Mayor Rahm Emanuel today announced that Clemente Community Academy High School will become the third, wall-to-wall International Baccalaureate (IB) school.

“Every student in every neighborhood in Chicago should have access to a high-quality education and Roberto Clemente’s adoption of the rigorous IB Programme is another step towards that goal,” said Mayor Emanuel. “Chicago’s students deserve every opportunity to excel, and we’ve seen time and time again, when you set the bar high, they rise to meet that challenge.”

Located in the Humboldt Park neighborhood, Clemente will join Back of the Yards High School and Senn High School in Edgewater as three of five new, wall-to-wall IB schools opening across the District.  In the coming weeks, CPS will announce the additional two high schools that will adopt the wall-to-wall IB Programme and the five schools that will gain the IB Programme as an additional curriculum option.

“Bringing this one-of-a-kind IB Programme to Clemente helps create an environment that encourages success for every student,” said First Ward Alderman Joe Moreno.  “I am pleased to partner with CPS and the Mayor to make this a reality.”

In March, Mayor Emanuel and CPS CEO Jean-Claude Brizard announced the District would open five new IB programmes in neighborhood schools and five wall-to-wall IB schools in fall of 2013 with final authorization set for 2016.

The strategic expansion of IB programmes throughout the District is part of the continuing effort to provide high quality school options for every student in every neighborhood across the City of Chicago. The decision to convert Clemente into a wall-to-wall IB school was made after significant engagement with the Humboldt Part community and discussions with key community stakeholders.

“The Mayor's initiative to make Clemente High School a wall-to-wall IB school - which will ensure access to every student - is indeed a major milestone for this community,” added Representative Cynthia Soto. “It will help to frame, content-wise, our Community As A Campus concept which we have been working on for most of the schools in my 4th state legislative district.”

“We wholeheartedly welcome the Mayor's effort to transform Clemente into a wall-to-wall IB school,” stated Puerto Rican Cultural Center Executive Director Jose Lopez. “This will serve as the bedrock for the ‘Community As A Campus’ vision, where all residents can participate in a learning process where they are engaging in creating self-sufficiency within a collective and democratic community building experience.”

According to the University of Chicago Consortium on Chicago School Research, CPS IB students are 40 percent more likely to attend a four‐year college and 50 percent more likely to attend a more selective college. Additionally, IB student’s college retention rate is nearly 90 percent. 

“Today’s announcement is victory for the students and families throughout my district.  Clemente’s new IB program will provide our students with strong qualifications, making them very competitive for college admissions,” said State Senator William Delgado.  “ I am very grateful for the Mayor’s support of this unique and important program.”

In a wall-to-wall IB school, every freshman and sophomore student will participate in what is called the Middle Years Programme (MYP). At the completion of sophomore year, students can proceed to either the full Diploma Programme, opt for an IB certificate where students can take one or more IB classes, opt for an IB career related certificate or fulfill an IB core requirement. Ultimately, every student at Clemente will touch the IB Programme in some way.

CPS currently offers IB programmes to approximately 3,500 students throughout the city at 13 high schools: Amundsen, Bogan, Curie, Hubbard, Hyde Park, Kelly, Lincoln Park, Morgan Park, Prosser, Steinmetz, Senn, Taft, and Washington. Ogden and Shore South Shore International College Prep have recently opened and are going through the authorization process. There are also programs at 21 CPS elementary schools.

Approximately 75 percent of CPS’ IB students are African-American and Latino, and live in low-income neighborhoods, the majority being first generation college students.

Located at 1147 N. Western Avenue, Clemente currently has approximately 1,500 students enrolled. The school offers a wide array of extracurricular activities such as band/orchestra, graphic design, activism and social impact clubs, JROTC, boys’ and girls’ basketball, baseball, tennis and swimming.

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