Over the course of my internship with St. Paul, MN's public access network, I wrote multiple blog entries to help showcase the network's work in the community. This particular entry discussed SPNN's (St. Paul Neighborhood Network) partnership with City Academy, a unique school on St. Paul's east side.

1. A Fruitful Partnership: SPNN and City
Academy Make Learning Fun
Tue, 12/17/2013 - 2:13pm
by Adam Mohrbacher, Communications Intern
Nestled in the east side of St. Paul lies the charter school City Academy. Created in 1992, the
institution boasts the title of being the first charter school in America, serving high school
students of grades 9-12.
Defined by innovation, City Academy’s policies contradict a more conventional high school
experience. Theater teacher, Janelle Ranek, explains that City Academy attempts to replicate
certain aspects of education more closely associated with college. It seeks to empower students
by prompting them to play a more participatory role in their education, requiring them to choose
their own classes and intermingle with students of a variety of age groups.
This is a fine policy, as a successful graduation from high school and eventual entry into college
is the ultimate goal for each student. In late 2013 City Academy sought to continue on this
tradition of academic innovation, forging a partnership with Saint Paul Neighborhood Network
designed to provide a unique variation on critical components of science.
In sitting down to talk with students and faculty about the partnership it was easy to gauge the
enthusiasm. Four students who participated in the project helped outline its basic components.
Essentially, they described how City Academy, in seeking a way to make science more
accessible, entertaining, and participatory, latched onto the notion of shooting videos on several
different scientific subjects, such as life, physical and Earth science.
Each subject that was featured in a video revolved around a specific experiment, and was paired
with a creative narrative. For example, the physical science video featured an experiment on the
effects of liquid nitrogen. In order to provide this experiment with a narrative framework the
students wrote a script about a girl who was using liquid nitrogen to retaliate against a cheating
boyfriend by destroying his possessions. This video in particular elicited a big laugh from the
audience when the videos were eventually screened for the entire student body.
While reflecting on the project a senior student named Amy said that group projects offer some
significant benefits over individual work. The video-making component of the project also
forced everyone to go outside of their respective comfort zones. She continued by saying that
this process was evident with another student named Alyssa (also a senior), who was able to play
a volatile, highly emotional character, something very different from her actual personality.
The students and faculty were also in agreement about how the process of video-making is an
effective tool for learning science. Not only did the process prove educationally valuable to those
involved with the various productions, but all participants spoke to the positive impact it had on

2. students who viewed the finished products. According to the students, this was due to the
accessibility that the project offered to the viewer. It turned subjects that could be obtuse on
paper into highly engrossing experiences.
The students also spoke about the positive experience of working with SPNN. Alyssa in
particular seemed highly emphatic, commenting on the access center tour that she and her fellow
students went on by saying it was like “nothing she had seen before.” These types of sentiments,
taken collectively, help to outline what successful partnerships between institutions can produce.
By working together, SPNN and City Academy help to strengthen the community of St. Paul,
targeting an enormously important area like education. It’s a collaboration of the highest order
that creates real benefits for real lives.