Provide boundless opportunities for students in Gary, Indiana! 

Opening our doors in August 2016, Steel City Academy will empower the students of Gary with the most rigorous academic skills, cultural fluency and depth of character so they can choose from boundless opportunities and strengthen the community of Gary.

Steel City Academy will redefine expectations for what a high performing student, teaching staff and school can look like and achieve in Gary and Northwest Indiana.

When our students graduate from Steel City they will understand themselves as individuals and the assets and needs of their community at large. Each student will possess a unique set of passions and talents that they apply with the determination needed to achieve their specific goals. They will have learned the character and behavioral skills needed to successfully navigate diverse groups and settings throughout their lives. Moreover, our graduates will have the academic hard skills and knowledge necessary to access and actively choose any opportunity or life path. This combination of confidence in their identity, community and academic know-how will allow them to navigate the constantly changing economic conditions and realities of their future world and advocate for themselves and their communities for the duration of their lives.

Creating students of this caliber starts with our staff. When educators join Steel City they will be a model for our graduates: forever curious about the teaching profession and educational equity, dedicated to improving their practice, and highly demanding of themselves. Our teachers will reflect a diversity of backgrounds; including those who have personally experienced the triumphs and challenges of coming from this community alongside people from outside the community who have chosen to dedicate their professional careers to this region. These educators will come to Steel City from a variety of sources including a deep, integrated partnership with local universities. This partnership will grow to train teachers both from Steel City and from the wider local educational community. Once on our staff, teachers will receive highly personalized training and professional development that empowers them to be a confident leader in the classroom, school and community, regardless of their background or level of experience. We will develop replicable systems that value and sustain the educators in the building by creating a culture of collaboration, empowerment and distributive leadership that redefines the societal definition of a teacher leader.

When our school has accomplished its mission, Steel City will be known as an integral member of the community and exemplar for innovation. We will demonstrate success through our remarkable classes of alumni, comprehensive curriculum and exceptional educational staff that was hired and developed through our sustainable talent pipeline. Together, we will have created an institution that redefines the role of a school in Gary, Indiana.