Atlanta, GA. (Mosaica Education, Inc.) March 8, 2011 – Foundation Academy is now the largest, fastest growing charter school in Richland County.  Foundation Academy opened in 2007 to 144 students and now serves more than 300 Kindergarten through 8^th grade students. With enrollment swelling, the academy is adding seven additional classrooms to serve 75 additional students. This will be the second time the school adjusts its classroom walls to make room for its growing population. Last spring, the school community moved from a smaller facility to a larger building on Wyandotte Avenue to meet the enrollment demand.

JoAnn Hipsher, the Chief Administrative Officer at Foundation is very excited about the growth. “We continue to grow,” Hispsher said. “I think parents and students are drawn to us, in part, because we have a good curriculum that includes integrated social studies and humanities.”

The construction for the building expansion is scheduled to be complete in mid-April; a ribbon cutting ceremony will be held in May.

Foundation Academy, a Kindergarten through 8^th grade public charter school located in Mansfield, OH and is managed by Mosaica Education, Inc. The academy implements Mosaica’s educational model which focuses on individualized instruction, technology in the classroom, parental involvement, community support, and the Paragon© Curriculum. Paragon© Curriculum offers a college liberal arts core education to students beginning in kindergarten. The student-centered, discovery-based, multi-cultural program is designed to addresses students’ multiple intelligences and individual learning styles.

About Mosaica Education:
Mosaica Education, Inc. is a global education company that operates high-performing charter schools and provides related services in the United States and Internationally. The company manages more than 90 elementary, middle and high school programs in eight states, the District of Columbia and internationally. Mosaica-managed schools utilize a unique school design, which combines a proprietary curriculum called Paragon©, with state-of-the-art technology.

About Foundation Academy:
Foundation Academy is a public charter school located at 1050 Wyandotte Avenue, Mansfield, Ohio. The academy offers an integrated program which includes; art, foreign language, individualized instruction, state-of-the-art technology and the Paragon© curriculum.

The study of women in history has only recently developed.  Prior to the 1960s, men were the primary researchers and writers of history.  All too often, the story of women was relegated to the sidelines of history and in footnotes.  Today, much research into the lives of women in history has revealed new depths and dimensions to our shared past, and we are fortunate that it is available.  Still, women’s role in history is taught often as an afterthought, not as part of the main event.  Women’s History Month is an opportunity to teach what has been traditionally overlooked and to study it as an important part of the history of all of us.
 
A goal of the Paragon Plus (English Language Arts Supplement) Curriculum in March is for students to broaden their perspective and understanding of the great contributions women have made to our culture and world by studying the contributions, struggles, issues, and impact of great women around the globe and across time. We want all students, boys and girls, to recognize themselves in our curriculum and in history.  With the focused study of women in March, we hope that your student will make a connection between women’s struggles and achievements and his or her own abilities to succeed in whatever s/he may try!  Here are some ideas for sharing in your student’s learning: 
 
For Younger Students.  Check out the following picture books from your local library that feature strong women: 
 
You Forgot Your Skirt, Amelia Bloomer!:  A Very Improper Story, by Shana Corey.  This colorful picture book gives the story of the 19th century women’s activist who not only started her own newspaper and fought for women’s right to vote, but also initiated a new and freer trend in women’s clothing.  After reading the book, ask your student to list and describe the different things Amelia did that were “shocking” for her time.  Have him or her explain how these things helped women then and today.  What would they not be able to do if it wasn’t for Amelia Bloomer?  Could girls wear pants? 
 
My Name Is Georgia:  A Portrait, by Jeanette Winter.  This picture book portrays the life of artist, Georgia O’Keefe.  The story describes the artist from her early days as a strong-minded, independent young girl to the 98-year-old remarkable artist who showed the world her point of view through her paintings.  After reading the book, ask your student to describe her paintings—the subjects, colors, and style.  Then, brainstorm and write down a list of ideas that your child would like to paint a picture of (remind him or her that O’Keefe often painted very commonplace things from nature).  You may wish to go on a walk together to inspire ideas. 

