As a way to familiarize the community with the International Baccalaureate Organization, Sand Creek High School hosted an introduction night Nov. 17.ìWe invited the community into Sand Creek because we’re very excited about the learning going on here,î said Brett Derickson, IB coordinator and diploma instructor at Sand Creek.The IBO was founded in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1968. Currently, more than 972,000 students at 3,295 schools in 141 countries participate worldwide. The IB program consists of the Primary Years Program for children in kindergarten through grade five; the Middle Years Program for grades six through 10; and the Diploma Program for grades 11 and 12.At Sand Creek, all students in grades nine and 10 are IB program participants. However, students in grades 11 and 12 choose to continue with the program or finish their high school career via the standard education track. ìWe use the MYP program to prepare and support the Diploma and AP (Advanced Placement) programs,î Derickson said.The IB coordinator for Evans International Elementary School, Jenny Breeding, said the IB format in the elementary or Primary Years Program makes learning more relevant to the students and incorporates global significance in its teachings. Breeding said the key to the IB program can be summed up in a quote from their mission statement: ìThese programs encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.îSand Creek Innovation Zone Leader Sean Dorsey said the unique part of the Sand Creek Innovation Zone is that it offers aligned IB programs for students in kindergarten through grade 12. Students begin the IB program at Evans, then naturally feed into Horizon and end up at Sand Creek, Dorsey said. ìEvans and Horizon (Middle School) have been IB schools for several years,î he said. ìAt Sand Creek, we’ve really begun to dive in to the IB program.îAttendees were given three choices of breakout sessions, and invited to choose two. The sessions, ìWhat is the IB?;î ìTruths and Myths of the IB;î and ìBeyond K-12;î lasted about 30 minutes each. Teachers, coordinators and administrators were on hand to answer questions as well as present information for their breakout session topic.Following the breakout sessions, guests were invited to the cafeteria for refreshments and music by the Sand Creek Jazz Band.
