JA Schools Shortlisted for World’s Best School Prizes 2023
August 28, 2023
The World’s Best School Prizes are the world’s most prestigious school recognition, and this year, at least seven JA schools have made the shortlist.
The prizes celebrate the stories of schools that are transforming the lives of their students and making a real difference in their communities around the globe. The five winning schools share a cash award to help them continue transforming education. But more important, the World’s Best School Prizes grant schools global recognition of their work and give them a platform to amplify their voices.
But before the announcement of the five winners later this year comes the shortlist: the top ten schools in each of the five categories.
The Community Collaboration prize recognizes schools that are true learning institutions that benefit all members of the community and grant the opportunity for all stakeholders to take ownership in every child’s education.
The Environmental Action prize recognizes the importance of youth, students, and schools in climate action that engage with solutions for global warming and climate crisis.
The Innovation prize recognizes “leapfrog” innovation in schools that help improve access, quality, and relevance, especially for the most marginalized children.
The Overcoming Adversity prize recognizes schools that go above and beyond to support and develop socio-emotional skills in students that can support their personal growth and the school as a community.
The Supporting Healthy Lives prize recognizes schools that provide access, relevance, and opportunities for students, staff, and the community to develop healthy habits, behaviors, knowledge, and skills.
Meet the JA School Finalists
EEMTI Joaquim Bastos Gonçalves
Location: Ceará, Brazil
Category: Supporting Healthy Lives
JA location: JA Ceará (JA Brazil)
EEMTI Joaquim Bastos Gonçalves, a government secondary school in Carnaubal, Ceará, Brazil, has provided a lifeline to students struggling to reintegrate society since the COVID-19 pandemic, but also created a culture of support and empathy throughout the school community. With a 67% drop in just 18 months in students requiring social and emotional support, the school’s Adopt a Student project has not only improved the lives of pupils, but has also raised awareness about the importance of mental health within the school community and beyond. The Adopt a Student project identifies vulnerable students, provides them with assistance from a professional psychologist, helps the students work more effectively on socio-emotional skills in classrooms, and educates the school community about the importance of mental health.
JA Ceará built an entrepreneurial elective course for the school that takes place over 80 hours during the academic year. JA students learn about the future of work, the perks of staying in school, the business world, and, ultimately, how to start a company. Read more.
ISIS Europa
Location: Naples, Italy
Category: Innovation
JA location: JA Italy
ISIS Europa, a government secondary school in Pomigliano d'Arco, Naples, Italy, is forging a new path for its disadvantaged students and community by adopting innovative approaches to education and providing the digital skills needed to succeed in today's job market. ISIS Europa stands in an economically disadvantaged community, where people tend to have little hope in their prospects and a great deal of distrust in public institutions. The school recognized this challenge and developed the Europa Community Service project. Through this project, the school developed the Web Community Professional Commercial Services address, enabling thousands of students to gain practical experience in creating websites, web apps, and Metaverse apps. In 2016, this program was adopted by the Italian Education Ministry, making it suitable for all Italian Vocational schools.
ISIS Europa runs the JA Company Program through JA Italy with a service-learning method. Students not only learn the principles of entrepreneurship but also build a bridge between the citizens and the municipality, helping them solve problems in their daily lives. ISIS Europa’s JA students develop critical thinking, peer-learning, and digital communications skills through the JA programs in which they participate. JA students have even begun creating metaverse worlds. Check out Social in Pillole, Museo Dell’errore, and L’isola Della Memoria. Read more.
Muntinlupa National High School
Location: Muntinlupa City, Philippines
Category: Environmental Action
JA location: JA Philippines
Muntinlupa National High School, a government school in Muntinlupa City, Philippines, has become a powerful force in environmental action, propelling the school and its community towards a greener and healthier future. The oldest and biggest school in the city of Mutinlupa, it sits in the National Bureau of Prison Reservation and caters for students whose relatives are imprisoned or who are relatives of the employees of the prison. Through its simple, affordable, and yet innovative Revitalised Algae Microfarm Project (RevAMP), the school harnesses the potential of microalgae and embraces an integrative approach to education, transforming the school landscape and spearheading tangible solutions to combat pollution and revolutionize climate action. Read more.
