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WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. /California Newswire/ — Today Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and First Lady Maria Shriver joined officials at CHIME charter school in Woodland Hills to officially announce that the new combined elementary and middle school will be renamed the CHIME Institute’s Schwarzenegger Community School.

“Having CHIME Charter Elementary renamed the Schwarzenegger Community School is a great honor and I am very grateful. There is nothing more important than providing our students a first class education and this school is a shining example of what is possible for all our schools,” said Governor Schwarzenegger.

On July 30, 2007, CHIME Charter Elementary School was renamed after Governor Schwarzenegger. Recently the school combined the middle and elementary schools on the same campus and today the school was officially named CHIME Institute’s Schwarzenegger Community School.

CHIME implements a co-teaching model where general and special education teachers plan, assess and instruct all students to provide targeted curriculum and learning experiences that meet the needs of all students. This co-teaching and collaborative related service model ensures these layers of instructional support benefit all students.

In recognition of their success, CHIME Charter Elementary School was named “Charter School of the Year” by the California Charter School Association in 2005 and in the same year was recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a leading model of inclusive education.

The CHIME Institute was established as a private nonprofit corporation in August 1990 to continue the work of the CHIME Project using local funds. Its Preschool Inclusion Program was started at that time serving children from 3 to 6 years of age. The CHIME Institute Infant and Toddler Program, established in 1991, serves children from birth through age 3 and their families. The CHIME Charter Elementary School was established in the Fall of 2001 and serves children from kindergarten through 5th grade. The CHIME Charter Middle School opened in the Fall of 2003 serving students in 6th and 7th grades and expanded to 8th grade in the Fall of 2004. The CHIME Institute is overseen by a Board of Directors comprised of CSUN faculty, parents, and community members.