Babcock Neighborhood School Selected for Summit Learning Innovation Program
Babcock Neighborhood School, located in Babcock Ranch, America’s first solar-powered town located just northeast of Fort Myers on Babcock Ranch Road/State Road 31, was selected to join the Summit Learning Innovation Schools program.
One of only 13 schools chosen from more than 400 Summit Learning Schools across the country to participate in the program, Babcock Neighborhood School will join teachers and students from approximately 40 schools nationwide to receive early access to new features on the Summit Learning Platform and have an opportunity to provide feedback to help shape the program.
Babcock Neighborhood School was the first school in Florida to offer the certified Summit Learning program, which is part of a national charter network that focuses on personalized, project-based learning.
“Summit Learning challenges students to adapt to a different way of thinking and a higher level of engagement,” said Shannon Treece, Babcock Neighborhood School principal. “Rather than regurgitating information, they are applying what they’re learning to the real world. It’s totally transparent approach that requires them to pay attention to their learning style and holds them accountable.”
“Being selected as an Innovation School recognizes all the hard work our teachers and students are doing and validates how well it’s working,” she said.
Treece added that Babcock Neighborhood school will implement the Summit Learning program as it adds eighth grade next year and then grades nine through 12 over the following couple of school years as plans for the addition of a high school develop.
Along with the Summit platform, Babcock Neighborhood School features a “STEAM” curriculum that focuses on active learning and collaboration in science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics.
Months before the first residents were due to arrive in the new town, Babcock Neighborhood School welcomed a full roster of students from kindergarten through sixth grade. Last August, they added seventh grade and the school population more than doubled when classes opened in the brand new, full-size K-8 facility that was fast-tracked to accommodate the many families who are moving to Babcock Ranch.
Babcock Ranch was created by Kitson & Partners with respect for the natural environment and the philosophy that smart growth and sustainability work hand in hand. Half of the town’s 18,000-acre footprint is set aside as greenways, parks and expansive lakes, providing recreation and scenic backdrops for Babcock Ranch’s homes and the Founder’s Square downtown district.
Emphasizing a front-porch lifestyle to nurture a sense of community, Babcock Ranch promotes healthy living through a walkable community plan with 50 miles of planned biking and hiking trails, the 4.5-acre Jack Peeples Park with tennis, pickleball and basketball courts, interconnected lakes for paddling enthusiasts, a robust calendar of exercise classes, and the Healthy Life Center managed by Lee Health at Founder’s Square, with health club facilities, nutrition counseling, therapeutic services, and medical offices.
Table & Tap restaurant, Slater’s Goods & Provisions, Square Scoops Coffee & Creamery, Curry Creek Outfitters, and Babcock Neighborhood School welcomed the greater community to Founder’s Square even before the arrival of the town’s first residents. Founder’s Square is also home to Bloom Academy, offering infant care through VPK, and The Hatchery and Hive co-working classroom and meeting spaces.
A sprawling downtown park offers a lakefront bandshell, boardwalk, covered pavilions, and charging stations for electronics, including cars. An autonomous shuttle – part of the town’s mobility plan – provides transportation between homes and Founder’s Square. And with plans to expand into On Demand services, goods delivery, and hourly/daily car rentals within the next year, Babcock Ranch will continue offering compelling mobility solutions that reduce the need for car ownership in the new town.
Babcock Ranch has eight homebuilders offering more than 50 home designs for nearly every lifestyle, from condominiums to villas to single-family estates ranging from 1,107 to 5,000 square feet.
Homes appeal to young millennials, families, empty nesters and retirees alike, with prices ranging from the $190,000s to more than $1 million. Homes are built to Florida Green Building Coalition standards, emphasizing energy and water conservation, and offer a full gigabyte of fiber-optic connectivity.
Twenty-five model and quick-delivery homes are now open or under construction by Arthur Rutenberg Homes, Florida Lifestyle Homes, Fox Premier Builders, Lennar, Pulte Homes, Solara Homes, and Stock Classic Homes. Many models are open for viewing daily.
Babcock National, a new golf and country club community within Babcock Ranch, will feature more than 18 of Lennar’s most popular home designs. A mix of multi-family and single-family homes, including condominiums, luxury coach homes, executive homes, and estate-style designs, will incorporate innovative design details and Lennar’s signature Everything’s Included® program that provides customers with a high level of standard features already included in the home price. Homes at Babcock National start in the $190,000s.
For more information about Southwest Florida’s new hometown, located just northeast of Fort Myers off Babcock Ranch Road/State Road 31, visit the Discovery Center inside Woodlea Hall at 42850 Crescent Loop in Babcock Ranch, call 877-709-6620, or contact us.