Fairfax Elementary named IB World School

Fairfax Elementary School.

Fairfax Elementary School has been named an authorized International Baccalaureate (IB) World School, Primary Years Programme (PYP). It is the fifth school in the Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District to join the world education program.

“This is such an important accomplishment for Fairfax and for our district as a whole," said CH-UH Superintendent Elizabeth Kirby. "It means we’ve achieved our goal of having five authorized IB schools by 2020.” She said the program "provides our schools with a comprehensive framework for an academic experience that benefits every student." She credited IB Coordinator Leslie Garrett and Fairfax Principal Quatrice James with getting the school through the vigorous acceptance process.

Garrett said IB PYB philosphy is about making students "prepared citizens of the world." She said, "It's a holistic approach to teaching and learning," with goals of problem-solving and making a difference. Both students and teachers are encouraged to take action. For example, Garrett said a teacher might organize a field trip based on student inquiries, or a student might start a bottled water collection in response to the lead crisis in Flint, Mich.

The five authorized IB schools in the CH-UH School District are Canterbury Elementary, Fairfax Elementary, Roxboro Elementary, Monticello Middle, and Roxboro Middle. Canterbury, Fairfax, and Roxboro are three of just 19 schools in the state of Ohio to offer the Primary Years Programme. Monticello and Roxboro are two of only 11 schools in Ohio to offer the IB Middle Years Programme.