NEW@ Education Innovations Contact: Salvador Wilcox, CEO 6435 Frankstown Ave, Pgh., PA 15206 412.661.8751 ext. 150 s.wilcox@educationinnovations.org FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Proposed charter school combines high standards, a nurturing and inquiring environment, and the study of community Promises children will read within three years of enrollment Pittsburgh, PA - December 1, 2005 - Education Innovations, Inc. (EI, Inc.) has submitted an application to found the Education InnovationsLAB Charter School (eiLAB CS) as the first K-12 and year-round public school in Pittsburgh in two locations in East Liberty with a high school to be built in Uptown/Hill District in the future. The eiLAB CS would open with grades K-6 in September of 2006 and add a grade each year. The eiLAB CS founders seek to create a K-12 charter school nationally recognized for its ability to produce major gains in student achievement; for its innovative approaches to student learning; and for its contribution in actively serving and improving the community in which it operates. The planning team was made up of parents, educators, community activists, and teachers. Leading with a Mission The mission of The Education InnovationsLAB Charter School is to create a nurturing environment where students and teachers connect to the community through a rigorous, integrative program of studies that focuses on creative problem solving and critical thinking. As a direct result of the mission, the founders expect that nearly all children will learn to read within three years of their acceptance into the school. In the application submitted to the Pittsburgh Public School District on 15 November 2005, the planning team of the eiLAB CS outlines a school which will offer a rigorous curriculum that includes the basics-Reading, Math, and Science-as well as technology, architecture, engineering, the arts, languages, economics, and a deep connection to the community. The planners have high hopes for the students and graduates of the eiLAB CS: the young people will provide for the renewal of the region, making it a better place to live, work, and play. "The school will help children prepare to become agents of change and promises that students will be graduated from high school with the appropriate skills to compete with the brightest students in the nation for enrollment in higher education, to enter apprenticeship programs, or to take a lead in job creation through entrepreneurship activities," explains Salvador Wilcox, CEO, Education Innovations, Inc. and lead planner of the eiLAB CS. The Educational Advantage The eiLAB CS will utilize the Education Innovations Model for Learning (eiML), which has been developed by EI, Inc. The eiML is presented as a Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) model and will provide a program that ensures the mastery of required content in the major subject areas. Further, through the InnovationsLAB curriculum, students will utilize project-based learning so that they can realize their talents, abilities, and the ways in which their acquired skills can be used to serve their communities and make the world a better place. Below are the elements of the eiML: * A K-12 system that gives each student a seamless transition from beginning to end, regardless of the community in which he/she lives, even if they move to a community outside Pittsburgh; * a 216-day school year for students and teachers; * a full-service tutoring center in the school for student support as part of the school day; and * six Laboratories of Inquiry (LABs) that give students the opportunity to explore interests, broadly and deeply, so that students have marketable skills upon graduation. * NatureLAB - An integrated inquiry approach across the sciences including outdoor lab experience through NatureLABcommunity, an acre of greenspace in Uptown that will feature a working mini-farm and a greenhouse. * TechLAB - A broad exploration into the history and contemporary use of technology, including computer technology, robotics, transportation systems, communication systems, and inventions. * DesignLAB - An integration of design principles applied to Architecture and Engineering. * ArtsLAB - A broad exploration of the Arts including drama, music, drawing, painting, sculpture, and dance. * LanguageLAB - A broad experience around modern and classical languages along with deep experiences in Linguistics including language variation and change, language acquisition, and cultural topics. * WorldLAB - An integrated exploration of history, geography, economics, and culture. Utilizing an inquiry approach, students will use the LABs to master content knowledge related to each discipline; design projects for intense application of lab skills; and ask serious questions that speak to the implications of each LAB to us and the world around us. Wilcox adds that "the school has been designed to function as if a whole bunch of different magnet schools have been squished under one roof. The difference with our school is that students get four years to experience six different domains before choosing a major and a minor. And to make it more relevant to life, students will be required to work on projects/problems that require collaborations with students in other majors." The eiLAB CS is accepting applications from students interested in attending the school. Further, the school is seeking organizations interested in partnering on a variety of activities; individuals who would be interested in serving on the school's Board of Trustees; and teachers who are innovative and who wish to have a greater role in education including designing curricula that responds to the needs of children. To date, nearly 100 students have enrolled. ### Education Innovations, Inc. (EI, Inc.), is a 501(c)3 is a nonprofit educational organization located in the East Liberty neighborhood of Pittsburgh. The mission of EI, Inc. is building communities of seekers, learners, and teachers who share the world as a classroom. EI, Inc. seeks to examine the learning process and through that examination, develop improved learning experiences for students, parents, teachers and communities at large.