New Pittsburgh-area charter school focuses on entrepreneurship

Enrollment is now open for a brand new high school in the Pittsburgh region. Dominus High School, a charter school in Wilkins Township focusing on entrepreneurship, will open this fall. 

Dr. Wayne Jones is CEO of the new school as well as Penn Hills Charter School of Entrepreneurship, an elementary and middle school also focusing on entrepreneurial ideas and leadership.

When you visit the existing school in Penn Hills, it can feel more like a business than a school at times. The halls are filled with tables where students are selling products, scanning debit cards connected to school credit and using business skills.

Fourth grader Aniyah Wade makes and sells specialty pens, both inside and outside of school.  

“This one is like a character from Princess Tiana, ‘Princess and the Frog,'” she says.

Sixth grader Alex Owino says, “My business is Conduction Studio. So at Conduction Studio, we make ornament maracas.  We make DIY guitars, and we make songs using a software that our friends gave us.”

Jones explains that entrepreneurial concepts are infused in the core curriculum.

“Our goal is to bring the real world practices and application into the classroom to make it more relevant and engaging for our students,” he says.

Seventh grader Cassidy Johnson says, “It teaches you how to run a business. It teaches how to manage your money. It teaches you so much. It’s just like the real world. It just gets you prepared for the real world.”

The elementary and school, as well as the new high school, are centered around instilling an entrepreneurial mindset. In one third grade classroom, students are learning about Michael Jordan and his line of Nike shoes. Students talk about how Jordan believed in his own idea and worked closely with Nike designers. In a sixth grade science class about the water table, the teacher ties in business applications as students learn how to read different graphs.

Jones and his team are developing a brand new curriculum for the high school based on what they learned visiting innovative high schools around the world. All students will also take college-level courses starting day one.

There will be four main pathways: culinary, healthcare, education and technology, which all have a strong business presence in western Pennsylvania.        

“In the high school, there’s going to be much more hands-on activities and engagement with the outside world and in the community,” Jones says.

One of the primary goals of Dominus High School is to retain top talent in the region.

“What better opportunity to encourage and motivate our young people to stay in Pittsburgh?” Jones said. “[They can] identify and realize there’s a great opportunity to not only make a living, but also to improve the way of life for yourself and your friends and other people through entrepreneurship.”

At the elementary and middle school level, the lessons are sinking in.

“I’ve learned, like, how to lead by example, and how to be humble,” Owino says.

Eighth grader Marin Eftimovski, who’s looking forward to attending Dominus High School, says, “I learned how to market my product. I learned how to build logos. I got new business partners. I learned how to pitch and present in front of people. I actually dialed down my stage fright as well. I also learned how to create and make money off it.”

The new high school will open in the fall of 2025 with ninth and 10th grades and then add a grade each year as those students progress.

It’s open to students who live anywhere, and there are spots still open. For more on education in the Pittsburgh region, check out Kidsburgh’s education page.