School Reform Commission to Vote on Eastern University's Charter for an Innovative Gates-Funded High School
Posted on: Wednesday, 17 October 2007, 00:00 CDT
PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Eastern University will open a unique high school -- the only Philadelphia high school to date with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation -- for underserved students, pending approval this month from the Philadelphia School Reform Commission.
Originally planned for fall 2007, the opening of the Eastern University Academy Charter School was delayed when, in the wake of the district's budget crisis last May, the commission voted to defer decisions on all new charters until this month. The commission meets today, October 17, 2007, and will decide on Wednesday, October 24, 2007. If approved, the school, focused on increasing opportunities for students who have not traditionally attended college, will open in September 2008.
Eastern University Academy, for grades 6 through 12, will combine for the first time the model of personalized education developed by the school reform organization Big Picture Company with the Gates-supported approach of blending high school and college into a single college-oriented culture. University faculty and high school teachers will collaborate to create a college- integrated curriculum. Students will take college-level courses, some earning up to two years of college credit by graduation.
The EU Academy will offer small classes of no more than 17 students in a small school serving less than 400 students. Teachers will accompany students as they move through grade levels. Students will spend three 8-hour days in the classroom year-round. The remaining two days per week will be spent attending off-site internships carefully chosen to match students' interests.
Eastern's high school program, administered through the university's Philadelphia-based School for Social Change, was developed with over $400,000 in funding and technical support from the Gates Foundation, the Black Alliance for Educational Options, the Big Picture Company and the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation.
Eastern (http://www.eastern.edu/academy) is a comprehensive Christian university for 3,700 students. The School for Social Change administers graduate, undergraduate and high school programs, as well as non-degree and community education programs in Philadelphia. Its programs focus on transformation through education and promoting social change, especially through community arts, community development and youth leadership.
Links of note: Eastern University Academy Charter: http://www.eastern.edu/academy Early College High School Initiative: http://www.earlycolleges.org/ Big Picture Company: http://www.bigpicture.org/ Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation: http://www.woodrow.org/ Black Alliance for Educational Options: http://www.baeo.org/
Eastern University School For Social Change
CONTACT: Yvonne Turner of Eastern University School For Social Change,+1-610-804-5238, yturner@eastern.edu
Web site: http://www.eastern.edu/change
Source: PRNewswire
Related Articles
- Target Has Students Covered with All of the Latest Back-to-School and Back-to-College Trends
- IBM's Top Scientists and Researchers Create Unique Mentorship Program for African University Students
- New School Prep and Rollins College Join Forces With Namibia Project
- Research and Markets : College Students Online: a Parallel Life on Social Networks
- Definitions of Healthy Eating Among University Students
- Focus of Middle Colleges Wont Change, Official Says
- Gov. Would Ease Charter School Approval ; Universities Could Certify Academies
- Public Health Leaders to Convene at University of the Sciences in Philadelphia Symposium
- Sprint Offers Universities and Colleges Opportunity to Ring Up Revenue With Sprint University Wireless Access Plan
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds