The New York Times recenty featured an article about the International Community School, a public charter school located in DeKalb County.

The school opened in 2002, and was designed “to bring together refugee, immigrant, and native-born children in an academically challenging and nurturing environment.”  The school faces many challenges, including funding, communication difficulties with parents, and young students who have often just arrived surviving horrific conditions.  The school offers a unique program which provides a caring introduction to American life for refugee and immigrant students, as well as an opportunity for native-born children to gain insight into other cultures and develop a more open world view. 

The school offers classes for students in grades K-6.  In order to assist the older siblings of students, as well as parents and grandparents, in 2004 the school began offering “Saturday School,” a Family Literacy Program designed to address the basic literacy needs of these family members.

Read the complete article HERE, including photos and a short but touching video about a friendship between two of the school’s young students.

1. Destiny: DeKalb County School System’s Online Catalog
2. Back to School
3. Homework Help
4. November is Family Literacy Month
5. It’s Never Too Late to Learn to Read