CENTER FOR CREATIVE EDUCATION’S NEW PROGRAM GIVING STUDENTS FOUNDATIONS FOR SUCCESS
The Foundations School is using research-based methods to change students’ learning and lives
(WEST PALM BEACH) Building on 27 years of successfully serving Palm Beach County students, the Center for Creative Education (CCE) is launching an independent, kindergarten through third-grade school called The Foundations School. On January 4, The Foundations School opened its doors to students in disadvantaged communities near CCE’s Northwood Village location in West Palm Beach. The private school will use a sliding fee scale based on household size and income, and no one is turned away for inability to pay. Despite opening in the middle of a school year and during a pandemic, nearly half of its 60 spaces for students have already been filled with enrollment openings still available.
“Our goal has always been to transform teaching and learning through creativity and the arts,” said Robert L. Hamon, President and CEO for CCE. “We are leveraging our experience in the School District of Palm Beach County and private schools to better serve our students and community. Our creative approach now spans the entire school day with students in our own setting, instead of just an hour a week in their traditional school setting. Our results have been dramatic and extraordinary.”
While students can enroll from anywhere in the county, CCE’s focus has been on students in its own neighborhood in Northwood Village – and adjacent areas of West Palm Beach and Riviera Beach where there is a disproportionately high percentage of students not reading at grade level by third grade.
“We knew the time for The Foundations School was now,” continued Hamon. “COVID-19 just moved up our future plans, and we shifted from our model of arts integration in traditional schools to a setting and model under our own roof. Thanks to support from our loyal donors, an extraordinary board of directors, and an outstanding teaching team, we are helping students and families in Palm Beach County at a time when they need it most.”
According to The Foundations School’s Director of Schools, Dr. Kevin Kovacs, “Our focus is on ensuring grade-level reading. As the foundation for all learning, reading is not only a building block, but a student’s most crucial academic skill. Through third grade, children are learning to read; after third grade, children are reading to learn.”
The new school uses small class sizes, flexible grouping, arts integration, and highly qualified and dedicated educators as part of its approach. A low student-to-teacher ratio and a sense of community in the classroom ensure opportunities to customize learning activities to match students’ learning styles and academic goals.
“We will be a demonstration school for how creativity is integrated into foundational learning in reading, writing, math and science and to share our model with others to create new knowledge and research,” continued Kovacs. “Teachers, students and families can learn about child development and education, try new ideas, take risks and continue to grow as learners.”
The Foundations School currently provides students, administration, and staff at Palm Beach Atlantic University, Florida Atlantic University and Palm Beach State College with practicum opportunities in a kindergarten through third-grade arts-integrated school. Education students experience the school’s emphasis on an arts-integrated curriculum that results in increased student learning in reading, math, science, and overall engagement.
To learn more about The Foundations School or to inquire about enrollment, visit cceflorida.org or call Dr. Kevin Kovacs at 561.805.9927; extension 118. To make a tax-deductible contribution to the Center for Creative Education, a 501(c)(3), please call Vivianne Hall at 561.805.9927; extension 105.