Detroit's Communication and Media Arts High School chosen to receive makeover on new NBC series “School Pride"

Executive producers Cheryl Hines (“Curb Your Enthusiasm”) and Denise Cramsey (“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”) selected Detroit's Communication and Media Arts High School (CMA) to receive a much-needed building makeover.

Housed in a building built in 1959, CMA was a candidate for closure this month due to its poor condition and the anticipated expense of repairs. Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb learned the producers were looking for schools for the show and nominated CMA for a makeover. He removed it from the closure list after learning it was a finalist.

“CMA has a very high graduation rate and virtually all the graduates go on to college. They deserve to learn in an environment that will help them achieve even more,” Bobb said. “I’m excited to see all the changes that will take place, but the show’s crew and the students of this small school cannot do it alone. We need the entire city to come out and help make this the best makeover in the country. In a time of highly limited resources, we need to marshal all our community resources to create 21st century learning environments for our students.”

The reality series, debuting this fall and airing Fridays at 8 p.m. on NBC, empowers communities to take charge and improve their broken schools, motivating students, parents and teachers to renovate their neighborhood educational institutions. Making use of local businesses and skilled local labor, the community will make over classrooms, public spaces, athletic facilities, and art and music halls. The changes at CMA will truly be a community effort, with “School Pride” producers planning to recruit a large number of volunteers from the local area to work on the transformation effort.

While a team of experts will lend expertise in the makeover process, it’s ultimately up to the students, teachers and community to execute the restoration. “School Pride” cameras will document their progress, revealing multiple surprises along the way and, ultimately, concluding with the unveiling of a brand-new, completely transformed school. Months later, the school will be revisited to determine the effects – such as renewed sense of pride and an increase in student achievement scores – the transformation has ignited.

The “School Pride” crew and hosts will document the makeover Aug. 1-7, 2010, and the public is encouraged to sign up to participate or donate goods and/or services to the effort. Volunteers will be needed for tasks ranging from painting and serving food to skilled trades such as electrical and plumbing work.

Although the list has reached capacity, volunteers are encouraged to sign up to be on the stand-by list at http://www.schoolpridevolunteers.com/.

Be sure to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Friday, August 6, 2010 at 8:00 a.m. The school is located at 14771 Mansfield, Detroit, MI 48227.

Follow “School Pride” on Twitter @NBCSchoolPride (http://twitter.com/NBCSchoolPride). View the trailer, visit www.nbc.com/school-pride/video/school-pride-full-length-trailer/1228317/ “School Pride” is produced by Horizon Alternative Television.