Over 20 Years of Excellence in Education: From the Clark Building to Stanwix Street
Our History
City High opened its doors on September 3, 2002. Founded by Richard Wertheimer and Mario Zinga, two former Pittsburgh Public School teachers, City High enrolled students from across the city’s neighborhoods and from neighboring districts.
The school’s model was performance-oriented from the beginning, with unique and innovative features such as teacher looping, a year-round schedule, a business casual dress code, and strict attendance standards. A focus on workforce skills helped students navigate their post-high school paths, whether in higher education, the trades, the military, or the workforce, with all students completing a 13-week internship. All students received a laptop and could earn Microsoft Office certifications as part of their required technology curriculum.
As part of the ten-year anniversary of the school, City High continued to develop its mission of innovative education by expanding its focus on independent learning in a custom-built educational environment. In 2012, the school moved to its current location of 201 Stanwix Street in the Golden Triangle. This move not only allowed for increased enrollment, but also for the creation of our unique “Senior Model” in students’ 12th grade year to support independent learning. The new facility also features a professional kitchen for chef-prepared healthy food selections and a dedicated on-site fitness center was also custom built to meet the needs of the student body.
Since the retirement of founders Richard Wertheimer and Mario Zinga, City High has been led by two CEOs, Dr. Ron Sofo (2012-2018) and Dr. Dara Ware Allen (2018- present). Students have continued to achieve at high levels, and our attendance and graduation rates and Pittsburgh Promise eligibility numbers continue to be some of the highest in the city. City High has matured, developed, and created an innovative educational model that works and has stood the test of time. We’re encouraged and proud that we’ve played a pivotal role in helping to change the educational landscape in Pittsburgh with our student-centered and teaming approach to education, proving that all students can achieve amazing things when their potential is nurtured and they are held to high expectations.
Over the years City High has been the recipient of many awards and recognitions. Notably, in 2009, City High received the Effective Practice Incentive Community (“EPIC”) award for best-performing charter schools in the United States by New Leaders for New Schools. This rated City High as one of the top charter schools in the country. More recently, City High was recognized as a High Quality Charter School and the recipient of a $1.3 million dollar grant from the Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools. We have been recognized several times with awards from Top Workplaces in Pittsburgh awards and Niche.com.
To celebrate our achievements and our 20-year anniversary, we hosted an educational symposium to share our discoveries and best practices with educators from Pittsburgh and surrounding areas on July 11, 2022, and an anniversary event to celebrate our educational partners and major stakeholders on August 3, 2022.
20th Anniversary Celebration
City High’s accomplishments would not be possible without the support from individuals and organizations critical to its success: community partners, internship mentors, grantmakers, and local educators. Our celebration recognized 20 years of educational innovation, honoring our distinguished alumni and community partners. The event included a silent auction, student performances, awards ceremony and the world premiere of a short film highlighting City High’s achievements, “Building Relationships”.
CITY HIGH 20TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION AWARD RECIPIENTS
From L to R: Dr. Dara Allen, CEO and Principal of City Charter High School - 20th Celebration MC, Trevor Clinkscales, Dean of Students —Penn Hills Charter School of Entrepreneurship—STANDOUT Alumnus and Keynote Speaker; Jennifer Miller, Director of Human Resources —Renaissance Pittsburgh Hotel - STANDOUT Mentor; Ted Novitsky, PhD, Technical Manager Architectural Coatings - Growth and Specialties and Jacob Bezeck, Human Resources Business Partner at PPG Architectural Coatings—PPG Industries - STANDOUT Promising Partner; LeJune D. Williams-Clements, AVP Development Program Manager, PartnerUp/High School Initiatives—PNC PartnerUp - STANDOUT Community Partner; Ms. Markeya Lowry, Operations and Community Manager PULSE - STANDOUT Mentor; Kelly Gascoine, Manager, Volunteers and Internship Program and Steve Kovac, Senior Director of Service & Engagement—Carnegie Science Center - STANDOUT Community Partner; and Malissa Seman, Manager Talent Programs, Highmark Health—Highmark Straight to Business - STANDOUT Promising Partner
Student Performers
The Celebration's student showcase featured a performance by rising seniors Malik Hubbard and Destiny Ellibe, students in City Charter High School's August Wilson elective course. Co-taught by history teacher Mark Barga and English teacher Claire Lyskava, the August Wilson class is an interdisciplinary study of August Wilson's life and work, with a particular focus on Pittsburgh history, race, and identity. Malik and Destiny's performance captures the spirit of the class, which pushes students who often have little to no theater background to embrace dramatic performance as a vehicle for personal empowerment, community discourse, and social change.Malik and Destiny performed a scene from The Piano Lesson, an August Wilson play set in Pittsburgh's Hill District in the 1930s.
