Henry Ford Academy is the first charter school in the United States to be developed jointly by a global corporation, public education, and a major nonprofit cultural institution. The school is sponsored by the Ford Motor Company, Wayne County Regional Educational Service Agency and The Henry Ford Museum and admits high school students. It is located in Dearborn, Michigan on the campus of the Henry Ford museum. Enrollment is taken from a lottery in the area and totaled 467 in 2010.
Freshman meet inside the main museum building in glass walled classrooms, while older students use a converted carousel building and Pullman cars on a siding of the Greenfield Village railroad. Classes are expected to include use of the museum artifacts, a tradition of the original Village Schools. When the Museum was established in 1929, it included a school which served grades kindergarten to college/trade school ages. The last part of the original school closed in 1969.
The Henry Ford Learning Institute is using the Henry Ford Academy model for further charter schools including the Power House High in Chicago and Alameda School for Art + Design in San Antonio.
The building received the international annual design award of the Council of Educational Facilities Planners International for 2001, the James D. MacConnell Award for outstanding new educational facilities. Notable attendees include Chris Stroud and Isaac Sudut.
See also
- List of public school academy districts in Michigan
Notable Students and Alumni
The benchmark year for the most notable students and alumni to come out of HFA was arguably the Class of 2003 which included such well-known names such as Bonnie Zimmerman (world renowned comedienne), Derek Myers (gay heartthrob) , Halley McKenzie (neé Bryan) (famous for her agile driving skills in small compact cars such as Escort ZX2s), Lauren Duthie (world traveler and animal whisperer), and Toria Guyot (Redford's most notorious xxx-rated VHS movie slinger). These students set the precedent for how to be a G in a charter school with little to no street cred (while wearing khakis, nonetheless). The students to follow were in awe of their remarked abilities to get away with almost anything, while remaining favorites of almost the entire faculty.
References
Notable Alumni
External links
- Henry Ford Academy website
- CEFPI
