Walking Is Transportation

CHARTER SCHOOL MOVING TOWARD SEPTEMBER, 2010 OPENING

[FULL DISCLOSURE: My wife, Ellen Icolari, is co-lead applicant for the establishment of the Barack Obama Community Charter School on Staten Island's north shore.]

WANT TO LEARN MORE?
ATTEND THE PUBLIC PRESENTATION
AT THE PETRIDES COMPLEX,
MONDAY, AUGUST 3 at 7:30 P.M.

The submission on July 15 of an application for a pre-authorization planning grant from the New York City Charter Center was a key event for those working to establish the Barack Obama Community Charter School on Staten Island's north shore. The charter school's target opening date is September, 2010.

Photo at right, Board of Trustees meeting: From left, Lorna Harris, Arts Administration and Fundraising Consultant; Tina Sher, co-lead applicant; Marianne Castillo, Site Selection/Construction Management Specialist; Ellen Bate, Attorney; and Ellen Icolari, co-lead applicant (back to camera).

THE NEXT STEP

After establishing a board of trustees . . . engaging advisory consultants . . . identifying prospective locations . . . and selecting a founding principal . . . the group's next step is to present to the public a comprehensive description of the prospective charter school.

That description will include the school's underlying educational and social philosophy, the mix of educational approaches and services chosen to improve educational outcomes for our children, and the plan that will guide the school's establishment and ongoing growth.

That presentation will take place at a meeting of the Community Education Council (CEC) of District 31, to be held on Monday, August 3 at 7:30 p.m. at the Petrides Educational Complex, 715 Ocean Terrace. (For more information, please call the CEC office at 718-420-5746.)

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CHARTER SCHOOL MOVES FULL SPEED AHEAD TOWARD 2010 OPENING

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(Photo by Carlos Caetano)

THE GOAL: AN EFFECTIVE,
PUBLICLY-FUNDED ALTERNATIVE TO FAILING PUBLIC SCHOOLS

[FULL DISCLOSURE: My wife, Ellen Icolari, a retired public school teacher and program administrator, is a member of the proposed school's founding team and continues her work on this important community undertaking.]

Even people whose households don't include children will tell you they're as concerned as parents, grandparents and other caregivers about the quality of local public schools. They know that when a community's schools fail our children, they fail the entire community.

That's why so many locals, whether they have school-age children (or will have school-age children) or not, have thrown their support behind a team of St. George-area parents, teachers and administators working to establish a charter school alternative to the consistently poor performance of zoned schools in our area.

Known originally as the St. George Community Charter School, the proposed alternative school was renamed the Barack Obama Community Charter School, to celebrate the election of America's first truly multicultural president and to honor the ideas and values that his presidency represents.


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 EXPERIENCED (VOLUNTEER)
CURRICULUM WRITERS
URGENTLY NEEDED! 
CAN YOU HELP?

Now--within a clearly defined scope and time frame--you can put your skills as an educator to work on a volunteer project for the proposed Barack Obama Community Charter School--a project that benefits your community immediately and directly.

NEEDED RIGHT NOW: Teachers able to write standards-aligned curriculum crosswalks for Science 3, 4, 5; Math 3, 4, 5; Social Studies K-5; and Physical Education.

Your contribution, while unpaid, will be welcomed, honored and formally recognized. For more information, please contact Ellen Icolari at eicolari@si.rr.com.

(Photo by Jennifer Westmoreland)

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PROFILE OF THE (PROPOSED)
BARACK OBAMA COMMUNITY CHARTER SCHOOL

The following statement was prepared by the charter school team. I have reordered but not rewritten that statement:

Many of the schools on Staten Island's north shore have been included in the state's list of underperforming schools--and schools in need of improvement--for many years. We aim to create an educational alternative where all children, regardless of their background, home language or life challenges can perform well in school.

(Photo by Luis Castro)

The Barack Obama Community Charter School, or Obama Community, is envisioned as a collaborative learning environment focused on academic excellence, social responsibility, and the arts.

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 experiences, opportunities and support for learning.

We will focus on academic excellence in an environment where teachers, administrators and parents work together to create an academic community that improves educational outcomes through supportive relationships and a focus on accomplishing our goals.

We expect to open in September, 2010, with 100 students--two kindergarten and two first-grade classes. The school will be open to all Staten Island students in grades K to 8, though we expect the majority will come from homes in the north shore communities on either side of the St. George ferry terminal.

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For more information on the Barack Obama Community Charter School, please visit the school's weblog at http://barackobamacommunitycharterschool.wordpress.com. Please direct e-mail inquiries to boccharterschool@gmail.com; inquiries about curriculum-writing contributions, per the sidebar above, should be directed to Ellen Icolari at eicolari@si.rr.com.

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