Starting in the Fall 2011, the ASU Preparatory Academy will open to high school freshman, and will later expand to include grades kindergarten through 12.
The first school was opened in Mesa at the Polytechnic campus in 2008 and catered to students in grades kindergarten through sixth. Then in 2009, the Academy, formerly known as University Public Schools, Inc., opened a campus in Phoenix.
“Next year both our campuses will serve students in pre-school through ninth grade,” said Deborah Gonzalez, Chief Academic Officer of the Preparatory Academy. “We will continue adding a year to the program for the next four years until we have a full pre-school – grade 12 program seamlessly working with ASU programs to prepare students to successfully graduate from college.”
ASU Preparatory Academy distinguishes itself from other schools in its aim to prepare students to graduate from college, while most public school systems are designed to prepare students to graduate from high school, Gonzalez said.
The Preparatory Academy utilizes an intensive program of curriculum and study under the Cambridge International Lower Division courses for grades 9-10. Students in the preparatory academy will have numerous exposures to engage in research, writing, presentations, and unique approaches to challenging problems.
“Our students will be able to begin taking ASU college classes as soon as they demonstrate they are ready to meet the challenge of the coursework,” Gonzalez said. “This will help propel them toward an undergraduate completion day that could be one and one half to two years earlier than traditional students.”
ASU Preparatory Academy is a unique school because it is linked with ASU and offers unique opportunities for students to participate in university research.
Involvement with ASU has included partnerships with the School of Nursing and Health Innovation, and Interaction with the School of Nursing has allowed the ASU Prep Academy to implement a health and fitness curriculum, Gonzalez said.
”Other partnerships allow us to have a physics professor teaching our 5-8 students at the Polytechnic campus in a physics lab at ASU,” she said.
Political science senior Ruslan Abrosimov attended the informational session on June 7 to gather information on the preparatory academy for his cousin, who will be entering the seventh grade.
“My cousin is moving here from Los Angeles and I attended to research the school for him,” Abrosimov said. “As a student in ASU I can participate in many opportunities for student engagement and research, and my cousin is really smart so if there is a chance to prepare students more for ASU, his family is very interested.”
Several informational sessions have been held throughout the summer for families interested in the Academy and the next 60-minute informational session will be held on July 6 at 6 p.m. at the ASU Preparatory Academy-Phoenix campus, located at 7th street and Fillmore.
Reach the reporter at amatro@asu.edu
