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Codman Academy: A Thriving School Inside a Health Center
Responding to the need for a college preparatory high school in the Dorchester neighborhoods of Codman Square and Four Corners, the Codman Square Health Center opened Codman Academy Charter Public School 10 years ago this month with a founding class of 32 freshmen. The academy is the only school in the nation to be located within a community health center.
In addition to providing a comprehensive, rigorous college preparatory experience, the academy encourages students to consider careers in healthcare by offering internships within the health center that expose students to a wide range of health care career choices. Every graduate of the academy over the last 10 years has been accepted into college.
The expectations at the academy are great and the time commitment demanding, yet each year the applicant pool is so abundant that new freshmen are chosen by lottery. Students participate in an extended school day, attending classes from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and on Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon. Along with a core curriculum that includes Mathematics, Science and Humanities, students are required to take courses in a foreign language, health and wellness and theatre/arts. Students are expected to complete eight Saturday electives chosen from an array of classes, including Urban Design, Computer Technology, Marine Biology, Poetry, Watercolor, and Journalism.
Striving to expose students to a wider range of cultural experiences, the academy offers sailing, lacrosse and tennis lessons, as well as acting and theater production classes at the Huntington Theater. Prior to graduation, all students must participate in one of several summer programs offered through local and national organizations such as the American Youth Foundation's National Leadership Conference or the Research Apprenticeship program at the Harvard School of Public Health. These supplementary requirements illustrate the academy's emphasis on balancing out-of-the-classroom experiences with in-school learning. In addition to expanding social, cultural and general knowledge, the out-of-classroom programs offer students the opportunity to develop independence and acquire time management skills -- both crucial to success at the collegiate level.
With the academy located on the premises of Codman Square Health Center, students have access to regular primary and preventive care. They also participate in one to two years of multi-week health care career internships, shadowing Codman staff working in pediatrics, radiology, urgent care and dentistry. The internship program exposes low-income and minority students to growing health care fields that pay well and provide a potential "fast-track" from poverty to middle-class economic status. The program also is a building block for sending a more diverse workforce of healthcare providers back to their communities to address the social, economic and health issues that conspire to sustain the cycle of poverty.
Codman Academy's 96 percent daily attendance rate during all six days of the week speaks volumes about the students' desire to be there. Click here for more information about Codman Academy.
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Who's Who: Shawntell Usher, Codman Academy Student 
From its extended school day, to its mandatory Saturday classes, to its demanding curriculum, Codman Academy is not your average school. And Shawntell Usher likes it that way.
Shawntell says her work ethic and thirst for learning drove her to apply to the Academy as a freshman in 2008. Three years later, she credits the liberal arts approach and the encouragement and mentoring she receives from faculty members to "opening her mind" to new academic areas and to the cultural and leadership opportunities that abound at the school.
Recruited to the Nutrition Action Club, Shawntell quickly became its president. Launched two years ago, the club's goal is to help students pursue healthy lifestyles by making better food choices. Shawntell helped spearhead the club's Junk Food Free initiative which effectively barred all junk food from the Academy's campus. The initiative attracted national attention and was so successful that it has been extended through the current school year.
As a participant in club meetings led by Codman Academy staff, Shawntell gathers with classmates to talk about broad health issues ranging from the importance of vitamins to sexually transmitted diseases. "Because our school is located inside a health center, my classmates and I have had the opportunity to learn so much more about healthcare and health issues than we ever would have at a regular school," says Shawntell.
Shawntell's love of singing and theater arts has also found an outlet through the Academy. This past summer Shawntell participated in a series of August Wilson plays through the Academy's collaborative program with the Huntington Theater Company.
With aspirations to become a veterinarian, Shawntell hopes to be accepted at Spellman College, citing their strong Biology program. But more than that, Shawntell is looking ahead to a time when she has the financial means to give back to the community. She also plans to give of her time, keeping in touch with Codman Academy to periodically check in on the Nutrition Action Club. "I've invested a lot of time and effort and want to make sure it's in place for the next generation of students," she says.
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