For more information:

John Miller
Start-Up Director
Mill City High School
612-722-0770
millcityhigh@gmail.com
www.millcityhigh.org

NEWS
RELEASE

Dan Collison
Senior Pastor
First Covenant Church Minneapolis
Main 612-332-8093
Direct 612-927-3123
dcollison@1stcov.org
www.1stcov.org

February 16, 2015

For Immediate Release

Mill City High School to locate in downtown Minneapolis

Mill City High School is counting on a great location to promote its unique brand
of classical education. The new charter high school will open in downtown
Minneapolis in Fall 2015. Mill City High has entered into an agreement with First
Covenant Church, 810 South 7th Street, to lease space in the churchs education
wing.
We anticipate welcoming as many as 130 ninth and tenth graders for the 201516 academic year, said John Miller, the schools start-up director. All roads lead
to downtown, but its pretty much an education desert. We want to change that
by offering students and families a high-quality, academically rigorous
educational option.
We were searching for an urban site in which to pioneer our program of global
classical studies, Miller said. Minnesota has several high-performing charters
that provide classical education, but we take that western-centric model and
apply it to the great works of world traditions: East, West and Indigenous. We
couldn't have a better location than First Covenant to attract a diverse student
body that reflects the cultural breadth of our curriculum.

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The Rev. Dan Collison, senior pastor of First Covenant and executive director of
the East Downtown Council, said, It is not a secret that leaders from the
downtown Minneapolis residential, business, and civic communities have been
asking for new high-quality schools for years now. Thus, when Mill City
approached us for a long-term lease it was with great enthusiasm that we began
partnership conversations.
Our city block in the heart of East Downtown is surging with more than $2 billion
of redevelopment, including a new city park and collegiate level soccer field in
Elliot Park. In my mind, this is an ideal time and place for Mill City to launch a
program of global classical studies. Its a perfect fit for all who live in or near
downtown.
The First Covenant Church facility is 70,000 square feet and situated on a city
bus line and just one block from a light rail hub. Mill City will be located in a
space separate from but connected to the church sanctuary. The education
building that will house the school includes a commercial kitchen, gymnasium,
and proscenium stage.
Mill City High is backed by the Minnesota Guild, a non-profit charter school
authorizer sponsored by the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers. The Guild was
the first union-backed charter school authorizer in the country.
Mill City High is currently accepting applications for ninth and tenth grade only.
Grades 11 and 12 will be added in successive years. Families are encouraged to
apply online at www.millcityhigh.org.
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