BELLESINI ACADEMY Competitors

Catalyst Academy Charter School is Pittsburgh's first new charter school in over 5 years. Our mission is to provide a world-class education that prepares each of our scholars for college, career, and life in an educational environment that embodies our core values: Belong. Grow. Achieve. Catalyst opened for K-1st Grade in the fall of 2020, one of the few public schools in Pittsburgh to offer in person learning five days a week during the pandemic. In 2021-22, Catalyst Academy will have grades K-2, and will expand a grade per year to eventually serve K-8. Catalyst Academy was founded to eliminate education achievement and opportunity gaps for under-served neighborhoods in the East End of Pittsburgh and beyond.

Beacon Academy offers a 10-year program that prepares highly motivated students from communities with limited resources for competitive high schools, colleges, and careers. Our goal is to support students as they create life-changing opportunities and build fulfilling careers. Beacon makes a long-term commitment and investment to its students because we believe education is a crucial vehicle to achieving this goal. In an effort to close the opportunity gap that exists for students of color from economically constrained backgrounds, our staff members and broader Beacon community commit to supporting each student for 10+ years with a focus on their educational success and well-being. With academic resources and support from the Beacon community, Beacon students explore their intellectual curiosity, affirm their racial and cultural identity, build their confidence, and discover the power of their voice.

Global Scholars Academy (GSA) is a North Carolina (NC) public charter school in Northeast Central Durham that educates vulnerable youth by mobilizing social, cultural, and intellectual resources to support academic achievement. The school maintains low student-teacher ratios with eight students to every teacher, not including numerous community volunteers who share their time and expertise during the extended school day. Internationally renowned educator Dr. James H. Johnson Jr., the William R. Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship and Director of the Urban Investment Strategies Center at UNC Kenan Flagler Business School, has spearheaded this visionary effort to develop a 21st Century franchise model of public education that builds bridges to the economic mainstream for vulnerable students. GSA integrates an innovative model of strategic partnerships and research-based practices and it involves parents and caregivers in ways that contribute to the health and success of students and their community. GSA is a laboratory school; operating in association with local university and community partnerships for research, implementation, and evaluation of its education model. GSA is the only laboratory school in NC focused on developing teachers who can meet the unique needs of vulnerable youth and encouraging holistic student achievement through personal health, academic, and entrepreneurial education. GSA serves youth who are at the greatest risk of academic failure due to significant social, economic, and educational challenges. Many of these students reside in neighborhoods characterized by high rates of persistent and concentrated poverty, joblessness, and a range of other social ills. GSA’s extended day, extended year program is unique and key to engaging students and their families. To maintain academic engagement, intensive remediation and accelerated learning activities are offered on-site during three intercessions.