 Ask: What did you see on our walk that you would like to paint a picture of?
 
Provide your student with paints, brushes, and paper and have him or her use the same rich colors and broad stokes as O’Keefe did to create a painting. 
 
Paper Bag Princess, by Michael Martchenko.  This updated fairy tale celebrates a strong female character—a princess who uses her wits to conquer dragons and rescue her kidnapped prince.  After reading the story, ask your student to compare this story to other fairy tales s/he may have heard, such as Sleeping Beauty.  Create a two-column chart or Venn diagram on the paper so that your student can describe what is the same and different between each.  Encourage your child to describe and analyze the characters, the plot, and the ending.  Which story does your student like better?  Why?  You may have your student describe his or her feelings in a journal.
 
Current Events.  Women are making history everyday and are filling leadership positions faster than at any other time in history.  Share newspaper and magazine articles that feature strong, intelligent women in leadership positions.  For example, First Lady Michelle Obama is on the cover of many magazines; Hillary Clinton travels the world as Secretary of State; Nancy Pelosi was the first woman Speaker of the House and continues to serve as one of several women in Congress, and so on.  Worldwide, women are speaking out in increasing numbers, as well. For instance, Egyptian women had a strong voice during the recent political protests and change in their country.  Share the articles, discuss, and then create a bulletin board featuring all the accomplishments of women making history today. 
 
Writing.  Have your student create a small book about a woman in his or her life who is very special.  Provide 6 – 10 half sheets of drawing paper and colored pencils and/or crayons.  On each page, have your student write 1 – 3 sentences of text and draw accompanying illustrations.  Your son or daughter can then make a cover out of construction paper and bind the book with yarn.  Be sure to let your child share his or her book with the woman s/he wrote about!

Research.  Solid research projects begin with broad questions that lead to smaller questions, which ultimately lead to a tighter focus.  For example any of the following questions provide a broad base for beginning research:

• Why do we have Women’s History Month?
• When, why, and who started the women’s movement in the U.S.?
• Is there a women’s movement today?  Who are some key players and what issues are they working on?
• Are there any significant women’s organizations today and what are their histories?
• I’ve heard of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony—what did they do, when, and why?    

Once the broad question is formulated, research may begin.  Through the process of research, the smaller questions will give rise to well-defined objectives.  For example, the broad question, “When, why, and who started the women’s movement in the US?” may lead to a research project on Elizabeth Cady Stanton.
 
Together with your student, formulate 3 – 5 broad research questions that pertain to Women’s History Month.  Through research, narrow the focus, identify objectives, and work together on a paper about your selected, focused topic.  Any of the websites listed below are a good starting point: 
 
National Women’s Hall of Fame
http://www.greatwomen.org/

NOTE: This site is currently undergoing upgrades, and will restart on March 8, 2011, the day new Inductees to the National Women’s Hall of Fame are to be announced.

National Women’s History Project
http://www.nwhp.org

The National Museum of Women in the Arts
http://www.nmwa.org/

International Museum of Women
http://www.imow.org/home/index

Comparing & Analyzing Quotations.  Have your student read the two quotations below, both by First Ladies—one by Abigail Adams in 1776 and the other by Hillary Clinton in 2008.  How do these two quotes relate to one another?  Did Abigail Adams’ prediction come to pass?  Did women “foment a rebellion”?  How did Hillary Clinton’s quotation affirm what Ms. Adams said?  How do you think Abigail would feel about Hillary’s accomplishment?  Does your student think we will have a woman President in his or her lifetime?  Why or why not?        
 
“If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice or representation.”
-          Abigail Adams, U.S. First Lady, 1776
 
“Although we weren’t able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you, it’s got about 18 million cracks in it.  And the light is shining through like never before, filling us all with the hope and the sure knowledge that the path will be a little easier next time.” 
-          Hillary Clinton, 2008
 
 
We hope you and your student enjoy Women’s History Month and that students broaden their perspective and understanding of the great strides women have made to achieve their dreams.  We hope, also, that in their study of women’s history, all students will see a connection between women’s struggles and achievements and their own abilities to succeed in whatever they try!
 

