Central Academy (Des Moines)
Encyclopedia
Central Academy is a public magnet school
located at 1912 Grand Avenue in Des Moines, Iowa
for students between grades 6 and 12. Commissioned by the Des Moines Public Schools
in 1985, the Academy has played host to some of the brightest minds in the state. The school is nationally recognized for the high academic standard of its coursework and the performance of its students. The Academy is ranked in the top one percent of Advanced Placement programs in the state. Since 2008, the Academy has had the International Baccalaureate World School program fully implemented for students desiring an even greater college-recognized level challenge.
, English
, social studies
, and mathematics
. The curriculum in these courses is very rigorous and moves very quickly. The advantages of taking such courses is well seen. Certain students have the opportunity (if advanced enough) to take high school credit for some of the classes in 7th grade. Many students, if not all, enrolled in the Central Academy program are students in their district's Gifted and Talented program and they come from a fairly large portion of central Iowa
and are challenged to do their best work in the Academy. Some of the classes offered at the Academy are 'weighted classes' where it is possible to get higher than a 4.0 GPA. For instance, if one gets an A in a weighted class, they get 5 points for their GPA instead of the normal 4. The Academy also offers a variety of 'specials' courses ranging from home and drywall to fashion, where a fashion show is held annually to display the works of the students. At the end of the school year, a recognition and award ceremony is held for Academy Seniors. There are seven awards total: the Scholastic Achievement Award, the Leadership Award, Social Science Award, Mathematics Award, English Award, Science Award, and the International Baccalaureate Award of Excellence for the best students in each category. The first two awards are chosen by their peers and students honored with the later five awards earn all A's in that given field of study, and are subsequently picked by the individual departments. Seniors that have made it through the program receive an honorary personalized plaque. Additionally, students who become AP National Scholars or finish the International Baccalaureate program are put into the Academy's hall of fame commemoration in the primary hallway.
in one semester and one year of chemistry
and physics
in the next semester and world and American literature
courses, respectively. They must earn A's and B's in each subject to continue on in the program.
and high school
s in central Iowa. Teachers at the Academy must themselves demonstrate an exceptional ability to teach prior to being considered and typically hold a Master's Degree
and/or Doctor of Philosophy
for their given subject matter. The teachers have won awards, oversee cultural activities for the city, and represent teachers in Iowa
as consistent leaders in their fields. The supervisor and head of the school was Dennis Johnson, a former athletic director at Theodore Roosevelt High School (Des Moines)
and now has been taken up by Crista Carlile, a former teacher in the Ankeny School District.
' Gifted and Talented initiative, and are required to meet several benchmarks before even being admitted into the Academy. Students are required to demonstrate: general intellectual ability, creative thinking, leadership ability, visual and performing arts ability, and a specific ability aptitude. The school district also bases admission into the Academy on teacher recommendations and standardized test scores
, requiring students to score above the 95th percentile on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills
. The Academy has benefited greatly over the years by many philanthropic gifts from the Iowa
entrepreneurial native John Pappajohn, the Aviva Trust Foundation, and the Central Campus Foundation. Before the Academy took residence in the Wallace-Homestead Building (shown above) in 2008, the Academy was held at 1800 Grand Avenue at a decommissioned Ford car factory from 1985-2005 which had also previously been home to Des Moines Technical High School after World War II
. It was then partially moved subsequently to The University of Iowa John and Mary Pappajohn Education Center from 2005-2008. With the school board coming to a conclusion that the academy needed its own building, the Wallace-Homestead building was purchased and quickly renovated to reflect the modern age.
, Stanford, New York University
, and every school in the Ivy League
just to name a few. In the process, for any given year there are over four million dollars worth of scholarship offerings for graduating seniors. Central Academy is committed to "The Pursuit of Excellence" which has become synonymous with the school, staff, and student body.
Magnet school
In education in the United States, magnet schools are public schools with specialized courses or curricula. "Magnet" refers to how the schools draw students from across the normal boundaries defined by authorities as school zones that feed into certain schools.There are magnet schools at the...
located at 1912 Grand Avenue in Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines is the capital and the most populous city in the US state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small portion of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines which was shortened to "Des Moines" in 1857...
for students between grades 6 and 12. Commissioned by the Des Moines Public Schools
Des Moines Public Schools
The Des Moines Public Schools is the largest public school district in Iowa...
in 1985, the Academy has played host to some of the brightest minds in the state. The school is nationally recognized for the high academic standard of its coursework and the performance of its students. The Academy is ranked in the top one percent of Advanced Placement programs in the state. Since 2008, the Academy has had the International Baccalaureate World School program fully implemented for students desiring an even greater college-recognized level challenge.
Curriculum of the Academy
The curriculum at the Academy is accelerated so that most students may begin Advanced Placement work in tenth grade. The Academy offers seventeen Advanced Placement courses in the fields of scienceScience
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, English
English studies
English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language , English linguistics English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U.K., U.S.,...
, social studies
Social studies
Social studies is the "integrated study of the social sciences and humanities to promote civic competence," as defined by the American National Council for the Social Studies...
