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Students at the Academy for Business and Community Development in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn spoke out Tuesday night about the Department of Education's plan to close the school in June.

Normally the DOE phases out schools over several years, but the all-boys academy is too small with just a few dozen students in each grade.

"Starting at another school as a 12th grader, I'm not going to feel comfortable. I started in this school as sixth grade, I should at least be given one more year to graduate," said student Marvin Gaston.

"If you close this school in June and scatter these students all over I think that some of them will not continue their school career and become lost in other places," said teacher Sonia Rivera.

Parents, teachers and students say the DOE caused many of the problems the school faces with budget cuts and a revolving door of support staff since it opened in 2005.

They say the current principal is turning things around, but she's only been there a year.

They say many students have special needs.

"You would not ordinarily choose a gender-only school in this day and age unless you knew your child and knew they would flourish better in this environment than they would in a traditional environment," said Academy for Business and Community Development Dean Augustus Grissett.

Students say their experience at the academy is one they couldn't get anywhere else.

"The teachers have been able to focus more on us individually and that's really helped us," said one student.

"It's a brotherhood. I am close with everyone of those who go here," said another student.

The city says test scores, enrollment and attendance are low at the academy. Its middle school got a "D" on its report card the past two years. But the high school hasn't been graded yet - since it's graduating its first class this year - and possibly the only one.