Thea Bowman Leadership Academies' Board of Directors is set to consider combining its K-12 scholars from two campuses to one state-of-the-art facility. 

If approved during the February 26th board meeting, TBLA Elementary scholars would leave their old building (on 6th Avenue) and move into Thea Bowman’s newest and largest facility located down the road at 3401 W 5th Avenue in Gary. The 5th Avenue facility, which now only hosts the middle and high scholars with much available capacity, will be adapted to host K-12. 

“We are excited about the possibility of a K-12 conversion for our scholars, our families and our staff,” said TBLA K-12 Principal, Marisa Simmons. “This will allow us to support and build relationships with our scholars from the beginning of their elementary education up through senior year. This configuration will also provide greater opportunities for collaboration between not only our K-12 staff, but also our scholars. It affords us the opportunity to align our curriculum from K-12, provide stronger resources, and set long term academic goals that prepare our students for success..” 

A K-12 configuration would support TBLA in its goal to build stronger relationships with families and scholars over time. It also allows the school to better understand and fulfill scholars’ academic needs kindergarten through graduation. It allows for vertical planning and collaboration between teachers and opportunities for peer mentoring between the secondary and elementary scholars.  

Parents and community members have been asked to share their feedback on a K-12 conversion using the parent feedback link: http://bit.ly/TBLAConversionFeedback. Feedback from this link will be used to address parent and community concerns and allows the board and administration to hear and respond to parent voices regarding the proposed change. #