Smart Choice

  1. Home
  2. Smart Choice

A Smart Alternative to the Local Public High School

City Charter High School has a 94% Average Overall Graduation Rate over the last 4 years with the same inspiring percentage for African-American students. 

82% of our students qualify for The Pittsburgh Promise Scholarship, among the highest of all Pittsburgh Public Schools. 

Here are some of the reasons our students do so well. 

Best Practices

We believe success for our students is due to our rather non-traditional approach to high school. 

Our unique trimester system (with well planned breaks in August, December and April) means kids don’t’ have time to forget what they learned from one session to the next. 

Our teachers “loop” with the same students over all 4 years, gaining insight into each child’s individual learning style and pitfalls, continually adapting to make sure every child learns to the best of their ability. 

Transition Managers/Counselors work with every student to map out their future, whether that’s college, trade programs, or directly to work. 

A career-focused experience convinces students that what they do at City High impacts their future. So, we work with various businesses, professionals and organizations in the community to offer students real-world experience to explore a potential career. 

In addition to FREE* laptops, our students also get the software skills training and certifications to prepare them for their future. Wireless Internet allows fast access to information resources, assignments, and grades. 

Builds buy-in to seriousness of school. Students are part of downtown community and prepared to go out on internships and site visits. 

Our curriculum is structured to empower students with Cultural, Scientific, Wellness and Work-skills Literacy, needed for communication in today’s competitive business world along with life skills needed to thrive, whether in career, college or work. 

Technology

A FREE laptop for every student at the beginning of freshman year ensures they have the primary tool to do work, communicate and manage information. Students can also earn Microsoft and Adobe industry certifications, which provide a strong workforce foundation. 

College/Career Focus

Using innovations like career mapping, goal setting, peer sharing, mentored internships, and résumé & mock job interview classes, City Charter High School students are well prepared for their place in the world after high school. To facilitate student success, they are supported by a dedicated Post-High School Planning Team. 

Career Exposure

A career-focused experience convinces students that what they do at City High impacts their future. So, we work with various businesses, professionals and organizations in the community to offer students a 13-week internship to explore a potential career. It allows them to get a taste of the real work environment. But before they go out into the business world, we arm them with business orientation skills, like time-management, collaboration and an overall professional work ethic. 

Distance Learning Preparedness 

From its inception, City Charter High School has offered FREE* Laptops, software training and certification, and tech support to keep students connected. They check and submit assignments online – often communicate with teachers and each other through email, Google Meet, text and phone. Our students regularly use Google Classroom – creating a “virtual classroom” so they can learn wherever they are. 

LEARN MORE