, and mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
. The curriculum in these courses is very rigorous and moves very quickly. The advantages of taking such courses is well seen. Certain students have the opportunity (if advanced enough) to take high school credit for some of the classes in 7th grade. Many students, if not all, enrolled in the Central Academy program are students in their district's Gifted and Talented program and they come from a fairly large portion of central Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
and are challenged to do their best work in the Academy. Some of the classes offered at the Academy are 'weighted classes' where it is possible to get higher than a 4.0 GPA. For instance, if one gets an A in a weighted class, they get 5 points for their GPA instead of the normal 4. The Academy also offers a variety of 'specials' courses ranging from home and drywall to fashion, where a fashion show is held annually to display the works of the students. At the end of the school year, a recognition and award ceremony is held for Academy Seniors. There are seven awards total: the Scholastic Achievement Award, the Leadership Award, Social Science Award, Mathematics Award, English Award, Science Award, and the International Baccalaureate Award of Excellence for the best students in each category. The first two awards are chosen by their peers and students honored with the later five awards earn all A's in that given field of study, and are subsequently picked by the individual departments. Seniors that have made it through the program receive an honorary personalized plaque. Additionally, students who become AP National Scholars or finish the International Baccalaureate program are put into the Academy's hall of fame commemoration in the primary hallway.
Prerequisites of Further Entry
Students wishing to pursue the Advanced Placement science and English courses at the Academy must complete a course that is one year of biologyBiology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
in one semester and one year of chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
and physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
in the next semester and world and American literature
American literature
American literature is the written or literary work produced in the area of the United States and its preceding colonies. For more specific discussions of poetry and theater, see Poetry of the United States and Theater in the United States. During its early history, America was a series of British...
courses, respectively. They must earn A's and B's in each subject to continue on in the program.
Composition of Students and Staff
The Academy has a student body of over one thousand students which derives from thirty nine middleMiddle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
and high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
s in central Iowa. Teachers at the Academy must themselves demonstrate an exceptional ability to teach prior to being considered and typically hold a Master's Degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
and/or Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
for their given subject matter. The teachers have won awards, oversee cultural activities for the city, and represent teachers in Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
as consistent leaders in their fields. The supervisor and head of the school was Dennis Johnson, a former athletic director at Theodore Roosevelt High School (Des Moines)
Theodore Roosevelt High School (Des Moines)
Theodore Roosevelt High School, usually referred to simply as Roosevelt High School or TRHS, is a secondary school located on the west side of Des Moines, Iowa...
and now has been taken up by Crista Carlile, a former teacher in the Ankeny School District.
Academy Profile
Attendees of the Academy are considered part of the Des Moines Public SchoolsDes Moines Public Schools
The Des Moines Public Schools is the largest public school district in Iowa...
' Gifted and Talented initiative, and are required to meet several benchmarks before even being admitted into the Academy. Students are required to demonstrate: general intellectual ability, creative thinking, leadership ability, visual and performing arts ability, and a specific ability aptitude. The school district also bases admission into the Academy on teacher recommendations and standardized test scores
Standardized test
A standardized test is a test that is administered and scored in a consistent, or "standard", manner. Standardized tests are designed in such a way that the questions, conditions for administering, scoring procedures, and interpretations are consistent and are administered and scored in a...
, requiring students to score above the 95th percentile on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills
Iowa Test of Basic Skills
The Iowa Tests of Basic Skills , also known as the Iowa Tests, are standardized tests provided as a service to schools by the College of Education of the University of Iowa. The tests are administered to students in kindergarten through eighth grade as part of the Iowa Statewide Testing Programs,...
. The Academy has benefited greatly over the years by many philanthropic gifts from the Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
entrepreneurial native John Pappajohn, the Aviva Trust Foundation, and the Central Campus Foundation. Before the Academy took residence in the Wallace-Homestead Building (shown above) in 2008, the Academy was held at 1800 Grand Avenue at a decommissioned Ford car factory from 1985-2005 which had also previously been home to Des Moines Technical High School after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. It was then partially moved subsequently to The University of Iowa John and Mary Pappajohn Education Center from 2005-2008. With the school board coming to a conclusion that the academy needed its own building, the Wallace-Homestead building was purchased and quickly renovated to reflect the modern age.
Academy's Academic Achievement to Date
As of 2010, the Academy has produced 33 AP State Scholars, 269 AP National Scholars, 608 AP Scholars with Honor, and over 1,800 AP Scholars. The average Academy student will take 5.85 AP Exams in his or her high school career. In addition, Academy teams and students have compiled dozens of statewide and national titles for the school over the decades. Annually winning English, Math, and Science awards. Students who have graduated from Central have gone on to matriculate into some of the world's most elite universities. MIT, Cal Tech, Carnegie Mellon UniversityCarnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
, Stanford, New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
, and every school in the Ivy League
Ivy League
The Ivy League is an athletic conference comprising eight private institutions of higher education in the Northeastern United States. The conference name is also commonly used to refer to those eight schools as a group...
just to name a few. In the process, for any given year there are over four million dollars worth of scholarship offerings for graduating seniors. Central Academy is committed to "The Pursuit of Excellence" which has become synonymous with the school, staff, and student body.
Central Academy References and External Links
- old.dmps.k12.ia.us/schoolsfirst/revisionsnov07.pdf (PDF of revision project from 2007)