2 days ago
Students return to revamped, expanded Thea Bowman charter school
Students heading back to school Monday at Gary's Thea Bowman Leadership Academy will be greeted by staff members dressed as superheroes, but they'll see something just as exciting inside the school.
Student input inspired many of the design choices in the revamped and expanded K-12 charter school campus at 3401 W. 5th Ave.
Last week, as contractors hustled to prepare the school for Monday's opening, 17 students assisted in moving furniture and equipment to get the school ready to open amid ongoing construction.
Opened in 2009 as a grades 7-12 school, Thea Bowman now accommodates students in K-12, after its separate elementary school closed in 2020.
Additional grade levels couldn't fit in the existing building so officials added several portable classrooms on the west side campus.
The portables will go away soon as work wraps up on the $11.6 million renovation and new academic wing. The site where the portables sit will be used for parking, officials said.
Named after a groundbreaking Black Catholic nun who's being considered for sainthood, Thea Bowman is home to about 830 students and has a waiting list of about 200 applicants, said Superintendent Marlon Mitchell.
It's been a rocky few years for the charter after its former authorizer, Education One-Trine University, opted not to renew the charter in 2023, citing organizational and academic deficiencies.
Facing possible closure, the school turned to the Calumet College of St. Joseph, which agreed to sponsor the charter last year.
Since then, the board hired Mitchell as its first superintendent, with contract incentives for academic improvement. And the board embarked on the school construction project, largely with COVID-19 stimulus funding.
Among the improvements include an expanded cafeteria that's doubled in size and can serve about 500 students, up from 175. The expansion allowed the school to shift from five lunch periods to three. The kitchen also has new equipment and appliances.
Mitchell said students selected color patterns and furniture in the classrooms.
'We wanted to make sure their voices would be heard,' he said. Students also chose the school's maroon colors for the new epoxy flooring.
The new learning wing includes STEM labs, project studios, and flexible learning environments.
Mitchell said the improvements were made with Indiana's new diploma requirements in mind. Students can choose a college track, direct work experience or the military. The new requirements call for work experience that factors into the new A-F grading system.
Mitchell, who's starting his second year at the school, said it has 25 new academic courses and expanded career and technical education programs.
South of the school is a new transportation and CTE (career technical education) building where construction trades and medical pre-apprenticeship classes will be held.
There's also a serenity garden where students can escape to relax or meditate.
Mitchell said all the school's employees from custodians to teachers have received crisis intervention prevention de-escalation training, as well as CPR training.
To address teacher turnover, Mitchell said 97% of the school's 106 teachers are licensed and he said there's a teacher's aide in elementary classrooms where critical learning skills are taught.
Ten teachers also hold credentials to teach dual-credit college courses, Mitchell said.
The expanded CTE pathways include construction trades, medical careers, graphic design and communications, business and entrepreneurship, education and social work, criminal justice and exercise science.
Mitchell said the school is planning pre-apprenticeship opportunities with credentials and internships for students with partners, including Goodwill Industries, the Boys & Girls Clubs, and the Indianapolis Colts.
Also under construction on the school's west side is a new girls' flag football field, and pickleball courts. The school is launching flag football and wrestling programs for girls and a Girls on the Run program.
'Our mission has always been rooted in excellence, equity, and empowerment,' said Mitchell. 'These new programs and partnerships represent a bold commitment to preparing scholars not just for graduation, but for life.'
