Feb 8, 2018, 9:42 PM
(from the Washington Post) Veteran education entrepreneur Chris Whittle has announced plans for the fall 2019 opening of a global for-profit school that he predicts will eventually have 90,000 students worldwide and 10,000 students. Based in New York, incorporated in the Cayman Islands and backed by millions of dollars from U.S. and Chinese investors, the first two campuses of "Whittle School & Studios" will be in Washington, D.C., and Shenzhen, China. More campuses will follow in China as well as cities including Los Angeles, London and Mumbai.
The schools will feature foreign-language immersion (Chinese in the U.S., English in China) and a curriculum centered on mastery of core academic subjects, student-driven projects and off-campus learning. The D.C. campus will occupy the former headquaters of a satellite-technology company, a space-age aluminum and glass structure that is expected to cost $185 million to renovate. Plans are to enroll 2,500 students within five years at a tuition comparable to those of highly competitive day schools in the area. About 500 students will live in dormitories, which are also planned with the renovation. Some financial aid will be available.
In 2012, Whittle led the launch of Avenues: The World School. Prior to that he may have been best known for launching Channel One, a program delivering news and advertising in schools.
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