Dawn D. Eidelman, Ph.D.

Chief Education Officer

Mosaica Education, Inc.

Atlanta, GA. (Mosaica Education, Inc.) February 15, 2011 – Frazier Preparatory Academy has earned an Academic Improvement Award from the Illinois State Board of Education’s Honor Roll system for demonstrating significant improvements in state reading and mathematics testing results. Only 93 public schools in the state received this recognition.

Frazier Preparatory Academy, a Kindergarten through 8^th grade Chicago Public Schools contract school, is managed by Mosaica Education, Inc. The academy implements Mosaica’s educational model which focuses on individualized instruction, technology in the classroom, parental involvement, community support, on-going professional development and the Paragon© Curriculum. The Paragon© Curriculum offers a college liberal arts core education to students beginning in kindergarten. The student-centered, discovery-based, multi-cultural program is designed to address students’ multiple intelligences and individual learning styles.

About Mosaica Education:
Mosaica Education, Inc. is a global education company that operates high-performing charter schools and provides related services in the United States and Internationally. The company manages 90 school programs in eight states, the District of Columbia and the Middle East. Mosaica-managed schools utilize a unique school design, which combines a proprietary curriculum called Paragon®, with state-of-the-art technology.

About Frazier Preparatory Academy:

Frazier Preparatory Academy is a Chicago Public Schools contract school located at 4027 W Grenshaw Chicago, IL 60624. The academy implements a thematic, interactive program incorporating multiple learning styles. The core curriculum includes top rated, phonics-based Open Court Reading, SRA Math, Harcourt Brace Science, and Spanish.

The Paragon Curriculum is a pillar to our student’s education at Mosaica.  The word paragon means “a model of excellence,” and that is exactly what we strive for with our college liberal arts education that begins in Kindergarten and continues to build depth in successive layers through the grade levels.

Paragon teaches to the whole mind with its integrated social studies, history, and humanities, hands-on program.  The design of Paragon prompts students to explore big or essential questions that invite them to dig deeper, think and rethink, and move beyond mere recall and into true understanding.  They will encounter rich content and develop indispensable skills that they will build on over a life time.  As they move through each of the eight units per school year, they will naturally make connections between units, across disciplines, and even to the concepts and ideas taught in other grade levels.  This happens because students in every grade level spiral through the same historical time period during the school year.  Additionally, at the end of each unit, the whole school comes together as students share their learning with each other and with you during Paragon Night performances!

Paragon propels student achievement in Mosaica Education schools; therefore, a cumulative understanding is best accomplished when your student continues with us throughout his or her elementary and middle school years.  At every grade level, the fundamental skills of reading, writing, listening, communicating, and presenting are integral and ongoing.  Paragon keeps building on prior knowledge so that your student will gain ground and accelerate achievement with each passing year, a trend that defies the odds in traditional public education.

In Middle School, students will delve into Paragon Humanities, which is organized into four quarter units, rather than the eight units found in the elementary grades.  This provides the opportunity for students to explore concepts and ideas in greater depth through research, primary source documents, literature, and hands-on learning.  Like the elementary grades, the units are structured around essential questions in world history, civics, geography, economics, and social studies.  Middle School students will also begin their studies of Paragon© World Literature.  Each quarter, they will read a novel, biography, myth, collection of folk tales, or another genre that corresponds to the content in Paragon Humanities.  The interdisciplinary connections make the learning engaging, meaningful, and memorable for students.

Alpena, Mich. – The Michigan Association for Public School Academies (MAPSA) recognized Bingham Arts Academy as a “School of Excellence”, during the 13th Annual Michigan Charter School Conference. Bingham received this recognition for making significant gains in closing the academic gap and increasing academic success. The conference held November 1st and 2nd, is one of largest conventions for charter school professionals nationwide.

