Our Vision

All Whittier International Elementary students will become independent global thinkers through inquiry and action.

Our Mission

Encourage exploration, inquiry, and critical thinking Provide learning opportunities that integrate subject areas Promote local and global action Respect cultural similarities and differences

Whittier Community School offers a high-quality community school experience

Whittier International Elementary School in Fall 2021 becomes a community school serving nearby students and families in South Minneapolis’ Whittier neighborhood, but will continue to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Programme (PYP). Students who attend Whittier will help shape the way the school reflects and exemplifies the culture and fabric of its community. Whittier will remain a place where all children, through rigorous academics and supportive relationships, develop a strong sense of who they are and where they come from. Students will develop unique ways of looking at the world around them to gain truly global perspectives right in their own neighborhood.

WE OFFER:

• Two full-day Pre-K classrooms (one is Spanish Immersion)
• IB-PYP programme
• Schoolwide Responsive Classroom program
• Arts integration and MacPhail Center for the Arts partnership
• Advanced instruction, including Telescoped Math
• Heritage Spanish
• Spanish Language instruction K-5
• Special Education services with highly specialized emotional/behavioral programming
• EL programming • Before-school and after-school activities
• Minneapolis Kids school-age care

ATTENDANCE AREA MIDDLE SCHOOL: Andersen Community Middle School

TRANSPORTATION: D1

D1 Walk Zone

If you have questions about the enrollment process, please contact us at sps.department@mpls.k12.mn.us or call us at 612.668.1840. 

As a public school, Whittier International School belongs not only to our families, but also the community at large. We welcome and invite all to visit and observe the hard work our students and teachers do every day. You will see teachers engaged with small groups of students, or the whole class. Because of this, classroom visits are not a time to have private conversations with teachers, interact with the students (unless invited to do so by the teacher), or interrupt the learning.

When you come to visit a classroom at Whittier International, you are asked to please sign in at the front desk, put on a visitor's sticker, and wait for the greeting desk to contact the classroom teacher to make sure the timing is good. We appreciate your patience. We want all visits to Whittier International to be a positive experience, and welcome feedback.