Urban Community School recently announced it has received a $5 million pledge from an anonymous donor. That pledge, the largest in the school's history, will allow the well-regarded institution to expand by one-third and serve an additional 150 children.

"This gift will help us to continue to provide quality education to kids that don't otherwise have access to it," says Sister Maureen Doyle, Director of Urban Community School, which is located in Ohio City and serves mostly low-income students who live in the immediate area. "We're focused on the children who need us most."

Urban plans to construct a two-story addition off W. 50th Street, in the rear of the school's campus. Doyle says the new classroom space, which will add a state-of-the-art middle school that will complement the existing building completed in 2005, will "meet the needs of city kids for the 21st century."

"We're redesigning not only the facility but also the program to meet the needs of our students," explains Doyle. "We're looking at things like writing and science labs, meeting space, expandable walls and state-of-the-art technology. We want to make sure what we're providing kids helps them to be successful in high school."

Other options under consideration include extending the school day for middle school students, creating a leadership program to involve them in the community, and promoting shared teaching responsibilities to ensure an integrated curriculum.

Fortunately, Urban need not develop new designs for the facility since it had planned the expansion when it originally broke ground on the existing building.

Although Urban does not have a specific timeline for its expansion plans, Doyle expects the school to complete the project within the next three years.

Source: Sister Maureen Doyle
Writer: Lee Chilcote