The Museum School of Avondale Estates has been named this year’s Academic Charter School of the Year.

The award comes from the Georgia Charter School Association (GCSA) and includes a $25,000 scholarship sponsored by Coca-Cola. With the funds, the Museum School plans to purchase sets of Google Expedition Kits to “take students’ learning worldwide,” a press release from the school said.

According to its website, the Museum School’s concept is a model founded on research about hands-on learning and exploratory education. A number of parents joined together to establish the school in DeKalb County in 2010. Currently, the school serves more than 500 students from kindergarten to eighth grade.

The Museum School boasts high academic results, with students scoring among Georgia’s top numbers in every subject category on the Georgia Milestone exams. The school has also consistently surpassed state and district scores on Georgia’s College and Career Ready Performance Index, the school said.

Katherine Kelbaugh, the school’s principal, was excited to receive the award. Kelbaugh received the Leader of the Year award from GCSA in 2018.

“We are deeply honored to be recognized as the GCSA School of the Year,” Kelbaugh said. “There are so many innovative, successful charter schools in the state and we are so proud to be among them. Our learning model is preparing our students for real-world success and we are so grateful for the support of our parents, teachers, staff and local community, without which we would not be receiving this award.”