Rocketship United Academy Ready for Launch
by Shaka Mitchell, Regional Director, Tennessee
Two months ago, families from south Nashville came together for a special evening. It was cold and windy, so we gathered under a tent and dove into an important task: naming Rocketship Nashville’s newest school. After some deliberation and a family vote, our community settled on Rocketship United Academy. After much anticipation, on July 28, United Academy opened its doors for the founding families. Four hundred kindergarten through fourth grade students, clad in Rocketship purple shirts, began their journey as Rocketeers.
The name United aptly represents our diverse population of Somali, Egyptian, Latino, African-American and Caucasian students while also serving as a reminder that all stakeholders are united to eliminate the achievement gap in our lifetime.
Second grade Rocketeers at United Academy get their wiggles out.
“The last two days have been extremely exciting,” said James Robinson, the founding principal of United Academy said on Wednesday after school. “Our kids, families and faculty have been eager to get started and this week’s launch has been an absolute joy.”
The mission of United Academy is to use every minute to ensure that all Rocketeers are inspired and engaged to achieve excellence in academics, character, critical thinking and communication. By achieving excellence in these areas, our Rocketeers will be equipped to make critical decisions that positively affect themselves, their families and their communities.
“We’ve been really intentional about planning for this week and it’s paid off,” Robinson added. “Our teachers did a phenomenal job implementing strategies from our summer professional development to ensure we are setting our students up for a successful year.”
With Nashville Northeast Elementary and United Academy, Rocketship now serves nearly one thousand Rocketeers across Nashville.
To learn more about enrolling your child at Rocketship, call 615-650-5560 or visit rsed.org/nashville.
Published on July 30, 2015
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