Bethesda, MD (PRWEB) April 27, 2012
The International Baccalaureate (IB) reached a milestone today with the authorization of its 2000th IB World School in Edinburg, Texas. The 2000th school authorization was awarded to South Texas Business, Education, and Technology Academy, better known as BETA, to offer the prestigious IB Diploma Programme (DP) to students. The IB applauds BETA on its achievement and welcomes BETA to its community of IB World Schools. Among BETA’s many honors and awards, it was ranked 1st in the state of Texas and 17th in the nation in the 2011 U.S. News & World Report Most Connected Classrooms Rankings.
The robust growth of the International Baccalaureate (IB) in the Americas and around the world continues. Founded in 1968, the IB works to offer and develop four challenging educational programs to over 1,010,000 students aged 3 to 19 years. In the Americas region, the IB supports 2,000 schools offering over 2,334 programs in 30 countries. In response to the significant growth in IB programs, Drew Deutsch, Director, IB Americas comments that, “The first IB World School in the Americas was founded in 1971, and today, 40 years later, we support 2,000 schools in this region alone. That is remarkable growth, considering that just five years ago, we had 1,215 IB World Schools in this region. This growth demonstrates that our increasingly interconnected and global world demands an approach to teaching that recognizes the nature of the challenge and prepares students accordingly. More schools than ever recognize the value IB programs provide. The mission and vision of the IB, its educational programs, and its professional development are all in demand as schools seek to meet these challenges and find methods that best prepare young people for a promising future.”
BETA, a college preparatory high school offering hands-on experience for tomorrow's leaders, is a diverse learning community that inspires and challenges its members to create synergy in the fields of business, education, and technology. According to Magdalena Gutierrez, Principal of BETA, “We at BETA are excited to offer the highly-regarded IB Diploma Programme and thrilled to be the 2000th IB World School to achieve authorization. The IB Diploma Programme will help us prepare our students to be future global leaders. As the BETA community joins other IB World Schools on this journey, I can truly say that we are excited and ready to open our students’ minds to a broader, more holistic worldview. We will reach out to those in our worldwide network of IB World Schools for guidance and support, in hopes that together, we will build mutual understanding and ultimately a more peaceful world.”
The IB works to develop a more diverse and inclusive IB community by enabling access to an IB education for all students regardless of circumstances. IB is a rigorous, college-preparatory curriculum delivered through public, private, and charter schools, as well as magnet programs in urban, suburban, and rural locations throughout the Americas and globally. The IB aims to break down barriers and create an environment where more students are able to access and benefit from an IB education.