<\/div><\/div><\/div>\nClemson\u2019s Youth Learning Institute and Kansas-based PITSCO Education have partnered to create the Youth Leadership Academy of South Carolina (YLA), a STEM-based middle school and Pickens County\u2019s first charter school. STEM is an acronym for science, technology, engineering and mathematics, a widely promoted learning focus in classrooms nationwide.
\nLocated at the institute\u2019s headquarters in Pickens, the school utilizes PITSCO Education\u2019s math and science curriculum modules as the foundation for the hands-on, standards-based learning programs. Even the English language arts, social sciences, arts, music and physical education courses include engaging, hands-on, team-based approaches.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe YLA is producing leaders,\u201d says YLA principal Patsy Wood Smith. \u201cOur school is small, and offers individualized learning. It\u2019s a safe, nurturing environment where every child feels empowered and valued for their differences.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
As an alternative to attending other public schools, the 48 sixth- and seventh-graders at the YLA get a unique educational experience that is enriched by the involvement of Clemson students.
\n\u201cEach week, as part of our cultural immersion program, international students from Clemson have represented their native countries through lectures, music, dance and dress. Our students have literally been \u2018around the world\u2019 through these presentations. What\u2019s more, they are inspired by Clemson student leaders and are aspiring to follow their examples,\u201d says Smith.
\nEighth grade will be added and the sixth grade class will double for the 2013-14 school year, pushing enrollment to 96. A waiting list of students is a sure sign that parents in Pickens County are excited about the kind of creative learning environment the YLA offers. For more information, contact Patsy Smith, at 864-878-1103 or patsys@clemson.edu.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Clemson\u2019s Youth Learning Institute and Kansas-based PITSCO Education have partnered to create the Youth Leadership Academy of South Carolina (YLA), a STEM-based middle school and Pickens County\u2019s first charter school. STEM is an acronym for science, technology, engineering and mathematics, a widely promoted learning focus in classrooms nationwide. Located at the institute\u2019s headquarters in Pickens, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":5412,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[2690],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-8394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-upfront","tag-spring-2013"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2013\/06\/charter-school-e1398975646607.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8394"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8394\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5412"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8394"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=8394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}