Charter Schools Meet Finance & Facilities Board Members at VINO
Posted by AdminLinkEd
December 10, 2010, 4:15 am
Last night at VINO the New York Charter School Incubator program and LinkEducation co-hosted the second Charter School Board Matching Mixer with a focus on matching facilities/finance personal with schools from across the 5 boroughs. Sponsored by Fillmore Real Estate, Charter School Division, wine and food flowed to cups and plates throughout the night with match-making happen around the room.
The Charter School Board Matching Mixers work in conjunction with the Charter School Board Matching Portal on LinkEducation.org to make real matches between charter schools looking for board members and individuals in various walks of life looking to make an impact on our children's futures. The event was a huge success; many schools left the event with great candidates for follow-up and some even left with new board members.
School representation included the newly approved Montessori Charter School in the South Bronx, Fahari Academy in Flatbush, Brooklyn and Democracy Prep Charter School, among the many others listed below. If you are interested in joining the Charter School Board Matching Portal as a potential trustee or school, visit www.linkeducation.org/boardmatchingportal for more information.
Amani Public Charter School
The Amani Public Charter School plans to open in Mount Vernon, New York in September 2011. Amani will enroll 80 students in grade five for its first year of operation, and when it reaches full capacity in 2014 it will teach 320 students in grades 5 through 8. The school will be located at one of several possible sites mentioned in its application.
The school’s mission is to provide 100% of Mount Vernon students who attend the school from the 5th through 8th grade with the academic and critical thinking skills necessary to succeed in competitive high school programs, college and the career of their choice. The key design elements of Amani are: great teachers; exemplary academic program; and strong school culture. To this end, Amani will adopt elements of the No Excuses Model that has proven successful in numerous other charter schools. This includes a rigorous academic program and proven research-based teaching methods. The Amani learning community will be enhanced by meaningful opportunities for parent involvement and will be a clear choice for parents seeking academic alternatives for their children.
Bronx Charter School for Better Learning
The Bronx Charter School for Better Learning was founded in 2003 by experienced teachers and school administrators, each of whom had worked in schools serving low-income communities. Several of our founders gave up managerial positions and returned to the classroom to achieve a long-held goal: to demonstrate the value of an educational approach, known as the Subordination of Teaching to Learning, which can dramatically improve the school experience of any child, regardless of socio-economic background.
Almost all of our students are Hispanic and African-American, many from families that include recent immigrants from Jamaica. Over 75 percent of our students are from low-income families. We currently serve 374 students in Grades K through 5. At the Bronx Charter School for Better Learning, we strive to create an atmosphere where each child's innate ability to learn is nurtured, protected and directed toward mastering all traditional subjects. Our pedagogy, the Subordination of Teaching to Learning, was developed by Dr. Caleb Gattegno (1911-1988). Dr. Gattegno's precise techniques and materials enable students to master new skills with minimal interference from the teacher. As a result, learning continues to be a joyous experience for the children, instead of the drudgery they might otherwise encounter in more conventional schools.
Brooklyn Urban Garden Charter School
The proposed Brooklyn Urban Garden charter School (BUGS) is committed to preparing students to participate effectively in the green economy and to be agents of positive change in their communities and lives. Using New York City as its living classroom, BUGS will use the lens of environmental sustainability to promote high academic achievement, particularly in the areas of math and science. BUGS will welcome Brooklyn's sixth through twelfth graders from a diversity of backgrounds and abilities, ensuring that our district's ELL and Special Needs students are supported within a college-focused and environmentally sustainable culture.
Instruction will balance Project Based Learning (PBL) with direct instruction in the fundamentals in order to close the achievement gap in all subjects, build science and math knowledge, and help students attain the skills necessary for success in the 21st century.
Fahari Academy
Our name is dervied from the Swahili word for "pride". At Fahari Academy, pride encompasses each of the core values that are critical for the academic, social and professional success -- Perseverance, Respect, Independence, Discipline and Excellence. Fahari Academy eliminates the guesswork in expectations of students from year to year. Through rigorous academics, a structured environment and explicit character education, Fahari Academy Charter School educates and supports disciplined scholars who are success driven and college bound. Fahari Academy students will be successful because they are making academic gains in a system that encourages and supports academic and social success. The students are empowered with expectations that will lead to success making them co-creators of their destiny. At Fahari Academy wrong answers are learning opportunities educators support students through their misunderstandings until they reach enlightenment. Serving grades five through twelve in the Flatbush community, Fahari Academy Charter School educates, supports, challenges, and trains scholars for success in college. Our School prides itself on academic intensity, which we frequently assess to ensure we are providing a competitive college preparatory experience. The joy in Fahari comes from ownership, from parents, students, and educators alike being able to see that their participation translates into the personalization of their experiences. Fahari Academy has the expectation of participation for everyone in the learning community-leaders, educators, students and parents. Every voice is heard, every thought is expressed and everybody is valued in our culture of mutual accountability.
Staten Island Community Charter School
The Staten Island Community Charter School (SICCS) is a collaborative learning environment focused on academic excellence, social responsibility, the arts and natural science. We expect to open September 13, 2010 with 100 students, two kindergarten classes and two first grades. SICCS will be open to all Staten Island students in grades K-8. However, we expect the majority of our students will live in the north shore communities on either side of the Staten Island ferry terminal. These communities have high levels of poverty, immigration and public housing projects. Many of the schools that ring the northern shoreline have straddled the State’s list of underperforming schools, and schools in need of improvement for many years. SICCS will provide an educational alternative where all children, regardless of their background, home language or life challenges can perform well in school.
At Staten Island Community Charter School the education program is based on our belief that the promise every child is born with is best nurtured in a supportive learning environment that offers a rigorous academic curriculum and a broad range of support, time and opportunities for learning. We will focus on academic excellence within a collaborative learning environment where teachers, administrators and parents work together to create an outstanding academic program that improves educational outcomes for students through supportive relationships, community connections and a focus on accomplishing our goals.
