Groundbreaking took place Wednesday for the new high school building at the Copper Island Academy in Houghton. The groundbreaking crew included Moyle Construction personnel as well as academy staff and students. (Graham Jaehnig/Daily Mining Gazette)

CALUMET TOWNSHIP – Moyle Construction had a groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday for the new Copper Island Academy High School.

When completed, it will be the third instructional building on the Copper Island Academy campus, on Industrial Drive, near the Houghton County Memorial Airport.

Nora Laho, academy director, said the school has grown every year since opening in the fall 2021. “We started with the initial building, which was our K-8 grades,” she said. “The following year, a second building was constructed, containing six classrooms. That building was expanded to house a gymnasium. Then we added a six-classroom expansion in our second year, in a second building, then added a gymnasium. Last year we added a middle school attached to the gym.”

Laho said the school started with just under 300 students, “and we’re at 486 students now. We hadn’t offered high school grades prior to this year. This year, we added ninth and tenth grades, and then we’ll expand to 11th grade next year, and 12th grade the following year.”

“The new building will have five standard classrooms and additional speciality spaces, like a skilled trade center. Our atrium with some flexible spaces, an entrepreneurship center and space for a flex classroom as well.”

Laho said current enrollment includes students from as far north as Eagle River in Keweenaw County and as far south as Baraga County and the Pelkie area.

Brandon Taavola, Moyle Construction project manager, said the new building will be about 17,000 square feet. It is expected to be completed in July.

Copper Island Academy is a public charter school, previously serving kindergarten through eighth grade and now expanding to high school, authorized by Central Michigan University. All charter schools must be authorized by a state university, local community college, the ISD, or school district in which the charter school is located.

The academy offers tuition-free education with a unique approach based on the Finnish education model.

The Finnish model, according to the World Economic Forum, emphasizes equity, holistic child development, and teacher professionalism by focusing on individualized learning, collaboration, and well-being rather than high-stakes testing