basketball Hall of Fame, Monroe has long advocated the importance of education, volunteered his time to various educational and youth initiatives, and has been recognized with numerous awards for his service.

Monroe was recruited to be involved with the school by its founder, filmmaker Dan Klores, who had worked with the NBA legend on some documentaries. Klores is a Brooklyn, New York native.