At last night's Berwyn CARES Board Meeting, a small group of residents gave a compelling presentation about a possible Charter School at the High School level in District 201. Citing recent data from the state including a graduation rate of only 74.9% and only 26% of students meeting standards on the PSAE, the group concludes that some students of 201 would benefit from a different approach to teaching and learning, a more progressive and engaging curriculum, and decidedly higher expectations. Their plan is to start small with about 125 freshman students and add a grade each year to have 400-500 students total enrollment in the 4th year. All students in 201 would be eligible to attend with no admitting criteria. If there are more applications than spaces, admission would be by lottery. Charter schools receive the instructional cost per pupil (about $7500 in D201) which would amount to about 3 million dollars if enrollment reaches 400 students which is about 3% of the 95 million dollar D201 yearly budget. This group will likely be presenting their request to the D201 board within the next year. If rejected, there is a commission at the state level that may grant the charter in an appeal process.
So, what do you think? Go to the Berwyn CARES forum to join the discussion.
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