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Natural Awakenings Dallas -Fort Worth Metroplex Edition

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New Green School Slated for Fall Opening

A new charter school, Trinity Environmental Academy (TriEA), is opening this August on the campus of Paul Quinn College (PQC) campus, in the Southeast Dallas area of Oak Cliff. The partnership between TriEA and PQC is the first public charter/private college partnership in Texas.

TriEA will open starting with grades K to six, providing 228 students the foundation they will need to succeed in our world’s highest growth fields by engaging in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics), civic skills and green career pathways. Continuing to add several grade levels per year, by 2021, TriEA will serve more then 1,000 students in a full PreK‐12 program and the intent of improving postgraduate options with a uniquely desired skill set for the 21st century.

Situated adjacent to the Great Trinity Forest, the largest hardwood bottomland urban forest in the U.S., the school’s mission is to teach by using both natural and built environments through experiential, hands-on learning.Environmental education is a proven way to ensure that students are more engaged with their learning and community and that they develop the character to steward our region into the future.

Focused on sustainability, environmental stewardship and service learning, primary students will grow their own cafeteria food using the PQC We Over Me Farm as a teaching tool to cascade their learning into their own gardens. Middle school students will take on foreign languages and community‐focused environmental engineering projects, while high school students can earn college credit or certification in biotechnology, agricultural food and natural resources or information technology as a part of the Career and Technology Education strands.

In an effort to maintain high expectations and graduate students as career- and college-ready, PQC and TriEA will work together to offer dual-credit, specialized technical certifications and continued support as students seek higher education opportunities after graduation. This public/ private relationship is designed to be an innovative PreK-16 matriculation partnership.

Working with the University of North Texas, TriEA will develop a unique environmentally focused curriculum that aligns with Texas educational standards and starts on the path to becoming the state’s first Green Ribbon School, as designated by the U.S. Department of Education. TriEA and PQC seek ongoing community support to help bring these exceptional education choices to the families and students of Oak Cliff.

For more information, visit DallasGreenLearning.org.