EDUCATION: DeKalb to Earth: Have we got a school for you!

It will be Georgia’s premier “green” school —- one of the first public schools in the state with a national certification for environmental construction and perhaps the only one with an environmentally themed curriculum.

DeKalb County’s Arabia Mountain High School opens Aug. 10, but officials are already working to get the sparkling new campus ready —- installation crews are putting on the final touches and a teachers job fair and parents’ meetings are scheduled this week.

Here’s a look at the school.

LOCATION

The campus sits in southeastern DeKalb near the Arabia Mountain national heritage area, which comprises thousands of acres of protected green space and is one of 37 federally designated heritage areas nationwide. On campus, easy access to miles of trails in and around the forested area is just past the practice football field behind the school building —- where deer are often spotted checking out their new neighbor.

CURRICULUM

All subjects will be infused with the standardized EIC curriculum —- which stands for using the Environment as an Integrating Context for learning. Simply put, all teachers will use the environment as a backdrop for their lessons. The curriculum, developed jointly among 16 state education departments, can be seen at www.seer.org.

The school also will incorporate small learning communities. Students will be divided among different programs, with students going to class within these programs for all four years. The concept has been around in various forms for many years but has regained favor as schools try to increase graduation rates and student performance.

ENROLLMENT

The school will open with grades 9-11; 12th grade will be added in its second year, for an expected total of 1,400 students —- the building has capacity for 1,600. At least 700 spots will be held for neighborhood students. Students from across DeKalb may apply to any of three magnet programs offered at the school —- one centered on health and medical interests; one on environmental, energy and engineering studies; and a third for “career technology,” including the culinary arts, finance and business. Students must meet stricter academic criteria to be eligible to enroll in the first two.

LET THE SUN SHINE IN

More than 100 educators from across the country applied to lead Arabia Mountain —- but the system hired one of its own: Angela Pringle. In her 15th year as a principal, Pringle had been in charge of another high school in DeKalb. She came up through the ranks as a middle school teacher. At one job in Virginia Beach, the school’s classrooms had no windows. “At the time, that was the attitude; they didn’t build schools understanding how natural light affects moods and attitudes,” Pringle said, standing inside a classroom at the Arabia Mountain school that was bathed in sunlight. Research has shown a correlation between children’s access to natural light and higher test scores, hence extensive use in the building of glass and large windows.

THE CAMPUS

Actual cost: $47.7 million (includes $40 million in construction costs); budgeted cost: $49.7 million. Building: 240,000 square feet, designed to meet stringent LEED —- Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design —- standards set by the quasi-governmental U.S. Green Building Council. Outside features include a greenhouse, outdoor classrooms, native landscaping and athletic fields that don’t have lights in order to reduce light pollution. Inside, green credentials include what you can recognize —- waterless urinals, motion-sensors on lights, tons of windows —- and what you can’t: increased ventilation and airflow, nontoxic building materials, use of recycled materials in such features as the indoor rubber track. Classrooms are also outfitted with the latest technology; the school’s goal, according to the principal, is to be 85 percent paperless, with extensive use instead of wiki’s, blogs and podcasting.

MEETING THE TEST

The campus boasts a definite “wow” factor but the hard work has just begun. Only nine of 22 DeKalb high schools met federal testing goals last year, down from 12 in 2007. Officials this school year redesigned the curriculum in some schools to get them on track, and they hope Arabia Mountain will attract highly motivated students. Pringle said she is committed to finding teachers who are passionate about the school’s mission.

WHAT’S NEXT

On Tuesday, DeKalb officials will hold a job fair from 4-7 p.m. on the Arabia Mountain campus for certified teachers and some pre-screened applicants. Wednesday, officials will be at Lithonia High School and, Thursday, at MLK Jr. High School to talk with parents and students about the new school. Arabia Mountain will pull students from both schools into its new attendance area, although the lines are not yet drawn. Both meetings start at 6:30 p.m.

 ELIZABETH LANDT / Staff
Map locates Arabia Mountain High School in DeKalb County. Inset map outlines area of detail relative to metro Atlanta.