by Nan Cooper / Staff

Parents desiring a stronger elementary education in math and science for their young children are lining up to apply to the latest charter school approved by the Fulton County School System (FCSS) for North Fulton County: The Fulton Sunshine Academy Elementary School (FSA Elementary). Applications are being accepted through 5 p.m. Feb.16 at www.fultonsunshine.org. According to FSA Elementary School board president Namik Sercan, 650 applications have been received, “with more coming in every day.“ Because the school will be enrolling only 286 students this fall, available spaces will be filled via lottery on Feb.17.

Children of governing board members and school employees as well as siblings of students currently enrolled at sister schools, the Fulton Science Academy Middle School (FSA Middle School) and Technology Enriched Accelerated Charter High (TEACH) school, will have priority for enrollment. After the lottery, if any spaces become available, they will be filled from the waiting list, which includes remaining lottery entrants and students applying after the deadline.

THE COMMUNITY RAISED THEIR HAND

FSA Elementary is rooted around the communities of the FSA Middle School and TEACH school (to be renamed the Fulton Science Academy High School this summer). According to Sercan, also the assistant principal at TEACH, the vision for FSA Elementary began three years ago when parents of students at FSA Middle School voiced a need for a similarly technically challenging school for their younger children. FSA Elementary would complement the middle and high school segments already available in North Fulton County with a research-based curriculum. 

Says Laura Stowell, Charter Liaison at FCSS, “Parents are interested in this alternative and FCSS is always open to give our parents what they want.”

UNIQUE APPROACH

In the lower grades, instruction will be carried out by classroom teachers, similar to other area elementary schools. However, in fourth and fifth grade, students will have specialized subject teachers in math and science. The FSA Elementary board hopes that this innovative approach will help students achieve their maximum potential and ensure their readiness for a more challenging curriculum in middle school.  

The research-based curriculum for math will be Growing With Mathematics and Project M3: Mentoring Mathematical Minds (for gifted students). In science, the curriculum will be Science and Technology for Children and Developmental Approaches in Science, Health, and Technology (for gifted students).

FSA Elementary also points to their school uniforms and smaller class sizes (maximum of 16 in Kindergarten and 20 in grades one through five) as differences from other area public schools.

Once FSA Elementary School is operational, a complete charter school cluster will be available for North Fulton County communities, from elementary to middle to high school. These three charter schools will share experience and know-how via a strong network comprising principals, administrators, teachers, parents, and students. All three schools will combine their efforts to achieve their goals with the highest expectations, to best serve the local needs of their population.

Starting with 16 teachers and 286 students in kindergarten through fifth grade, Sercan expects to double the school to 572 students by the fall of 2012.

WHAT IS A CHARTER SCHOOL?

A charter school is a public school of choice that operates according to the terms of a charter, or contract, that has been approved by the local board of education and the state board of education. By Georgia law, a charter school is included in the allotment of funds to the local school system in which the charter school is located. The charter school is to be treated no less favorably than any other public school in the district with respect to funding for instructional and administrative programs.

Because it is a public school, there is no tuition and anyone living in the area defined by the charter may apply. Transportation will be available to the students living in the school zone currently defined by FSA Middle School. Others who live outside the zone, but within the Fulton County school district will have to provide their own transportation.

It is the policy of FCSS not to discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, or disability in any employment practice, educational program, or any other program, activity or service. This applies to charter school applications, as well. A charter school may not have admission criteria.

The charter school may request waivers from provisions of Title 20 of Georgia state law and any state or local rule, regulation, policy, or procedure relating to schools in the school district. In exchange for this flexibility, the charter school is bound by contract to be held accountable for meeting the performance-based objectives specified in the charter.

In Fulton County, a charter school will only be approved if it provides students with something they cannot get at an existing public school in the district. And according to Stowell, “Charter schools must perform as well as, or better than, a typical Fulton County school on a variety of measures, only one of which is student performance on standardized tests. Other measurements include financial, operational, organizational, and the ability to deliver what the charter promises.” If a charter school does not meet their performance goals, their contracts are subject to nonrenewal.

FSA Elementary will have the same calendar as other Fulton County Schools and offer similar special services such as TAG (Talented and Gifted), ESOL (English as a Second Language), remedial classes, and any special services required by special needs students who enroll. All courses required by Fulton County will be taught, including Art, Music, and PE. There will also be extracurricular activities offered.

A PLACE TO CALL HOME

Expecting approval from the Georgia Department of Education at their February or March board meeting, FSA Elementary board members are anxious to sign a lease and begin construction modifications. They are currently looking at several options near to FSA Middle School at 1675 Hembree Road in Alpharetta.

Even without having the location of the school nailed down, many in the community are all ready to send their children to the newest school of choice in North Fulton County.