“We are very proud and honored to receive this recognition,” said Sarah Prevo, Chief Administrative Officer of Bingham. “At Bingham we strive to ensure that every child has an opportunity to succeed. This award symbolizes that we are making great gains, in our mission.”

Bingham Arts Academy serves 204 Kindergarten through 8th grade students. The school is managed by Mosaica Education, Inc. and offers an interactive program that incorporates Mosaica’s proprietary Paragon© Curriculum. The content-rich Paragon© Curriculum offers a college liberal arts core education beginning in kindergarten and building depth through multiple layers up through high school.  Paragon is interdisciplinary, engaging, discovery-based, student centered, and multi-cultural. Paragon’s hands-on approach addresses students’ multiple intelligences and individual learning styles, enhancing their skills of communication, analysis, and self-expression.

About Bingham Arts Academy
Bingham Arts Academy is located at 555 South Fifth Avenue in Alpena, Michigan 49707. The mission of Bingham is to provide a safe, nurturing environment where languages and cultures are valued and taught. The academy is founded on the belief that the arts allow the expression of feelings, fulfill the inherent need to create, and can help to find meaning in our lives.

About Mosaica Education
Mosaica Education, Inc. is a global education company that operates high-performing schools and provides related services in the United States and Internationally. Mosaica has educated over 45,000 children since its inception. The company currently manages 90 school programs in eight states, the District of Columbia and the Middle East. Mosaica-managed schools utilize a unique school design, which combines a proprietary curriculum Paragon®, with state-of-the-art technology. Paragon offers a hands-on approach focused on the multiple intelligences and individualized learning styles through a thematic approach of study that covers multiple subject areas.

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Paragon© propels student achievement in Mosaica Education schools; therefore, a cumulative understanding is best accomplished when your student continues with us throughout his or her elementary and middle school years.  At every grade level, the fundamental skills of reading, writing, listening, communicating, and presenting are integral and ongoing.  Paragon keeps building on prior knowledge so that your student will gain ground and accelerate achievement with each passing year, a trend that defies the odds in traditional public education.

In Middle School, students will delve into Paragon© Humanities, which is organized into four quarter units, rather than the eight units found in the elementary grades.  This provides the opportunity for students to explore concepts and ideas in greater depth through research, primary source documents, literature, and hands-on learning.  Like the elementary grades, the units are structured around essential questions in world history, civics, geography, economics, and social studies.  Middle School students will also begin their studies of Paragon© World Literature.  Each quarter, they will read a novel, biography, myth, collection of folk tales, or another genre that corresponds to the content in Paragon© Humanities.  The interdisciplinary connections make the learning engaging, meaningful, and memorable for students.

Discover More….

Hundreds of millions of people around the world have been waiting for this day for four years: the opening day of the FIFA Men’s World Cup, in the sport we call soccer but the rest of the world knows as football.  The games are being held in Africa for the first time, with South Africa – a country that was banned from international competition from 1964 until 1992 because of its apartheid system of racial segregation – the proud hosts.  As is tradition, the home team, known locally as Bafana Bafana (or just “the Boys”) plays the first match, against Mexico, at 10:00 EDT.

The United States may be the most powerful nation on the planet in many respects, but it’s not in the top tier of powers in soccer.  For 32 years (1954-1986), we did not even qualify for the World Cup.  In 1994, when we were the host country, the U.S. team made it out of group play for the first time since we came in third in the first “World” Cup (which did not include European teams) in 1930; and in 2002, the U.S. team made it to the quarterfinals.  But the U.S. lost all three games it played in 1998, and four years ago, a loss to Ghana meant another elimination during the group stage.  Notwithstanding that history, there is a positive buzz surrounding the team this year.

