Urban Community School
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Urban Community School is an elementary school located in Cleveland, Ohio, USA.
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[edit] Mission
Urban Community School exists to provide a quality, individualized, Catholic-Christian education to children living in Cleveland's Near West Side neighborhoods. The school focuses on those children who have limited access to such an education.
[edit] General Information
- 91% of UCS students graduate high school
- 62% of those students proceed to college
- UCS is an independent, faith-based school that uses differentiated learning techniques, non-graded student evaluations and group-based instruction.
- The school has an award-winning alternatives to violence program that includes a peer mediation program, anti-bullying initiative and full time counseling program.
- Urban Community School was the first elementary school in Cleveland to receive the U.S. Department of Education's Excellence in Education Award.
- In order for Urban Community School to be affordable for the neighborhood children tuition is determined by a sliding based on income. All families demonstrate their dedication to their child(ren)'s education by paying tuition. The lowest tuition any family pays is $150 annually.
Student Demographics
- 74% of UCS students qualify for the Federal School Lunch Program (a national indicator of poverty)
- 36% of UCS students come from families that live on annual incomes of $11,000 or less.
Current enrollment
- 440 students
Ethnicity
- 39% Hispanic
- 34% Caucasian
- 26% African American
- 1% Asian
Religion
- 50% Catholic
- 50% Protestant
[edit] Historical Timeline
Urban Community School was created when two parish schools, St. Patrick and St. Malachi closed due to declining enrollment. The two parishes and the Ursuline Sisters of Cleveland who were involved with the parish schools along with concerned teachers and community activists created the new school.
UCS Timeline
- 1968 - Urban Community School created
- 1976 - St. Patrick campus closes because of need for extensive renovations. UCS partners with third parish, St. Wendelin, and students from the St. Patrick location are relocated to the St. Wendelin campus. To this day UCS remains partners with St. Patrick Church.
- 1977 - Montessori preschool added for children ages 3 to 5.
- 1985 - Alternatives to Violence program is initiated. Program begins with Peace and Justice Week and includes the introduction to the peer mediation program.
- 1988 - Excellence in Education Award from the U.S. Department of Education is received
- 1996 - The Graduation Outcomes Project (GOP) is created. This comprehensive research project is an evaluation of the students' skills and is used to gauge the students' readiness for high school.
- 1999 - Teacher Aide program begins. Five classroom aides are hired to assist teachers and students.
- 2000 - UCS Board of Trustees unanimously votes to expand the school by 200 students.
- 2001 - The school is fully accredited by the Ohio Catholic School Accrediting Association (OCSAA)
- 2003 - A $16 million capital campaign is launched to build a state-of-the-art facility for 450 students. Plans include a second phase 150-student expansion.
- 2004 - Groundbreaking for the new building takes place on June 15th.
- 2005 - The Topping-Off ceremony was held on January 10th as the last steel beam of the new school building was set into place. September 1st marked the first day of school at the new consolidated facility. All students, faculty and staff are now under one roof. September 2nd marked the Grand Opening Fiesta for UCS families and the neighboring community members. October 15th was the dedication of the new building with a blessing of the school by Cleveland Bishop, The Most Reverend Anthony M. Pilla.
