Latest news with #TheaBowmanLeadershipAcademy
Chicago Tribune
2 days ago
- General
- Chicago Tribune
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.'
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Yahoo
Court briefs: Gary man charged after found with a gun in stolen car
A Dyer man got three years probation Friday for shooting into a Hammond home in June 2022, court records show. Jordon Novorita, 22, pleaded guilty Feb. 28 to criminal recklessness, a level 5 felony. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to drop all other charges, including attempted murder. Hammond Police responded June 20, 2022 to the 7900 block of Alexander Street. The victim told police a friend had been arguing with his girlfriend before he saw Novorita walk from behind his shed, then heard a 'loud boom,' documents state. A Gary man faces charges after police pulled him over in a stolen car in a school parking lot, then found a gun under his seat. Jadoun Williams, 26, is charged with possession of a firearm on school property, theft and two misdemeanors. His next court date is April 9 before Magistrate Aleksandra Dimitrijevic. Gary Police Ofr. D. Paulson started following Williams in a stolen gray Chevrolet Malibu at 9:48 a.m. on April 2 near 15th Avenue and Burr Street to Thea Bowman Leadership Academy, 3401 W. 5th Avenue. He pulled Williams over in the school's parking lot. The officer drew his gun, ordered Williams out and arrested him. He ordered the woman and child out of the car. Williams said he was taking his daughter something at school. The gun was found under the driver's seat. A Hancock County dispatcher — east of Indianapolis — told Paulson that the vehicle had been stolen with a two-month-old baby inside. Further information on the child was not immediately available from the Greenfield Police Department Friday afternoon.
Chicago Tribune
04-04-2025
- Chicago Tribune
Court briefs: Gary man charged after found with a gun in stolen car
Dyer man gets probation for shooting into Hammond house A Dyer man got three years probation Friday for shooting into a Hammond home in June 2022, court records show. Jordon Novorita, 22, pleaded guilty Feb. 28 to criminal recklessness, a level 5 felony. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to drop all other charges, including attempted murder. Hammond Police responded June 20, 2022 to the 7900 block of Alexander Street. The victim told police a friend had been arguing with his girlfriend before he saw Novorita walk from behind his shed, then heard a 'loud boom,' documents state. Gary man charged after police find gun in traffic stop in stolen car near Thea Bowman A Gary man faces charges after police pulled him over in a stolen car in a school parking lot, then found a gun under his seat. Jadoun Williams, 26, is charged with possession of a firearm on school property, theft and two misdemeanors. His next court date is April 9 before Magistrate Aleksandra Dimitrijevic. Gary Police Ofr. D. Paulson started following Williams in a stolen gray Chevrolet Malibu at 9:48 a.m. on April 2 near 15th Avenue and Burr Street to Thea Bowman Leadership Academy, 3401 W. 5th Avenue. He pulled Williams over in the school's parking lot. The officer drew his gun, ordered Williams out and arrested him. He ordered the woman and child out of the car. Williams said he was taking his daughter something at school. The gun was found under the driver's seat. A Hancock County dispatcher — east of Indianapolis — told Paulson that the vehicle had been stolen with a two-month-old baby inside. Further information on the child was not immediately available from the Greenfield Police Department Friday afternoon.
Chicago Tribune
26-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Thea Bowman dancers gain moves, confidence at Dance Theatre of Harlem workshop
'Kick, ball, change,' and 'Passé' were some of the step combinations Lindsey Donnell, with the Dance Theatre of Harlem, called out and demonstrated to the Thea Bowman Leadership Academy cheerleading and majorette teams. The girls completed the steps as Donnell called them out, gaining more confidence with each run-through. Then, the snare drum, trumpet and upbeat lyrics flowed through the speakers, and the girls sped up their steps to 'Super Bad' by James Brown. They ended the session with a Soul Train line, where in pairs they got to freestyle together while the others clapped as the line moved forward. Three women with the Dance Theatre of Harlem visited Indiana University Northwest Tuesday to hold a Dancing in the Streets Workshop with the Thea Bowman Academy students. They taught the students an excerpt of a ballet called 'Return' by Dance Theatre of Harlem artistic director Robert Garland. The dance troupe held a weeklong state-wide residency with events and workshops in Gary, Indianapolis, Greensburg and Bloomington. The residency ends Saturday with a performance at the Indiana University Bloomington campus. Dance Theatre of Harlem aims to disprove the misconceptions people may have about ballet, Donnell said. 'A lot of people think ballet is very stuffy, unapproachable, boring so I love especially showing the youth that it's so much broader than we think,' Donnell said. The Dance Theatre of Harlem was started in Harlem, New York City in 1969 by Arthur Mitchell, who was the first Black principal dancer at New York City Ballet in 1955, Donnell said. 'He broke a lot of barriers, a lot of racial barriers,' Donnell said. 'At the end of his career, he wanted to give back.' Initially, Mitchell went to Brazil to help with the founding of the National Ballet of Brazil, Donnell said. But, after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., Donnell said Mitchell returned to the U.S. and opened the Dance Theatre of Harlem, she said. Mitchell started the dance school in his garage, and 50 years later it has grown in space and program to teach students of all ethnic and cultural backgrounds the art of ballet, Donnell said. 'Dance is such a part of Black culture, so I think it's really beautiful,' Donnell said. 'It feels so natural for us in an art form that hasn't always infused that.' Kira Robinson, a dancer with Dance Theatre of Harlem, said she enjoys teaching people ballet combinations because after a few minutes they realize ballet can be free flowing. 'I love how much life and energy they have, and I feel like that gives me energy as well,' Robinson said. Dance Theatre of Harlem member Ariana Dickerson, an IU-Bloomington alumna, said anyone interested in dance should keep an open mind and 'dive right in.' 'Release the self judgement and go for it,' Donnell said. 'I think a lot of times we as dancers and as humans expect perfection immediately but it's a process and you learn things along the way.' Tuesday's dance workshop went really well with the students gaining more and more confidence as they practiced the steps, Robinson said. Shannya Cardine, a junior and majorette co-captain, said she enjoyed the workshop, but the combination was more complicated than she anticipated. Aminah Jones, majorette captain, agreed, but she said she enjoyed learning something different. 'Overall, I liked the combination and it taught me something new,' Jones said. Karen Fitzgerald-Tillman, the majorette team coach, said the students were invited to the workshop as an opportunity to learn a new style of dance. At the end of the workshop, Fitzgerald-Tillman said she hoped the students, some of whom have goals of studying dance in college or opening their own dance studios, appreciate the lesson in ballet regardless of how many steps of the combination they master. 'I want them to open their minds and be receptive to something different, to be open to learning something new,' Fitzgerald-Tillman said.
