Grand Center Arts Academy (GCAA), the first of its kind in the St. Louis region, will be opening in August of 2010. Grand Center Arts Academy will be a middle school and high school dedicated to offering world-class training in music, theater, visual art and dance, along with a rigorous academic program. Grand Center Arts Academy is a Charter School, an independent public school that charges no tuition. Students eligible to attend must be residents of the city of St. Louis as well as students from St. Louis County eligible to attend St. Louis Public Schools under the voluntary transfer program. Doors open in August of 2010 to 225 very special and talented young people entering the sixth and seventh grades. Each following year, a grade will be added until 2015 when the school will have 750 students in grades 6-12. This one of a kind arts school will be located in the heart of the thriving and vibrant arts center of the St. Louis region, Grand Center. Through rich instruction in a student’s chosen art form, as well as meaningful encounters with all arts mediums in an interdisciplinary atmosphere, Grand Center Arts Academy will provide a nurturing environment for students who have a strong interest in the creative and performing arts.