NEW ORLEANS – The International School of Louisiana (ISL), an A-rated language immersion school, announced it will expand its campuses to include the former Mary McLeod Bethune Campus at 4040 Eagle St. in New Orleans – a campus building that became available when Bethune Elementary relocated its campus to Humanity Street.
ISL plans to make the campus an early childhood concentrated facility for grades K-2, housing up to 400 students. ISL currently has three other campuses Uptown, the Westbank and Jefferson, as well as a temporary campus in Mid-City.
The Orleans Parish School Board approved the move in December and the ISL Board will vote to approve the lease at a special Board of Trustees meeting this January. The move to the Bethune campus will help the school address its need to accommodate a growing student population and provide accessible facilities to its greater New Orleans student body, school reps said.
“We are thrilled to acquire this beautiful, historical campus for our younger children to learn and thrive,” said Melanie Tennyson, ISL Head of School. “Our goal is to educate as many students in the greater New Orleans area as possible, and accommodate our growing list of applicants.”
In Orleans Parish, ISL plans to house grades 3-8 at its Camp Street location Uptown and K-5 at its Olivier Street campus on the Westbank.
The former Bethune building, now the ISL Mid-City/Dixon campus is a historical building designed by famed architect E.A. Christy with green spaces and playgrounds with two separate play yards. The campus is in close proximity to I-10, where Old Metairie meets Mid-City, right at the Jefferson/Orleans parish line, off Airline Highway.
“We are happy to be part of the Dixon neighborhood and look forward to building a strong community presence,” said Tennyson. “ISL places an emphasis on community involvement and we know our diverse body of students and staff will only add to an already vibrant area.”
The International School of Louisiana is the only tuition-free, multi-language immersion school in Louisiana, school reps said. ISL is an A-rated School by the Department of Education and was named a National “Charter School of the Year” by the Center for Education Reform. It is a State-Certified World Language Immersion School and received the School Award for Exemplary Education of Young Men of Color by the Coalition of Schools Educating Boys of Color.
ISL reps said students at ISL are introduced to the world’s rich cultural heritage through a rigorous and expansive education taught in French or Spanish. With its emphasis on international awareness, the celebration of diversity and community responsibility, ISL's unique curriculum strengthens basic academic skills as it prepares students for success in today's worldwide marketplace, they said.
