First Next Generation High School Opening in Austin, Texas

1. Cedars International Academy
8416 North I-35 Austin, Texas 78753
cedars-academy.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Cedars International Partners With Austin Community College And Renowned Education Leaders
For New Public Charter High School
Austin, Texas - January 25, 2016 - In a significant move to provide secondary students in the Austin area
access to internationally recognized education methods and opportunities, Cedars International Academy
has teamed with Austin Community College (ACC), members of Advanced Reasoning In Education
(ARIE), New Tech Network, University of Texas (UTeach and UT NASCENT), along with Communities
Foundation of Texas, to create an open enrollment, tuition-free public charter high school dedicated to
serving students in grades 8 through 12. Every design decision about the school, which will be adjacent to
ACC’s Highland Campus, is informed by the goal of ensuring student success and readiness for the
future.
“Cedars International Academy is dedicated to best preparing children for the world they will inherit,
teaching them with genuine respect and the most effective instructional strategies to meet their learning
needs,” said Superintendent Dr. Mark Diaz. “Now it is time to scale up that commitment to the high
school level, for our students about to matriculate and those yet to enroll. I’m confident we have the
absolute right team to ensure success for everyone involved.”
“It begins with a complete pedagogical shift,” said Founding Principal Steven Zipkes. “First, Cedars
International and Austin Community College have forged a unique partnership where our students and
teachers will have access to ACC, providing college level classes complete with college credits. Second,
this will be a Next Generation High School, where the attention will be on personalized learning through
a Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math (STEAM) focused curriculum, using Project Based
Learning (PBL) and real world essential skills for authentic problem solving as the the instructional
model. This original curriculum, to be authored by our veteran teachers, will be aligned with the State
Standards/TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills), but also go above and beyond state
requirements.”
Like Zipkes himself, the veteran teachers and staff opening the new school are all nationally recognized
experts in Project Based Learning. They have all worked at Manor New Tech High School and with
ARIE, which provides training in Project Based Learning to educators around the world. When President
Barack Obama visited the team’s previous campus in May of 2013, he declared their teaching model
“what every school should be.”
“We know the best way for students to gain mastery isn't by sitting in rows of desks and being lectured
to,” said Zipkes. “We’re going to have them moving around, diving deep into subjects and creating their
own knowledge. In every class, they will work in groups with other students, teaching and learning from
each other. It is engaging. It’s challenging. And we have the data to prove it works.”
The five graduating classes under Zipkes’ previous leadership at Manor New Tech High had a 99.4%
Graduation Rate, with 100% of those students accepted into college and universities. Of those students,

2. Cedars International Academy
8416 North I-35 Austin, Texas 78753
cedars-academy.org
about 62% were the first in their families to ever attend college. The National Student Clearinghouse,
tracking students from high school through college, indicated that, while the national average of students
who went to college after high school and were still enrolled/completing was 63%, the students from
Zipkes and his teachers was at an average of 80%, a significant increase.
At the new high school, student work will also break from the traditional regimen of worksheets and
textbooks. “We are implementing a one-to-one student iPad initiative, designed and overseen by an Apple
Distinguished Educator,” said Diaz. “We want our children to excel in digital media literacy, to be able to
think critically, consume, and author content suitable for a global audience. We understand most of our
students come to us having an online presence. Our goal is to make them responsible digital citizens.”
Student work will be further enhanced by the use of Echo, the proprietary digital learning platform of the
New Tech Network. The new high school will be part of the New Tech Network, connecting and
collaborating with the nonprofit organization’s other Project Based Learning schools around the world.
Students currently enrolled in 7th and 8th grades and attending Cedars International Academy as of
March 1, 2016 will be automatically accepted into the new school’s incoming 8th and 9th grade classes
via the applications which will be posted at cedars-academy.org on February 1. For any other potential
student in the Austin area, a simple lottery to attend the school’s inaugural 8th, 9th, and 10th grade classes
will take place March 4, 2016. The admissions applications will be available on February 16 and can be
downloaded from the Cedars International Academy website, cedars-academy.org or picked up in person
at Cedars International Academy, 8416 North I-35, Austin, Texas 78753. To be considered for the lottery
the admissions application must be turned in by February 29th.
Because of the intense focus on individual student learning, each grade level will be capped at 50 students
total.
Contact:
Steven Zipkes
szipkes@cedars-academy.org
Ph: 512-419-1551
Fax: 512-419-1581
Authored By:
Les Simpson
lsimpson@cedars-academy.org
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