By Steve Vied

With the hours ticking down to the Wednesday, Aug. 5, opening of the brand new Owensboro Innovation Academy, teachers and staff of the unique high school spent Tuesday afternoon in an all-hands-on-deck effort to get the basement of the Centre For Business and Research, 1010 Allen St., ready for more than 100 freshmen.

Beth Benjamin, Innovation Academy's head teacher, guaranteed the school would be ready, but didn't rule out a long day on Tuesday for herself, her staff and other Owensboro Public Schools personnel.

"We'll be ready," Benjamin said. "It's a good day for us. Whatever it takes. All the main work is done. We're doing the finishing touches, getting the right furniture in the right rooms."

At 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, even David Johnson, the school district's chief operating officer, was seen washing windows in classrooms, while Superintendent Nick Brake and other central office personnel were also helping prepare the building. Floors were being mopped, electrical fixtures were being installed and desks and tables were being arranged in the school's four classrooms.

"We're going to be ready," Brake said. "We might be here to midnight. It's going to be a very unique setting and a great experience for our students."

Innovation Academy is very much unlike a traditional high school and more like a college experience, Benjamin said. Everything is geared toward STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) learning.

Students will learn by immersing themselves in projects.

Benjamin, formerly the district's college and career readiness coordinator, said the school's double classroom will have 50 students and teachers Jennifer Cecil and Jon Richard will teach English and world civilization at the same time. Another room will be for math and another will be devoted to engineering.

"I'm excited about the change," Cecil said. "The traditional setting doesn't fit everyone. Many people do not like English, or do not see the reason to study literature or writing and do not see the connection to STEM."

Those connections will be made at Innovation Academy, Cecil said. For instance, the school's physics teacher intends to have students in the class write a feature article.

As Kentucky's first high school of its type, Innovation Academy expects to host many visitors and some are already scheduled, Benjamin said.

"We want as many visitors as we can get," she said. "Great things will be happening and we want people to see it."

The school system plans to add a new class of 100 students each year to Innovation Academy until the school has all four classes — freshman through senior — by 2018. Students from the Owensboro, Daviess County and McLean County systems as well as students from private schools and even home schools will be included. The new school will offer classes in computer information technology, life sciences bio-medical, industrial engineering, entrepreneurship and innovation.

The Owensboro Innovation Academy is affiliated with the California-based New Tech Network, a nationwide consortium of 134 schools in 23 states. The Owensboro school is the first in Kentucky affiliated with New Tech.

Wednesday, Aug. 5, is the first day of school in the Owensboro, McLean County, Ohio County and Hancock County school districts. Muhlenberg County schools begin on Thursday. Daviess County and Owensboro Catholic students start on Aug. 12.