The International Academy

The International Academy at the Academies of Alexandria City High School in Alexandria, Virginia, is a unique program designed for recent immigrant students who are learning English. It offers core academic courses, targeted interventions, and select electives, all within a supportive environment that promotes language development and academic success. Unlike traditional ELL (English Language Learner) programs that group students based on English proficiency—often delaying their progress toward graduation—our students are enrolled in credit-bearing classes from day one. These classes are taught by interdisciplinary teams of teachers who collaborate to deliver rigorous, grade-level content while accelerating students’ acquisition of academic English. Through project-based learning and mixed-language proficiency groups, students build communication, collaboration, and critical thinking skills. They also participate fully in electives and are active members of all Titan clubs, sports, and activities, ensuring a well-rounded high school experience as they work toward on-time graduation and preparation for college and careers.

Network for Success

We are one of many member schools in the Internationals Network for Public Schools, INPS, based in New York City. All INPS schools are based on a model emphasizing heterogeneity and collaboration, experiential learning, language and content integration, localized autonomy and responsibility, and one learning model for all. The INPS model has produced graduation rates for ELL students more than double the rate for ELL students in traditional school settings in the New York City public school system.For more information about INPS, please visit internationalsnps.org

Decades of Growth

Bringing the INPS model was a grassroots effort led by a team of staff dedicated to improving outcomes for Alexandria’s growing immigrant student population. Bethany Nickerson, Danielle Wierzbicki, and Susannah Courand first learned of the INPS model in 2009. After years of research, planning, and collaboration with INPS staff, T.C. Williams High School teachers (the name changed in 2021), and the Alexandria City Public Schools Office of English Language Learners, the International Academy went live in September of 2012 with its first cohort of students, about 200 ninth grade students – class of 2016. Over the years, the numbers have grown and at the present day we have almost 800 students from over 40 questions with over 15 languages spoken. In 2024, the International Academy was integrated into the Academies of Alexandria City model and is proud to showcase its success as a collaborative academy for over 15 years!