It was, literally, a new beginning—for children who pulled crayons and pencil boxes from backpacks; for parents whose faces reflected the hope they had for their children, and for staff who shared the exhilaration of a new academic adventure—one that they unanimously expect to leave an indelible mark on the educational landscape in Chicago.

Garfield Park Preparatory Academy (GPPA)—an elementary school operated by The Chicago School in partnership with the Chicago Public School system—opened its doors in September for its first 120 students. The initiative offers the certainty of academic success to the economically depressed neighborhood of East Garfield Park while providing TCS students the opportunity to put skills learned in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and School Psychology classes to work. It is one of the few schools in the country to use ABA techniques to guide the educational and behavioral progress of children who would often be left behind in a system that offered less individualized support.