City High's Summer Symposium: Nurturing Student Growth Through Innovation
Held Monday, July 11thWith Keynote Speaker - Dr. Valerie Kinloch,
Renée and Richard Goldman Endowed Dean and Professor of the University of Pittsburgh School of Education
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We thank all of our Educators and Youth Serving Professionals who attended.
Symposium Workshops
City High 101 - Teacher Panel
Moderator: Dr. Mark Barga, Social Studies Elective Teacher & Educational Leader
- Katie Seidler, Looping Learning Support Teacher
- Claire Lyskava, Electives Teacher
- Aleksandr Permyashkin, Looping Social Studies Teacher
- Alesha Platt, Assistant Principal
Session Workshops
Mindfulness & Self-Regulation in the Classroom
Presenter: Matthew Kizior - Career TeacherWhat is mindfulness in practice? How can I use meditation or mindfulness techniques to be less attached to my thoughts and do a better job of being in the moment in the classroom? Through this workshop, we will learn and discuss methods of mindfulness we can use to be more aware of what is going on from moment-to-moment and create a more positive framework through which to approach our craft. We will utilize guided meditation, group discussion, and consider best practices in regards to our self-regulation and well-being as educators.
Collaboration at City High: The Power of Team Teaching & Co-Planning
City High has always believed team teaching is better for both our staff and our students. This workshop will focus on our collaborative approach and provide participants with different co-teaching styles and strategies. We will provide time for you to consider ways to enhance or improve team teaching in your classroom. Teaching associates, learning support teachers, and lead teachers from all stages of their career can benefit from this workshop.
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Science Engagement in an Urban Setting
Led by City High looping and elective science teachers, participants will engage in a whiteboard scientist meeting, explore scientific phenomena and discussions aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards, and experience station activities and escape rooms that further our Choice, Voice, and Movement school-wide initiative. Participants will receive a sampling of classroom-tested activities ready to implement at the start of your next school year.
Relationships Matter
Presenters: Nathan Budziszewski - Business Teacher Class of 2025, Theodore Zatezalo - Cultural Literacy Teacher Class of 2025In this workshop, we will examine student/teacher relationships and break down the challenges, opportunities, and best practices of what works when it comes to building relationships with our students.
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Collaboration at City High: Post High School Planning Success
Career Teacher, Keiha Drummond -
Internship Manager, Alesha Platt - Principal for Class of 2024 and former Transition Manager
The task of successfully empowering students with the necessary tools and support mechanisms to make realistic and viable post high school choices has confounded educators, counselors and parents for decades, often leaving students unprepared for the realities of life and unsure of what educational training or career path to choose. City High believes it has found the right approach, a team approach, to help students navigate this path successfully. A collaborative effort involving classroom educators, internship managers, and transition advisors combines to provide every student with the support, knowledge, and practice necessary to make empowered decisions about their future goals. This presentation will describe, in detail, how this collective team effort fully involves students in designing their own plan for post-secondary success with the full weight and support of a team of caring professionals behind them.
Financial Literacy at City High
Managing a budget, buying a car, and understanding credit are some of the key topics we cover in Financial Literacy. This workshop will provide an overview of the Financial Literacy Program at City High. We will share the skills and concepts we focus on while providing content ideas as well as sharing student work.
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21st Century Information Literacy
Presenters: Deborah Domingues-Murphy - Information Literacy Teacher Class of 2024, Ian Paul - Information Literacy Teacher Class of 2022Participants will learn how City High develops the skills needed for students to effectively navigate the information landscape using critical analysis, academic research and news literacy skills. We’ll discuss how students apply these skills to two year capstone projects that require them to research a community issue and engage in a community action project.
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Cultural Literacy: A Model for Fostering Empathy and Empowerment
Cultural Literacy has been described as “the beating heart of City High”. The cross-curricular experience challenges students to explore their world using critical literacy skills with an end goal of gaining deeper insights into their own lives and values as well as that of underrepresented people locally and globally. This workshop surveys the various opportunities provided by the Cult Lit model, how it capitalizes on other models in use at City High, and presents best practices across the curriculum for executing an enriching Cult Lit experience for students.
Homegrown Leadership
Presenters: Angela Welch -Education Manager and Principal Class of 2025, Tiana DeLaRosa - Principal Class of 2022Growing and promoting teachers into leaders is an essential process at City High. In order to run a highly progressive and successful school, City High's Administration and Educational Leaders mentor and foster leadership skills among the staff to maintain the school's culture, mission and core beliefs over time and as the school continues to evolve. Tiana DeLaRosa and Angela Welch are both homegrown leaders who have become assistant principals after spending time within the classroom at City Charter High School.
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Student Panel