Executive Summary – Green Street Academy
Mission and Vision: Across the nation, green jobs hold the promise of reviving the economy and solving a myriad of environmental problems. To help Baltimore prepare for this green future and anticipate the need for a locally educated workforce, Green Street Academy opened as a transformation middle-high school in Baltimore City in 2010 and now seeks to become a charter school in 2012. Beyond its mission to transform how students prepare for careers in the green economy and create a pipeline of well-qualified, pre-professional young people to secure and retain jobs and build careers in the green economy, GSA expects its charter status to attract national partners for funding the development of our model.
Baltimore Community Need: For over 100 years, vocational education successfully served the dual needs of workers and manufacturing and service companies. But late in the 20th century, vocational educators largely failed to anticipate changing workplace curricular needs and, therefore, to stem the decline in student interest and enrollment. Yet the need exists once again to provide green and eco-practicing firms with trained workers whose futures depend on a high school degree and who would work continuously in progressively responsible jobs while advancing their education.
Educational Program: Green Street Academy is revitalizing and re-defining traditional career education in the 21st century and represents a thorough greening of public education in both theory and practice. The curricula for grades 6 through 12 will utilize a contextualized approach, i.e., teaching knowledge and skills within the context of real world experiences. Instruction will incorporate nationally recognized skill standards and certifications with state-of-the-art practices and technologies. The guidance and resources of industry partners will ensure that graduates build skill sets consistent with employer expectations. Our high school program will: * provide an academically rigorous science, technology, engineering, reading, critical thinking and math education; * develop industry-specific workforce skills and the persistence to succeed in a green economy career and extended education; * provide opportunities for apprenticeships and employment with local green industry partners; and, * develop a model of instruction that guarantees the success of every student by combining motivational teachers, state-of-the-art technology, and a compelling curriculum.