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BENTONVILLE -- Confetti filled the room as students, educators and community members celebrated new academic programming at Washington Junior High School. It will become the Bentonville School District's sixth parent choice school starting next fall, officials announced during a special event at Washington on Tuesday. The school will offer International Baccalaureate programming starting in the 2026-27 academic year. The programming developed by the nonprofit International Baccalaureate organization encourages students to develop a global perspective in education through respect, inquiry, growth and service. "We believe that this transition will only further our efforts to go beyond test scores and help prepare these young people to not only compete and excel in a global society, but also to help them help change it for the better," said Timothy Sparacino, principal of Washington Junior High. The program will help the school build on its already "rigorous and relevant instructional methods" to include global concepts, language acquisition skills and service projects that benefit the community, he said. "We're a great fit because we already have a record of excellence, and so this is just going to help take us even farther," he said. Sparacino said Washington Junior High is ideally situated near institutions and businesses; the Alice Walton School of Medicine and Walmart's new headquarters are both about a mile from Washington. The school hopes to build partnerships with those entities to engage with the global education aspects and service project component of International Baccalaureate, he said. Parent choice schools in Bentonville offer themed programming integrated with the traditional academic curriculum. Two parent choice schools -- The International School at Mary Mae Jones, an elementary-level school, and Ruth Barker Middle School -- already offer International Baccalaureate programming. The district's high schools also offer International Baccalaureate. The transition at Washington Junior High next year will enable Bentonville students to pursue an International Baccalaureate education at all school levels. "When the district began parent choice schools several years ago with what was Mary Mae Jones and is now International School at Mary Mae, we had in mind a way to be really progressive in our thinking, global in our thinking, and invite parents to make choices that were best for their children and create really unique learning opportunities for them," Superintendent Debbie Jones said. "And I can say that the International School has been overwhelmingly successful, and it's a model loved by the community." She described Washington Junior High as "a perfect place" to continue the district's effort. "Washington is already exceptional in their academic achievement, they're exceptional with orchestra and band, and so we only are excited to see this model grow and be successful," Jones said. The district has three more parent choice schools, all at the elementary level. Sugar Creek Arts Academy incorporates arts-based assignments into typical academic subjects. Thomas Jefferson Leadership Academy places a focus on growing students' leadership skills as they progress through the elementary-level curriculum. Apple Glen Elementary is a "visible learning school," meaning student collaboration and curiosity are encouraged as they lead their own learning and engage in problem-solving. The School District started the parent choice school program to promote attendance at its centrally located buildings, which are under capacity. Themed programming has attracted some families zoned for more populated schools to enroll in the district's five parent choice schools. Ginna Wallace from RSP & Associates, a school planning consulting firm working with the district to develop future growth projections, briefed School Board members on enrollment trends during an Oct. 9 board work session. She noted the parent choice schools experience a higher rate of students transferring in than other schools within the district. Wallace said the district's parent choice schools have had 377 students transfer into them this year. The four elementary schools gained 324 students from other zones, and Ruth Barker Middle School gained 53 as of Oct. 9. The application window for families in other zones wanting to enroll in parent choice schools next year is Jan. 5-18. Priority is given to families with siblings in the same school, students of school employees and students currently enrolled in a school at or above capacity, according to information provided by the district. Schools at or near capacity include Centerton Gamble, Vaughn and Evening Star elementary schools. Students already zoned to one of the district's parent-choice schools can apply for any other school in the district where space is available if they want to pursue a different learning model. Bentonville students are committed to a parent choice school for one year upon enrollment. Families do not need to reapply each year to remain at the school.
