New England Innovation Academy

Our first week of summer programs is coming to an end, and though we will miss our first round of summer students, it was such a great way to kick off the summer! A huge shoutout to Lily Fu, Melissa Cuello-Remley, Francisco Mireles, and River Hansen for their hard work in getting the summer programs started. #NEIA #NEIANEXT #Summer2024 #SummerPrograms #Coding #GameDesign #Innovation

Thank you for hosting the Deans' Roundtable conference at NEIA! We love meeting fellow individuals in the same industry as us. Connecting with peers, engaging in expert-led sessions, and staying at the forefront of educational innovation are just three of the values DRT and NEIA share! #NEIA #DeansRoundTable #Education #Conference #Innovation #Engagement

In just one week our summer programs will fill the NEIA community. Our summer programs work with schools from Babson College to Massachusetts Institute of Technology while also embracing NEIA's unique curriculum. With programs run by a variety of well-established educators and entrepreneurs, including Vincent (Vini) Onyemah, Baldev Singh Rawat, Amir Reza, Ph.D., Erdin Beshimov, Francisco Mireles, and more, this summer is sure to be another great one. Stay tuned for a summer of innovation, entrepreneurship, and inspiration! #NEIA #NEIANEXT #SummerPrograms #Innovation #Entrepreneurship #Inspirational

A look back. In more ways than one way, the inaugural graduating class lit the way for those to come. The future of our students and our community is a bright one. #NEIA #Innovation #Innovators #InauguralClass #Graduation #LookingBack #Entrepreneurship #Community

On May 13, NEIA was invited by Massachusetts Institute of Technology to partake in the Day of AI. Though 10,000 educators (from around 110 countries across the world) participated in MIT RAISE's Day of AI, NEIA was the ONLY school invited to attend the event, and for that, we are so proud and honored. This educational event was based on the educator's guide, IceMelt, focused on modeling and predicting climate change. The theme of the day was using generative AI to help combat climate change. The 25 innovators who were chosen to attend heard presentations from top minds like Dava Newman (Director of MIT Media Lab), Tim Ritchie (President of the Museum of Science), Michael Lawerance Evans (Director of Emerging Technologies for the City of Boson), and @David Sittinfield (Director of the Center for the Environment). This was yet another exciting collaboration with a top educational institution facilitated by our Collaborations & Strategic Partnerships Department. Baldev Singh Rawat and Francisco Mireles were the lead teachers for this event. After the keynotes, groups of our students presented their ideas for utilizing generative AI to solve an ecological issue to those top scientists and industry leaders! Our Innovators got to field questions from some of the top minds in the field. Their ideas were impressive, everything from an AI Sustainability Coach called EcoLife to protecting mass forests with TreeSavers. Hear from the innovators who attended the 2024 Day of AI at the Museum of Science in Boston with Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Listen as they explain what type of projects they are creating with the help of AI, and what AI means to them! #NEIA #AIInTheClassroom #FutureOfEducation #AI #Innovation #Entrepreneurship #RealWorldProblems #RealWorldSolutions

After our first full week into summer, we want to look back on a year-long project that yielded impressive results for three of our amazing rising 12th graders. This past fall, NEIA 11th graders pitched products that could add value to people’s lives by curing diseases or ailments. This is part of the BioTrek Program: a joint initiative by Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute (ARMI) | BioFabUSA. Students pitched their amazing ideas to Tim McCauley, their peers, and a panel of judges made up of NEIA staff members. Throughout these presentations, our students walked through all phases of the Biotrek journey. First, identifying a problem. Second, engineering a solution using bio-manufacturing techniques. In the third phase, they developed a business and financial model for their product. The final phase was this event: pitching to their peers and judges. They are trying to solve real medical issues, such as endometriosis, chronic lung disease, color blindness, and osteogenesis (just to name a few). The winners moved on to the Final Presentations judged by representatives from ARMI and Biofab, which decided who would represent NEIA against other schools in the Biotrek Championship. The winning group chosen to go to the championship was Endopexy, created by Milena, Lila, and Max. Milena, Lila, and Max’s hard worked paid off as they were the winning team of the championships. We are so proud of these three innovators for working hard the whole year and being recognized in such a highly competitive program. This project-based learning program continues to be a very valuable experience for our innovators. You can clearly see the intersection of subjects like science, math, entrepreneurship, and communications. It is the perfect example of how integrated academics lead to exciting projects and connections. #NEIA #BioTrek #Innovation #entrepreneur #entrepreneurship #integration

