International School - Now a Charter School

Scottsdale, AZ - January  10, 2011 - By unanimous vote, the  International Charter School of Arizona (ICSA)  received its charter today from the
Arizona State  Board for Charter Schools (ASBCS) for an  international foreign-language focused middle  school scheduled to open in August 2011 in
 Scottsdale, Arizona.  The school will provide  an international education with French and Spanish  tracks to 5th and 6th graders in the  first year, expanding after opening to offer  7th through 8th grades and  9th through 12th grades in  subsequent years.

The International  Charter School of Arizona offers challenging  academic programs that will develop students to  their fullest potential and prepare them to  succeed on a local and global level.
 The  program is globally focused with a strong foreign  language component and rigorous academics.  
It will follow the International Baccalaureate
 (IB) Program and pursue IB accreditation.   Students attending ICSA will:
• Be  prepared for college
• Achieve oral and written proficiency in 3 languages  by 12th grade
• Obtain a greater  understanding and  acceptance  of othercultures
• Be  international-minded critical  thinkers.  

ICSA  was founded by board members, parents and staff  from the International School of Arizona, a  non-profit, independent private school that  currently serves children from age 2 to  5th Grade.  The middle school will  leverage the International School's wealth of  experience in educating younger children with an  advanced curriculum and accelerated foreign  language immersion programs that allow students to  become fluent and literate in multiple languages  and achieve native-like pronunciation. ICSA will  help fill the need addressed by the Arizona  legislature in House of Representatives Bill 2741,  which calls for establishing international high  schools to prepare Arizona students for  international business or international  service.  A similar bill enacted by the  Senate and House of Representatives of the United  States of America is H.R. 6036, also known as the  Excellence and Innovation in Language Learning  Act, which was drafted to help foster foreign  language instruction.  ICSA's program also  falls in line with other state initiatives, such  as the recent Arizona Global 100 Conference hosted  by ASU's Morrison Institute for Public Policy, in  which business leaders discussed important  measures that need to take place to prepare  students to compete in the global marketplace and  help Arizona's economy become  self-sustaining.   As former State  Superintendent of Public Instruction and incoming  State Attorney General, Tom Horne, said in a
 recent article from the Tucson  Citizen, "In the  21st century, international studies  have become much more important.   International trade has become a greater part of  our economy and we need to be knowledgeable if we  are to succeed."   New  students without previous experience in a foreign  language can begin to learn a second and third foreign language through an accelerated  program.  Students with previous experience  in French or Spanish may continue their progress  at an advanced level.   As a charter school,  ICSA is free and open to all students in the Phoenix metro area.  The school is now  accepting enrollment applications and will offer  an information session on Wednesday, January 26,  2011 at 6:00pm.  Interested parents are also  invited to attend an Open House on February 6,  2011 at 3:00pm at 9128 E. San Salvador Drive  Scottsdale, AZ 85258.  To learn more about  the International Charter School of Arizona,  please call: 480.874.2326 or email: icsa@isaz.org.    About  International School of Arizona The  International School of Arizona is a private, non-profit 501(c)(3) Elementary and  Pre-School offering French and Spanish immersion tracks. ISA was founded in 1997 to  fill an unmet need in the Phoenix Metropolitan  Area for children to obtain early foreign language
 learning in a multicultural setting.     
For more information on International School of Arizona, please  visit www.isaz.org