A partnership between the New York City Department of Education, the community, and Columbia University, CSS serves students who have an interest in a program focusing on STEM fields.

[4] Columbia Secondary School is in the Morningside Heights neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan.

On October 21, 2005, Columbia University announced that it would collaborate with the City of New York on the creation of a new public secondary school that would address the critical need to improve education in science, math, and engineering.

Students are expected to go beyond the New York State graduation requirements of 44 credits and earn a total of 63 credits, successfully complete at least one Columbia University course, and successfully complete at least 150 community service hours in order to earn a diploma endorsed by the school.

CSS student benefits of the Columbia University partnership include, but are not limited to, the Columbia University/Columbia Secondary School High School Visiting Student Program, internship and job opportunity at the university, and admission preference into the Double Discovery Center program.

[5] All students at CSS are allowed to apply to the Columbia University/Columbia Secondary School High School Visiting Student Program and would be chosen for the program if they have maintained academic excellence and exceptional behavior throughout their time at CSS.

In addition, CSS has several sports teams that compete in the Public Schools Athletic League (PSAL).

In 2014, the school released the inaugural issue of its philosophy journal, CONTRARIWISE, which features students' essays, dialogues, roundtables, letters, stories, poems, and other writings on philosophical topics ranging from time to tyranny.

The children went swimming in the ocean when no lifeguards were on duty and the beach was officially closed, according to signs posted at the time.