This weekend, three of our students: Vicki, Owen, and Langston, won first place at the EforAll All Ideas Pitch Competition for their idea around the NEXTGEN Summit, a conference that Langston initiated this spring at NEIA. Owen explains the idea to execution as follows, "My mother is an alum of the Entrepreneurship for All (EforAll) Business Accelerator Program. One night while scrolling Instagram, she found a post by EforAll about an All Ideas Pitch Competition happening. She sent me the post at 11:20 p.m. and we were signed up for the event by 12:15 a.m. A few weeks later we were selected to table at the event with the potential of being able to participate in the final pitch competition. We landed a spot in the pitch competition, and it was a huge success as we not only won the first place prize of $1000, but also won the Fan Favorite prize for an additional $500. We were by far the youngest attendees at the event and were pitching with people who were already well removed from college." We are so proud of our innovators and commend them for their efforts to not only seek new opportunities each and every day but to thrive within them. #NEIA #PitchCompetition #EForAll #NEXTGENSummit #NEXTGEN #FutureOfEducation #Innovation #Entrepreneurship

Day of AI with Massachusetts Institute of Technology was an amazing experience for our innovators. Check it out here! #NEIA #MIT #Innovators #AI #AIInTheClassroom

Our Assistant Head of School and Head of Upper School, Ben Farrell, was featured in a National Association of Independent Schools piece. In his article, he wrote about emerging tech in the classroom. In fall 2022, NEIA observed a growing interest in generative AI among students, sparking concerns about its impact on creativity and originality. The school adopted a human-centered design approach, engaging students in discussions about AI's role and potential. By integrating AI as a supportive tool rather than a replacement, NEIA aims to enhance education and prepare students for a technology-driven future. Check out this well-written piece here by our Assistant Head of School and Head of Upper School to explore how NEIA embraces generative AI in education, providing insights on balancing innovation with maintaining originality and ethical considerations. Use the following link: https://lnkd.in/e9Fbsdrv #NEIA #AIInTheClassroom #AI #FutureOfEducation #Innovation #IndependentSchools

As we reflect on this past week, we want to highlight the heartfelt addresses that Jane Du and Jean Jones, NEIA Co-Founders and Trustees, delivered this past Friday at graduation. Jane Du began by congratulating the founding graduates and thanked the educators who have helped make NEIA a reality. But, standing at the podium, looking out at the NEIA community, Jane couldn’t help but remember a moment from three years ago. "Standing here today…” she said. “I can't help but think of the driveway outside. The first NEIA admission event took place in the driveway because we were still renovating the building... over these last three years, one by one, passionate educators joined NEIA and made NEIA what we promised to students and parents." Because of the COVID pandemic, Jane could not leave China to be there at the admission event. She was moved and impressed with the text messages and photos she received on that cold New England winter day. “Our founding team warmly welcomed every visiting student and parent despite their frozen bodies and warm hearts.” Before speaking at NEIA’s graduation, she asked her youngest son who graduated from high school last year, “What do the graduates like about graduation speeches?” He advised her to give the students inspiration through her own experience, “but don’t take too long.” So Jane summarized 40 years of experience into four phrases: curiosity, courage, hands-on practice, and gratitude. Curiosity is the driving force for learning new things. Courage means being willing to get out of your comfort zone to create beautiful things. Skills gained through hands-on practice can never be taken away from you. Gratitude is never forgetting the support that aided your success. “Our successes are not solely because of us or our abilities, but also because of the opportunities brought by the times and the silent support of many people behind us,” Jane said. “Gratitude is a gentle force, but its impact on the world is immense.” Jean Jones, NEIA Co-founder and Trustee, started her speech by thanking everyone. The graduates, the teaching staff, and the families. She also took time to thank J. Thomas Woelper, our founding Head of School, for the amazing work he has done on behalf of NEIA and our students. Upon these remarks, Tom received a huge round of applause from the NEIA community. “Tom has achieved what very, very few (if any) Heads of School have accomplished. He will always be our founding Head of School and he will always be with NEIA in spirit.” Jean finished with a personal preference: rather than using the word graduation—which implies the ending of something—she likes the word commencement—which represents the beginning of what comes next. She asked one thing of our founding graduates as they prepared the journeys of their lives. “Please don’t forget us,” she said, “because we will never forget you.” #NEIA #Founders #HeadOfSchool #BoardOfTrustees #NEIA2024 #Graduation #Innovation #Entrepreneurship