UMD PARTNERSHIP
Our Difference
To prepare College Park Academy scholars for top colleges and universities, we partner with University of Maryland to provide the opportunity to graduate high school with up to 60 college credits (including up to 25 credits from the University of Maryland). Through this partnership, College Park Academy draws on UMD’s rigor, value, and standards of academic excellence. CPA’s curriculum, projects, and course selection are designed in collaboration with UMD’s College of Education, which provides students with one of the best college-preparatory education opportunities in the nation.
A Chance to Connect
In addition to college courses, our partnership with UMD increases students’ opportunities for socializing and networking. Students learn from leaders and top researchers, forming connections with UMD faculty and potential support for those who subsequently enroll at UMD. This also provides our students the chance to collaborate with UMD students.
CPA & UMD
CPA hosts visits to UMD where students work directly with university students.
Examples include:
- A Q & A session inside the broadcast journalism studio at the at the School of Journalism.
- Improv, hip-hop dance, and lighting and set design workshops with UMD students at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center.
- A Fire Protection Engineering Design Challenge in which students create a structure and fire-suppression system.
- An Animal and Avian Sciences tour during which students learn about career opportunities for animal science majors.
CPA’s partnership with UMD is a crucial factor in our success.
Advanced Curriculum for a Well-Rounded Education
UMD provides CPA curriculum elements such as college courses, guest lecturers, and labs. Students enrolled in CPA Signature Programs receive an experience of themed coursework and independent study.
Such an array of options allows more freedom than the traditional high school experience. Students choose a field of study, which we call a mini-major, and receive a focused educational experience similar to college majors. This style of focused education during high school means CPA students are more knowledgeable and better prepared when they choose college majors.
The Bests of Online Opportunity and On-site Support
College Park Academy’s curriculum is designed as a blend of online learning and on-site classes. The mix provides a well-rounded experience for our students in which they develop social skills while collaborating with each other, but also master independent problem-solving while working on online coursework alone. CPA and UMD staff design collaborative projects so students learn to work together and communicate efficiently and effectively. For example, we worked with UMD at Good Neighbor Day to work on a gardening project at College Park Academy. Students get the chance to learn from each other, evaluate peers, and build on each other’s strengths. By mimicking the structure of college collaborative projects in middle school and high school, our students are better prepared for the transition to higher education.
CPA Offers
3:1 STUDENT-TO-STAFF RATIO
COLLABORATION FOCUS
OPPORTUNITIES FOR SELF-PACING
The Best of Online and On-Site
Our online-learning model allows students to move at their own pace while developing a sense of responsibility and self-sufficiency. We allow students to take ownership over their education, and as a result drive their own success. Rather than the traditional education experience in which college is the first-time students are responsible for their own assignments, College Park Academy students experience this as early as middle school, and, by the time they enter college, they have mastered independent study and self-sufficiency.
College Park Academy also provides the opportunity for self-pacing. If students grasp subjects quickly, they can progress in their courses at whichever pace is challenging and engaging for them, limiting distraction by keeping all students occupied with their studies. Students in accelerated classes master subjects on a deeper level by allowing them to move at their own, individualized pace while guaranteeing full understanding of subjects before progression to the next level. This deeper understanding of subject matter is reflected in our students’ test scores, which are among the highest in the state.
In addition to self-pacing, CPA offers the options for middle school students to accelerate in math and science. The accelerated math programs are both advanced and move at a brisk pace, so scholars can enter high school one to two “grade levels” ahead, where they can take even more advanced and AP math classes starting freshmen year. High-achieving science students are also offered the opportunity to take Summer Science 8 during the summer between seventh and eighth grades. Students can then follow on with ninth-grade Biology during their eighth-grade year, knocking out one of their core high-school science classes and opening up opportunities for other advanced or AP science courses in high school.
College Park Academy offers sixth and seventh graders a chance to interact with University of Maryland students in a new teaching internship program. Open to all majors, this course has helped students like Senior Biology Major Erin Hall find her passion in teaching science.
Different Options for Different Kids
In high school, College Park Academy offers a variety of levels for each grade and each subject, so students can make the most of their education. For example, in high school, students can enroll in Statistics instead of traditional Calculus. AP Statistics is also available for an extra challenge. Our expansive course selection makes it easier for students to pursue topics that interest and challenge them. Middle school students are encouraged to accelerate in their course subjects and 8th grade students can complete high school level courses like Biology, Algebra, and Geometry. CPA offers several foreign languages (most recently, Spanish, German, French, and American Sign Language), and more than 70 elective options to capture the interest of every student.
We also encourage our students to develop their interests and hobbies both inside and outside the classroom through our extracurricular programs, CPA Plus.
College Park Academy understands that students have different learning styles, speeds, and needs. Our approach to personalized learning encourages independence and growth while creating more well-rounded education opportunities for students and have resulted in average test scores among the highest in the state – typically higher than Howard, Montgomery, and Anne Arundel Counties.
College Park Academy is marked by respect among students and teachers, teachers and teachers, and students and students. Our emphasis on kindness and respect in the classroom reinforces good character traits such as cooperation and personal responsibility.
