Second University Prep elementary school to open this fall in TechTown

University Preparatory Academy will open its fourth school this coming fall. The 50,000 square foot elementary school, located on Antoinette just west of Cass, will house 384 students in kindergarten through fifth grade. In TechTown, it joins a high on Antoinette between Second and Third and another elementary school on Holden at Fourth. UPA's middle school is located on St. Antoine, near the intersection of Warren and I-75.

The school system draws students from across the city and inner ring suburbs who are selected in a blind lottery. Its focus is strong basic learning skills with an eye towards graduation rates that are comparable with those seen in affluent suburbs.

So far, they are on track: last year, more than 90 percent of the UPA high school's first graduating class went on to a institution of higher learning. Doug Ross, the superintendent expects to hit that goal again with the class of 2008.

He attributes some of UPA's success to its heavy presence in TechTown. "We want to give the students real world experience in business and professional settings," Ross says. "All of our students, beginning in middle school, spend a great deal of time doing unpaid internships."
 
Ross observes that TechTown is home to numerous "interesting" businesses including start-ups at TechOne, Henry Ford Health Systems, NextEnergy, Dalgleish Cadillac and Wayne State University. "New Center is packed with businesses of all kinds," he says.

New Urban Learning, the non-profit parent of UPA, will launch a second school system this fall focused on science, math and technology. Ross will step into the role of CEO in July.

Read more about the University Preparatory Academy Science and Math Middle School here.

Source: Doug Ross, UPA
Writer: Kelli B. Kavanaugh