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About Us

PROMISE College and Career Academy (PCCA)

Promoting Resiliency Opportunity and Meaningful Instruction for Student-Centered Education

WHAT IS PCCA?

PCCA is a choice high school in Brockton designed for students and families who are seeking a more personalized learning experience. PCCA operates on the belief that all students can succeed if a school is designed to meet their individual interests, talents, needs, and learning styles. By placing students at the center of their educational experience and creating modern, flexible structures that set them up for success, PCCA will enable students to reach their potential and live up to their promise.

BUILT ON STUDENT VOICE: Unlike the traditional high school model where students must conform to what exists, PCCA has been designed with and for students. PCCA’s responsive school model was built on student voice. Through interviews, surveys, and focus groups the team with the students identified 3 areas of need that served as the foundation for school design:

●        Students want more access to rigorous courses that prepare them for college and career. 

●        Students want more relevant academic experiences that connect to their lives. 

●        Students want more opportunities to develop meaningful relationships that foster connections so that they feel valued, supported, and cared for in school.

PCCA DESIGN: Guided by these areas of need a design team comprised of educators, students, parents, community members, mentors, and professionals representing a variety of professions, identified the key knowledge, skills, and dispositions all PCCA students will graduate with, created a mission, vision, and student-centered learning model that students in Brockton want, need, and deserve.

PORTRAIT OF A GRADUATE: At PCCA we prepare students to be communicators, collaborators, critical thinkers, global citizens, resilient young adults, and future leaders.  Students will graduate with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to:

  • Succeed in credit-bearing college courses and successfully navigate a college setting. 
  • Compete in the workforce and participate in post-secondary job-related opportunities. 
  • Understand and manage emotions, set, and achieve goals, establish, and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions. 
  • Be financially literate and capable of participating in the economic system through financial management, understanding investments, and how the local, national, and international economies function. 
  • Practice critical consciousness — recognizing and analyzing systems of inequality and the commitment to take action against these systems 

PCCA MISSION: Our mission is to provide high school students in Brockton with rigorous, relevant, and engaging student-centered learning experiences which prepare them for college, career, and life.

PCCA VISION: Students will graduate from high school prepared to make informed choices about their educational and career paths, enabling them to live up to their promise and lead satisfying sustainable lives.

STUDENT-CENTERED LEARNING MODEL: The team created the following student-centered learning model to ensure our students graduate with the knowledge, skills, and competencies necessary to succeed in college, career, and life:

  • Research-Based Structures:  Based on research, PCCA has a later start time, small class size, and a personalized learning model to meet students' individual learning needs while incorporating their interests and preferences.
  • Blended Learning Model & Flexible Schedule: PCCA will operate under a blended learning model that includes Face-to-Face, Online, Experiential Learning, and additional structured learning time opportunities outside of the building.  Additionally, PCCA offers flexible scheduling options to accommodate our students’ lives and responsibilities outside of school.   This flexibility allows PCCA students the opportunity to participate in the after-school sports and activities offered at BHS.  Transportation will be provided.
  • Student Advisory: Advisory is the heart of PCCA. It is the home base for the school and is intended to build a strong sense of community among students and staff alike. Through our advisory structure, students will be assigned a caring adult who will help, support, and guide them from grade 9, through grade 12.
  • Competency-Based Learning: Our competency-based learning model takes “failure” out of the educational equation for students.  It is a teaching, learning, and assessment philosophy and practice that focuses on a student’s real skill progression throughout the year.
  • College & Career Planning: We believe that students should not have to choose between college and a career after graduation-- that's why we will prepare them for both.  Staff members will work with students to create a pathway to their targeted goals. Beginning in grade 9 students will participate in college tours and workshops, with the ultimate goal of taking advantage of our early college opportunities possibly leading to a high school diploma and an Associate's Degree at graduation.
  • Rigorous, Relevant & Engaging Learning Experiences: At PCCA students will participate in rigorous and relevant, and engaging learning opportunities that allow them to make authentic connections between their learning and the real world.  As part of our rigorous curriculum PCCA students will engage in Transformative Learning Experiences.  Transformative Learning Experiences or TLEs are high-quality project-based that provide students opportunities to develop identity, find purpose, and master competencies that are meaningful and linked to their goals for the future. Our TLEs are used in all content areas and aligned to the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks. 
  • Financial Literacy & Life Readiness: To truly be college and career-ready, students need a strong foundation in financial literacy and life readiness.  More than single courses offered once a year, students will engage in the following topics as part of their educational program: personal financial management, budgeting and investing, self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. Financial Literacy courses will be a requirement for all students as part of PCCA’s core curriculum.  
  • Culturally Responsive Education: PCCA provides a culturally responsive education that: affirms racial, linguistic, and cultural identities; makes meaningful connections between what students learn in school and their culture, language, and life experiences: elevates historically marginalized voices, and empowers students as agents of social change. 

WHO IS A GOOD CANDIDATE FOR PCCA?

PCCA is well-suited for rising ninth graders who are looking for a smaller, more personalized learning environment designed to support students’ individual learning needs while incorporating their interests and preferences.  PCCA students will engage in rigorous learning opportunities, early college enrollment, career-related internships, and experiential learning that will take place on-site and in the field.   Candidates should demonstrate a commitment to learning and engaging deeply in the PCCA community. PCCA will be a good fit for students who demonstrate interest in and commitment to self-growth and building a successful, supportive, and inclusive school community.

PROGRESSIVE STUDENT ENROLLMENT MODEL: Beginning in September of 2022, PCCA will serve 50 rising 9th graders, and add 50 students over the 3 years that follow to reach our total enrollment of 200 students.

APPLICATION PROCESS:  PCCA will be accepting applications for our first cohort of students starting in April.  Once the application is received, PCCA will contact applicants to schedule a student-family interview.