To further expand the nation’s largest IB network and bring additional IB options to Chicago schools, Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Chicago Public Schools (CPS) leadership announced that Byrne, Kinzie and Lavizzo Elementary schools will become IB feeder schools beginning next year. The new feeder schools will prepare students for IB coursework in high school, helping move the District closer to Mayor Emanuel’s goal of having 50 percent of graduating seniors earning college and career credit by 2019. CPS will begin implementation of the IB Middle Years Programme (MYP) next school year at Byrne, Kinzie and Lavizzo, which have previously not offered any IB programming. All of the nearly 600 students in grades 6-8 at the new feeder schools will be exposed to high-quality IB programming, creating pathways for students to transition to IB programmes offered at neighboring high schools. The MYP curriculum is structured around eight subject areas designed to prepare students for future success: science, mathematics, language acquisition, language and literature, individuals and societies, physical and health education, art, and design. Implementation of the IB programmes at Byrne, Kinzie and Lavizzo will occur over a three-year period, during which teachers will be trained to offer IB courses, new coursework will be integrated and the school will go through a full IB authorization process.