2015
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NBRS Badge for Yinghua Academy

Yinghua Academy - Minneapolis, MN

Yinghua Academy first graders skate with dragon mascot overhead.

Yinghua Academy first graders skate with dragon mascot overhead.

Yinghua Academy is a national leader in Mandarin Chinese immersion education. It was founded in 2006 as the first Chinese immersion charter public school in the U.S. and the first Chinese immersion school of any type in the Midwest. Yinghua is a bilingual, tuition-free, public K-8 charter school with a full immersion approach, meaning the content delivered in Chinese is not translated into English later in the day or week. The school places high priority on preserving the integrity of language immersion by not introducing English until second grade. By fifth grade, when students have acquired the language, instruction switches to a maintenance approach through a 50% Chinese, 50% English model of instruction. Older students have the opportunity to travel on a 15-day field trip to China, including home stays with sister school families in Inner Mongolia. Yinghua’s unique program, combined with the consistent academic success of its students, has enabled it to enjoy robust growth. A significant building addition was completed in 2014 which doubled the total square footage of the original building. The new state-of-the-art facilities are inclusive of a middle school wing, music classrooms, an art studio, a science lab, and a full-size gymnasium—where roller skating occasionally takes place! In 2014 Yinghua was one of five (out of 851) schools world-wide to receive a Confucius Classroom of the Year award through the Confucius Institute.

2015 Awardee

Yinghua Academy

1616 Buchanan Street, NE
Minneapolis, MN, 55419-1609

(612) 788-9095

Principal at time of Nomination:
Mrs. Susan Berg

Charter School

Yinghua Academy 4140-07

Urban or large central city

School Website

School Facebook

Mission

Yinghua Academy mission is to prepare our students to be engaged and productive global citizens by providing a research-based educational program that includes a rigorous academic program, immersion in Chinese language and culture, and a nurturing an...

Student Demographics

  • Asian: 35%
  • Black/African American: 3%
  • Hispanic: 3%
  • Native American: 1%
  • White: 48%
  • Two or more races: 10%
  • ELL: 7%
  • Economically Disadvantaged: 13%
  • Application