Newbury Park elementary school first of kind in county to earn international certification
Cypress Elementary School has been named an International Baccalaureate World School, the first primary school in Ventura County to earn the certification, according to Conejo Valley Unified School District officials.
On Jan. 4, the Newbury Park school with students from transitional kindergarten to grade five learned it had cleared a more than three-year evaluation process to become a certified Primary Years Programme.
"I am so proud of our school, and I am especially proud of our team of dedicated teachers," Principal Michele McDonald said in a Tuesday afternoon news release.
The International Baccalaureate has certified just over 2,200 primary programs and more than 3,600 high school diploma programs spread across six continents, with the majority clustered in Europe and North America, according to its website.
With the addition of the 275-student Cypress Elementary, five of those are in Ventura County, including programs at Villanova Preparatory School, a private Catholic campus in Ojai; Rio Mesa High School in Oxnard; Royal High School in Simi Valley and Newbury Park High School.
Conejo Unified's news release described the program as an inquiry-oriented, holistic "transdisciplinary framework," based on "concepts rather than categorically defined subjects."
"This programme will make a big impact for our TK-5 scholars as they become global citizens with skill development as inquirers, thinkers, risk-takers and communicators,” McDonald wrote. The International Baccalaureate, a prestigious education nonprofit founded in Geneva, Switzerland six decades ago, develops and oversees specialized school programming ranging from the Primary Years Programme to its intensive high-school Diploma Programme.
Families in Conejo Valley Unified's boundaries can apply to the program by Jan. 31 via the district's School Choice Application or enroll directly if they have already been assigned to Cypress Elementary. Families who live outside the district can apply via the Interdistrict Transfer process.
Isaiah Murtaugh covers education for the Ventura County Star in partnership with Report for America. Reach him at isaiah.murtaugh@vcstar.com or 805-437-0236 and follow him on Twitter @isaiahmurtaugh and @vcsschools. You can support this work with a tax-deductible donation to Report for America.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Newbury Park school earns first in county international credential
