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Neighborhood Academy

UNITED WAY #221578

709 Aiken Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15206
412-362-2001


STATEMENT OF PHILOSOPHY

The Neighborhood Academy (The Academy) is an independent college preparatory high-school serving low income families and students in grades 8-12.  We are a non-sectarian community that celebrates worship, provides guidance in spiritual development, and emphasizes moral reflection and service to others. The Academy commits to a philosophy that includes the practice of civility, disciplined academic work in the humanities and the sciences, athletic competition, and artistic expression.  Finally, The Academy covenants with students and their families for the holistic development of each student.


MISSION

Our mission is to break the cycle of generational poverty by preparing low-income youth for higher education.  The Academy is dedicated to developing the minds, bodies and spirits of our students so that they might become fully productive members of our society. By so doing our students will break the cycle of generational poverty that has held them captive and deprived society of the full value of their lives.


A GLIMPSE OF OUR SCHOOL:

• Focus on low-income, urban youth
• College-preparatory curriculum that emphasizes reading, writing, and   math, critical thinking, ethical reflection and technology
• Extended School Day: 8:00 a.m. - 7:30 p.m. with mandatory evening study hours and dinner
• Individual and group counseling for students and families
• Growing towards 100 students in grades 8 - 12
• Parent participation and volunteering encouraged
• Small classes with ten or fewer students per teacher
• Faith-based, non-sectarian
• Three meals and a snack per day
• Extensive arts and athletic programming
• Transportation to/from school provided via public transport or chartered vans
• College counseling including tours, overnight visits, and assistance with applications and financial aid
• Sliding scale tuition contribution required
• Community service as part of the curriculum and focus on school culture of participation
• Required six-week summer session
• Intentional focused support for our graduates throughout their college years and beyond

Our students come from a total of 20 neighborhoods throughout Allegheny County. Statistics on our student body from the 2006-2007 school year include the following:

• 99% African-American
• Nearly 70% live in a single parent household
• 80% have a taxable family income of less than $20,000
• 89% have a taxable family income of less than $25,000
• 82% live in families with a recent history of domestic violence
• 87% live in families with a recent history of drug/alcohol abuse
• 44% have a history of incarceration in the family
  

HISTORY

The Neighborhood Academy began in 1993 as an innovative summer school program for at-risk youth. Drawing upon her work with the Larimer Avenue Youth Club, a youth ministry that met urban youth in their own neighborhoods, founder Josephine Moore together with Reverend Thomas Johnson, designed The Neighborhood Academy Summer School - an intensive five-week skill-building program for seventh through eleventh graders. In response to the success of the summer school, The Neighborhood Academy opened its doors as a full year day school to its first class of eighth and ninth graders on September 12, 2001. To date we have graduated 32 students and have a 100% college acceptance rate!

Our graduates attend the following schools:

Akron University
Baldwin Wallace College
Carlow College
Chatham College
Community College of Allegheny College
Edinboro University
Hampton University
Indiana University of PA
LaRoche College
Oral Roberts University
Lock Haven University
Penn State University
Seton Hill University
Slippery Rock University
Towson University
University of Pittsburgh
West Virginia University

HOW YOU CAN HELP

Donate Group TIME

• Arrange an individual or group tour of the school
• Arrange a speaking engagement for our school representatives to speak to groups within your congregation
• Send a group of volunteers to answer phones, mailings, or other administrative tasks
• Make dinner, dessert or lunch. (We provide three meals a day for our students.) Click here for more information.

Donate Individual TALENTS

• Lead a morning worship service
• Proctor evening study hall from 5:30-7:00 p.m.
• Provide one-on-one tutoring to students
• Lead a workshop or class around a specific skill, special interest or hobby
• Help to coach an athletic team; i.e., golf, basketball, volleyball, cross country

Donate Church RESOURCES

• Provide a student scholarship ($20,000 per year)
• Let us know about your grant making opportunities
• Direct the proceeds from a luncheon or other event to the school
• Conduct a school supply drive
• Conduct a school uniform clothing drive
• Donate an item from our Wish List
• Collect a special offering for the school
• Arrange for our Head of School, Rev. Tom Johnson, to lead or participate in a worship service

VISIT US ON THE WEB

www.theneighborhoodacademy.org