About Catalyst

A garden is a burst of color, a sign of growth and renewal, a reminder that a little dirt, water and sunshine will produce natural beauty. Especially this year, after months of being stuck inside due to the pandemic, we find our eyes wandering outside and appreciating the spring growth perhaps more than in the past. We may not be taking a walk in the woods, but at Catalyst, we are bringing natural beauty into our space and learning about nature. Catalyst’s own art teacher, Emily Newman, recently spearheaded our Community Garden project. Beautifying our space and learning how nature works [...]

Kindergarten and first grade may sound too soon for STEM activities, but early exposure is the key to unlocking a student’s curiosity and sparking a lifelong interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. At Catalyst Academy, every day of the week we are using STEM activities to help our scholars understand how the world works, and to encourage problem-solving and creativity that will benefit them in all areas of study.  What does STEM look like at Catalyst Academy? It looks like FUN!  Kindergarten scholars recently engineered a way to protect a mini skateboard from being blown away by high winds in [...]

Reading is transformative. Reading impacts how we communicate with others and bridges how we identify with others. Reading is a vital foundational skill for learning at every age. Unlocking a love for reading while a young person, can open the doors to a lifelong love of learning and exploration. And creating a lifelong love for learning is a big part of our mission here at Catalyst.  Reading benefits us psychologically. Reading can inform how we understand the world.  Reading to and with our scholars in grades K-2 is one of the best things caregiving adults can do. Not only does it [...]

At Catalyst we are dedicated to preparing our scholars to achieve their dreams. By closing achievement and opportunity gaps, our educational philosophy seeks mastery along three dimensions:college readiness, career readiness and life readiness. This week we are focusing on life readiness. Here’s a quick review of what all three mean to us:  College Readiness All scholars will be prepared to attend and graduate from a four-year college or university.  Catalyst scholars will be prepared by achieving mastery of a broad, rigorous college-preparatory curriculum that both prepares and inspires. Career Readiness All scholars need to be equipped with the skills to thrive [...]

Changing your child’s school can feel daunting. Sometimes it’s more daunting for parents than for the student. Here we’re focusing on the second grade and how truly seamless it can be. At Catalyst, we are ready to welcome your second grader to our founding second grade class.  Open for only K and 1st for the 2020-2021 school year, we are thrilled with our successes as a new public charter school. As our charter outlined, we will grow a grade each year until we are a K-8 public school. We prepare every one of our scholars to define and achieve their dreams. [...]

At Catalyst, play time is very important to us. We ensure our scholars get PE four days a week! Plus plenty of recess time and movement brain breaks. Why?  We’re very glad you asked.  Play creates a sense of adventure and nurtures imagination. Through play, children of all ages, learn valuable skills like working with others, sharing, problem-solving and more. In turn, play can also help our scholars develop their ability to concentrate. “Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children, play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood.” [...]

Kindergarten is a special time for every child. It’s also an important decision for families and caregivers - which kindergarten to choose. Thank you for considering us in your search. At Catalyst, we love Kindergarten!  Catalyst is a tuition-free public charter school, the first new public school in over six years in Pittsburgh. We’re here to make and keep learning fun. We aim to prepare our scholars for a lifetime of curiosity, confidence and character-building. Our school is currently K-1 and will be a K-2 in the 2021-2022 school year, so we can focus on our youngest learners, and grow with [...]

Belong. Grow. Achieve. Our common values are the cornerstone of our educational efforts at Catalyst. While founding and opening our tuition-free charter school in a pandemic truly made for some unprecedented experiences, we could not be more proud of how far we have come -- together.  We are thrilled to share the results of our recent family survey. We feel it’s a litmus test of the intention and accountability we ascribe to  -- as partners --  with our much valued families as a whole, and to each special, individual, beloved scholar as a unique learner.  How did we do? We’re glad [...]

Oh 2020, let us count the ways you disrupt.  Our first graders, like students of all ages and stages around the world, have been impacted by the global health pandemic and coronavirus. The disruption to their previous school year and 2020 spring semester has caused expected learning slippage. Here are some ways we’re addressing first grade gaps: Informing our instructional practices with universal screeners given to all students at the beginning of the year and monitoring progress. Using daily exit ticket data to target instruction and small group interaction. Utilizing after-school time to play learning games with our scholars as they [...]

Elise Neill Founding STEM Teacher, North Pittsburgh Symphonic Band Oboe Player and Girl Scout Leader My hope is that our scholars will not be afraid to explore, discover, and sometimes make mistakes as they delve into the deeper mysteries of coding, science and engineering. I chose to teach at Catalyst because our scholars get to experience STEM in the classroom more than once a week. We explore different topics and test many engineering challenges. My desire to go into education started out in high school, but took a hiatus as I found a niche in computer programming. It was while volunteering [...]