The last time the U.S. team played in South Africa was in the Confederations Cup last year, where they improbably survived group play (despite losing to Brazil and Italy) by defeating Egypt 3-0 while Brazil was beating Italy by the same score.  They then won a semi-final match against Spain (one of the best teams in the world and a favorite to win the World Cup this year) by two goals and faced Brazil in the finals.  I happened to be visiting Doha the night of the finals.  Gari Voss picked me up at the airport, and we went to a Qatari version of a sports bar to watch the game amid an international contingent of mostly Brazilian fans.  The Cinderella U.S. team was winning 2-0 at half time, but their glass slippers fell off (and I tore my voice out) during the second half, as Brazil won, 3-2.  Still, it was the U.S.’s most respectable showing at a FIFA tournament and generated hope for this year’s World Cup.

For me, the World Cup is the most exciting sports competition in the world.  But it is far more than a sports competition.  Books have been written about how soccer mimics life, how it reflects geopolitical realities, and, indeed, how it “explains everything.”  Teamwork trumps individual skill, and attention to detail, sustained mental focus, awareness of everything happening on the pitch, knowledge of the game, the ability to anticipate teammates’ and opponents’ movements, poise under pressure and, yes, fancy footwork (not to mention a hot goalie) are all critical, but the game is also a humbling reminder that justice does not always prevail, that sometimes the best team doesn’t win.

The nationalistic fervor the tournament provokes can be whipped out of proportion, the organizational politics are Byzantine, and rampant commercialism in sporting events of this magnitude can be off-putting.  But the passion evoked by a global focus on the simplest of games, a 90-minute marathon of repeated spurts and sprints in an incredible demonstration of stamina and athleticism – the closest thing we have to a universal sport – makes the World Cup special.  Sepp Blatter, FIFA’s President, has acknowledged as much, saying that everyone “must be aware that football is more than kicking a ball around.  It’s the social and cultural aspects” that make it extraordinary.  In furtherance of that thesis, FIFA and political leaders around the globe have established an organization named 1GOAL as the “lasting legacy” of this year’s World Cup.

Chaired by Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan, 1GOAL will hold an Education Summit in Cape Town during the last week of the World Cup, focused on the 72 million children in the world (including a disproportionate number of girls) who do not receive even a primary school education.  World leaders and private sector funders are expected to commit to a plan to ensure that they are all in school by 2014, when the next World Cup will be held in Brazil.  Team Mosaica certainly supports that goal, and we are doing our part to make it a reality.  If FIFA can use the tool of soccer to publicize the importance of education to society and to expand schooling opportunities throughout the world, it would indeed be a wonderful legacy.

In furtherance of that ambition, throughout this year’s tournament, players, supporters and political leaders will raise their index finger, not to indicate that their team is Number 1, but in the 1GOAL hand sign of support for universal education as a global commitment.  [If they are raising a finger other than their index finger, that’s probably intended to communicate a different message.]

Enjoy the games.

Michael J. Connelly
Chief Executive Officer
Mosaica Education, Inc.

Atlanta, Ga. (Mosaica Education, Inc.) June 9, 2010 – A hundred percent of the first grade students at the Atlanta Preparatory Academy (APA) exceeded or met the reading standard on the Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests (CRCT), according to preliminary data. The academy is located at 569 Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive NW, Atlanta, GA 30314 in the historic Jordan Hall on the Morris Brown University campus.

In addition to the extraordinary performance of the APA’s first grade class, 83 percent of the school met or exceeded the reading standard.

According to Lynette Walker, APA Chief Administrative Officer, the school differentiated instruction to meet the needs of students and also provided after-school tutoring, twice a week, with a focus on reading and mathematics to prepare for the CRCT. In addition, the Mosaica Education’s Paragon® curriculum, an interdisciplinary language arts and humanities program was instrumental in giving students an extra boost.

“APA will continue to implement the Mosaica instructional model with fidelity, differentiate instruction to meet the needs of all learners and offer after school tutoring services,” Walker said. “We will also incorporate Saturday School during the upcoming school year and launch a school-wide reading initiative.”

