Reading School District administrators gave school board members an updated look at student programming planned for the new Reading High School Innovation Academy.<\/p>\n
Wanda Gonzalez-Crespo, district assistant superintendent of school improvement, offered details on student programs, experiences and scheduling at a recent school board committee of the whole meeting.<\/p>\n
The academy, which will open to students in grades 10 through 12 for the 2026-27 school year, is designed to blend traditional academics with hands-on, career-focused learning, Gonzalez-Crespo said.<\/p>\n
District leaders said the central goal is to connect education to opportunity by linking classroom instruction with real-world experiences and career pathways.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur purpose is really to inspire our students,\u201d Gonzalez-Crespo said. \u201cWe want to give our students the knowledge and skills needed for success in learning, careers and in life.\u201d<\/p>\n
The academy will offer four primary pathways, engineering, health and biomedical science, computer science, and human services, with coursework aligned to each field, she said.<\/p>\n
Students will participate in a range of career-readiness experiences, including college visits, internships, job application training and industry engagement.<\/p>\n
The program is designed to move beyond traditional classroom instruction, incorporating project-based learning, team collaboration and capstone experiences, she noted.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to give them opportunities to get into some more hands-on problem solving, versus just sitting in your traditional stand-and-deliver format,\u201d Gonzalez-Crespo said.<\/p>\n
Community partnerships are also a key component, she said, noting organizations such as the Greater Reading Chamber Alliance and local manufacturers have already expressed interest in working with students, offering internships and serving on advisory committees.<\/p>\n
Interested students will apply to the academy at the end of ninth grade, as they do for programs at the Reading-Muhlenberg Career and Technology Center.<\/p>\n
Administrators said this approach allows students time to experience high school before selecting a pathway.<\/p>\n
Dr. Noahleen Betts, board president, asked when that decision was made, saying she previously understood the school would serve grades nine through 12.<\/p>\n
Dr. Khalid Mumin, superintendent, said the decision was made early in the planning process following guidance from the Pennsylvania Department of Education, which determined the school could not operate as an extension of Reading High School if it included ninth grade.<\/p>\n
Because the academy is not a standalone school, students can split their days, taking specialized pathway courses at the academy while still accessing broader academic or extracurricular options at Reading High School\u2019s main campus, 801 N. 13th St.<\/p>\n
Students will also be able to participate in band, orchestra and JROTC at the older high school with built-in time for shuttling between buildings.<\/p>\n
Gonzalez-Crespo said the academy will operate on a modified block schedule designed to support deeper learning. While most days will follow a traditional format, she said, two days in a six-day cycle will feature extended class periods of about 94 minutes to allow for labs, projects and collaborative work.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat gives us a much larger chunk of time for teachers to be able to work on project-based learning activities,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The district aims to enroll 600 to 750 students in the academy\u2019s first year, Gonzalez-Crespo said. Student tours of the building are ongoing and about 430 students have expressed interest so far, she said.<\/p>\n
Acceptance letters are expected to be distributed this spring.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe feel confident that we\u2019ll be starting the year with a full team of students and a full team of staff,\u201d Gonzalez-Crespo said.<\/p>\n
School board members expressed a range of reactions to the update. Some praised the potential of the program, while others raised concerns about whether it fully reflects the level of innovation envisioned.<\/p>\n
Board member Robin Costenbader-Jacobson called the concept promising, saying she could see what this can create after observing student-led discussions and ideas tied to the academy.<\/p>\n
Dr. Paige Brookins, vice president, was less enthusiastic.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m extremely underwhelmed by what was presented,\u201d she said, questioning how the curriculum differs from existing offerings.<\/p>\n
Board member Shaykayarira DelRio-Gonzalez thanked Gonzalez-Crespo and other administrators for their work, but noted she sees room for additional innovation.<\/p>\n
Board member Melissa Eggert, a retired professional development facilitator for the district, noted that curriculum is often dictated by state standards, but innovation often depends on how that material is taught.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really up to the individual teacher to make what we must teach innovative,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Overall, district officials said the Innovation Academy represents a long-term investment in preparing students for both college and careers in a rapidly changing economy.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to be on top and ahead and innovative in our approach,\u201d Gonzalez-Crespo said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Reading School District administrators gave school board members an updated look at student programming planned for the new…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":177190,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[349,227,857,182,139,28,736,128,130,129,706],"class_list":["post-177189","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-reading","tag-berks-county","tag-education","tag-essential-reading","tag-local-news","tag-news","tag-pennsylvania","tag-reading","tag-reading-city","tag-reading-city-headlines","tag-reading-city-news","tag-top-stories-reg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177189","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=177189"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177189\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/177190"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=177189"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=177189"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=177189"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}