GEMS Modern Academy
Location: Dubai, UAE
Category: Innovation
JA location: INJAZ UAE
GEMS Modern Academy is shaping the future of education and empowering students to thrive in an ever-evolving world. Having integrated technology and entrepreneurship into its curriculum, the school has seen a 37% year-on-year rise in student participation and national and international collaborations with the likes of DFC, SAP, and Microsoft. Recognizing the need to prepare students for an uncertain future, GEMS Modern Academy introduced a number of technological innovations into its curriculum and practices in 2001.
Over the last three years, INJAZ UAE have impacted more than 1,200 students at the Academy through JA programs in the school, including JA Building a Financially Capable Generation, JA Career Success, and JA More than Money. Read more.
William Henry Burkhart Elementary
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
Category: Community Collaboration
JA location: Junior Achievement of Central Indiana (Junior Achievement USA)
William Henry Burkhart Elementary, a public school in Indianapolis, Indiana, US, has been a shining example of the American spirit of community in its effort to welcome and support refugees from Myanmar. Despite the sudden surge in school enrollment, leading to 46% of the students being English Learners, the school partnered with local community groups and adapted its instructional model to create a comprehensive and accessible support system.
Students from the school took part in Junior Achievement of Central Indiana’s (JA Indy) JA BizTown last year, where they all performed exceptionally well. During the COVID-19 pandemic, students participated in the virtual version, JA BizTown Adventures. JA Indy hopes to coordinate more JA BizTown participation with Burkhart Elementary Students in the coming year. Read more.
Escuela Técnica Roberto Rocca
Location: Campana, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Category: Innovation
JA location: JA Argentina
Escuela Técnica Roberto Rocca has been making waves by redesigning its learning spaces and processes to better prepare students for the challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Thanks to its innovative approach, students score on average up to 44% higher in math than students in competing schools, and up to 37% higher in reading comprehension. Of its 154 graduates, 84% study a university degree. Escuela Técnica Roberto Rocca’s innovative curriculum, learning space redesign, and student-centred, experiential teaching process is based on the understanding that the traditional approach to teaching does not work for everyone.
JA Argentina serves over 400 students at Escuela Técnica Roberto Rocca each year. Students have participated in the JA Company Program since 2019, as well as JA Personal Economics and JA Personal Finance. JA Argentina Executive Director Bernado Brugnoli said, “We are proud to be part of the school’s innovative academic proposal, complementing the knowledge of young people with entrepreneurial skills and financial education. Their students show us every year in JA programs that they have the power, the mentality, and the drive to carry out enterprises that leave a mark on their communities.” Read more.
Colegio Johannes Kepler
Location: Quito, Ecuador
Category: Environmental Action
JA location: JA Ecuador
Colegio Johannes Kepler successfully created a regenerative design and permaculture learning environment that focuses on six key areas: energy, zero waste, green construction, water management, seed-soil-food, and ecosystem restoration. Where the concept of sustainable living used to lack coherence between campus and home, approximately 60% of the school’s families now have urban gardens, and the school has managed to neutralise over 90% of its campus’ carbon footprint and to recover 80% of the biodiversity and biomass on campus. The school has installed 68 solar panels and a wind energy generator, while implementing a systematic plan for zero waste management, with biodigesters and worm composters. It has also built eco-efficient classrooms, using natural materials such as bamboo and integrating them with nature to promote forest school pedagogy. The school has even integrated an Edible Forest Design and Agroecological Garden with an Andean animal farm, nursery classroom, and gastronomic club.
JA Ecuador brought the JA Company Program to the school in 2015 and 2018, and ran the JA Business Challenge in 2021. “In all these years, participation has been successful,” said JA Ecuador Executive Director Luis Salazar. “The students always demonstrate a high degree of responsibility and teamwork.” Read more.