Schools

New Riverhead Charter School Plans Move Forward

The new all-male facility would be run in partnership with the Timothy Hill Children's Ranch.

A new all-male charter high school that would bring an innovative new approach to learning in Riverhead -- and be the first of its kind on Long Island -- is one step closer to becoming reality.

According to Thaddeus Hill, executive director of the Timothy Hill Children's Ranch, a letter of intent for a new charter school that was submitted in January to the State University of New York, a sanctioning body, was approved in February.

"We are moving forward," Hill said.

Find out what's happening in Riverheadwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The SMART Academy Charter School -- the acronym stands for Science, Math Art, Real World Experience, and Technology -- could become a reality as soon as the fall of 2014, if a final application is approved this fall.

Hill said a first application was originally sent in last year but was withdrawn after the decision was made to wait until this year to officially apply.

Find out what's happening in Riverheadwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The all-male secondary school would be open to students in grades seven through 12 and would be created in partnership with the Timothy Hill Children's Ranch, which would take the lead on the application process, with some sharing of staff and resources.

To begin, the school would serve approximately 50 students with an end cap of approximately 250, Hill said.

Once established, the educational facility would have its own board of directors. To start, the school would rent commercial space in Riverhead, Hill said; down the line, the charter school could be sited on the grounds of the Timothy Hill Ranch.

The school, Hill said, would operate on a threefold principle, focusing on classroom learning, technology -- with students preparing assignments online -- and "real world experience," with students venturing out onto the canvas of the Riverhead community to cultivate hands-on expertise.

"As opposed to talking about town government, they might go to Town Hall," Hill said. Or, he added, students could visit actual courtrooms or the Long Island Aquarium or Cornell to broaden the horizons of their learning experience. The off-site ventures, he said, would take place more often than traditional field trips.

According to the letter of intent, the mission of the new school is to present a smaller and more "personal" learning experience than what their home district can provide.

"We believe every child has a right to a life of purpose," the statement reads. The charter school's vision would be to "engage, inspire, and prepare students for college and career readiness with an eye on the global economic marketplace."

Core values including safety, courage, genuine relationships, rigorous academics, and self-discipline would be emphasized, the letter of intent states.

"We are committed to working with all types of learners by bringing intellectual, emotional and instructional renewal to these students. We will serve families looking for a holistic approach to their children's education that will include academic and social development along with both physical and mental health," the letter continues.

Hill said despite the fact that there are 216 charter schools in New York State, of which 49 are high schools -- none are located on Long Island, despite the fact that the area encompasses 15 percent of the state's population.

"There's definitely a void," Hill said. "This is clearly something New York State sees as a viable option to education than just traditional public schools -- yet no one has taken the risk on Long Island. We're going to take the first and pioneer this on Long Island."

Hill said the goal would be not to compete, but to work cooperatively, with local public school districts, while still providing parents and students with alternatives.

"We don't feel like one size fits all," Hill said. "Some students don't fit in schools with a population of 1500. A school with 200 students might be much better fit. Charter schools give parents and students a choice - -we want to provide them with that choice."

The reason for an all-male school, Hill said, was based in statistics that indicate students fare better academically in a gender-specific learning environment without distractions. "They do 25 to 40 percent better academically -- that's a very high number," he said.

And, he added, while some students from the Timothy Hill Ranch might attend the new charter school, the facility will not be a specifically "at-risk" school but will, instead, seek a broad range of students from various academic backgrounds.

"We've been talking about this for the better part of ten years," Hill said. "I feel like the time is right for us to do this."

In March of 2012, supporters who took to the podium at a public hearing for a charter school application proposed by Hill and the Timothy Hill Children's Ranch largely supported the idea of the Christian camp running its own school for grades seven through 12, welcoming the opportunity to provide an alternative choice for their kids, and mentioning the work that "the Ranch" has done over the years as one that points to a proven track record.

But in the midst of last year's budget season in Riverhead Central School District - at a meeting where Superintendent Nancy Carney said the coming year's budget waas "absolutely the lowest budget-to-budget increase the district has ever had" - those who spoke out against the application made a point of their own: it all comes down to dollars and sense. And, they said, the school district did not have the funds.

"Mr. Hill has worked well with the district," said School Board President Ann Cotten-DeGrasse.

"But if it comes down to dollars coming out of the school district than I have to say, we are not in favor of anything that’s going to take from the 5,000 students that we currently service. And some of those being the kids at Timothy Hill."

However, the ultimate fate of the charter school application doesn't rest in the hands of the school board, but rather SUNY, which could hand out final approval by fall.

Timothy Hill Children's Ranch, located on Middle Road, has been open since 1980, housing teenage boys who come from troubled families. 

The cost of charter school students is calculated on a per-pupil basis, with costs borne by local school districts. Financial Administrator Sam Schneider said RCSD budgeted $1,705,828 for 2013 for approximately 103 charter school students, equaling an average of about $16,500.

Hill guessed as many as 10 districts could be impacted within the first year should the application gain approval, as the school would be the only charter high school on Long Island, according to the State Department of Education.

About a dozen spoke in favor of the charter school application, compared to a few who didn't favor it - not counting the Board of Education.

What do you think of a new charter high school in Riverhead? Let us know in the comments section.


 



Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here