About Atlanta Preparatory Academy
Atlanta Preparatory Academy is a K-6 charter school for students residing within the Atlanta Public School district.  Atlanta Preparatory Academy offers a college preparatory experience to all students at no cost.

ATLANTA –  The Georgia Parent Advocacy Network (G-PAN), a service of the Georgia Charter Schools Association (GCSA) will present a world-premiere screening of the gripping documentary, The Lottery, at the Landmark Midtown Art Theater.

A limited number of tickets are available without charge on a first-come, first-served basis due to the generous sponsorship of Georgia Parent Advocacy Network (G-PAN) and Mosaica Education, Inc.  Advance tickets will be available at the Georgia Charter Schools Association office and the theater box office (for information, call 404-835-8900 or email scoleman@gacharters.org).

Tickets will also be available at the door as long as they are available.  Because of the size of the theater, there is a limit of 250 total tickets for this exclusive premier in Atlanta. The film is rated PG.

The Lottery, produced and directed by Madeleine Sackler, tells the stories of four families living in Harlem, trying to get their children into high-performing, quality public schools. It is one of the first docudramas of its kind that seeks to move beyond the data and policy arguments, and put human faces on the need for reforming our nation’s public school system. More information about this compelling documentary may be found at www.thelotteryfilm.com.

The film will be debuting simultaneously in several cities, including Denver (as well as Colorado Springs and Ft. Collins), Houston, Dallas, Milwaukee, New York, San Diego as well as several cities in North Carolina (Ashville, Durham, Greensboro and Raleigh). A panel discussion on public education reform and school choice will be held immediately following the viewing of the film and will feature GCSA Chief Executive Officer Tony Roberts, Ph.D., Dawn D. Eidelman, Ph. D., Chief Education Officer of Mosaica Education, Inc., which is helping to sponsor the event, and Folami Prescott Adams, Ph.D., an educator, author and board president of Atlanta Preparatory Academy.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
WHAT:  World premiere screening of The Lottery, a documentary that tells the stories of four Harlem families working to get their children enrolled in quality public schools. A panel discussion on public education reform will be held after the screening.
WHEN:  6:30 p.m. (with panel discussion to follow), Tuesday, June 8.
WHERE:  Landmark Midtown Art Theater, 931 Monroe Drive, Atlanta, GA  30308.

Panel discussion will follow showing of documentary chronicling the lives
of four families from Harlem fighting to enroll their children in quality public schools

For More information about this event contact: Thailla Tisdale, Director of Marketing at 404-841-2305 Ext. 1080

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WESTERVILLE, OH (June 3, 2010) – Cornerstone Academy, a public charter school in Westerville, Oh.,  was recently recognized as one of the Healthy Ohioan’s-Governor’s Buckeye Best (BB) Healthy Schools.

BB Healthy Schools demonstrate a commitment to the health and wellness of their students and staff through the establishment of programs and policies that foster these goals. The program is sponsored by the Ohio Department of Health in partnership with the American Cancer Society – Ohio Division, as part of the Ohio Department of Health’s Healthy Ohioans campaign.

“We were awarded at the Bronze level this year and have a goal of being Gold next year,” said Jamie Scott, Chief Administrative Officer of Cornerstone Academy.

Each fall the BB Healthy School Program accepts applications and ranks schools based upon their progress. All winning schools achieve a “gold” standard in the areas of tobacco, nutrition and physical activity. Ms. Scott is encouraging parents and the community to increase physical activity and involvement in nutrition and activity-based programs.

“We would love to purchase a fitness station that could be used for both physical education classes and the community surrounding the school,” Ms. Scott said.

Cornerstone Academy’s parent advisory committee is working with the school’s lunch director and vendor, to create an even healthier food program. More whole grains, fresh fruit and vegetables will be incorporated into the menu for next year. The school is also researching grant opportunities to build a greenhouse and garden. The garden will give the health food program a big boost by giving students the opportunity to enjoy fresh produce grown on the school grounds.