Post by doctorwho on Apr 27, 2010 9:11:44 GMT -6
I think this is a great idea - a 'feeder' for IMSA ( and possibly for some private schools)-
questions: ( and I know there appears to be no answers today)
1/ What does this do to Project Arrow for the 204 district ? Rumors of centralization appear to be true, but maybe not under our control ?
-- or do the top 0.5% go here and we keep the rest ?
2/ How many more students leave 204 ? Losing 2-3% each year from ES as it is over the last 4 years - adding to that will speed up the lack of need for 3 HS's and grow the unused space in ES's beyond the current 2.5 schools..
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Dist. 204 joins collaborative to groom future stars in math, science
By Justin Kmitch | Daily Herald StaffContact writerPublished: 4/27/2010 8:51 AM.Send To:
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(0) | read | postBuzz up! Indian Prairie Unit District 204 has joined a group of area districts working to develop a hybrid school that would include the benefits of both magnet and charter school models.
Assistant Superintendent for Instructional Services Jay Strang told board members Monday that the initiative being created by East Aurora District 131, West Aurora School District 129, Oswego Unit District 308 and District 204 likely would be a third- through eighth-grade school housed at Aurora University. It would serve the top 2 percent of students in each of the school districts in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math.
Strang said legislators are working now to ensure the venture would be a highly competitive public school in the magnet model but also receive tax dollars and private funding like a charter school.
"The university is asking for a step-up commitment at this point to say we believe in this initiative," Strang said, noting the end product is still years away. "There are not a lot of details at this point about how many kids from each school district would attend, where they would go, what types of teachers would teach those courses, how much money would come from federal and state grants and how much from corporate and private donors. All of that's to be determined."
The hybrid school also would be assisted by Aurora's Illinois Math and Science Academy, which would assist in developing the curriculum and instruction as well as the selection process and the matrix to determine which students get in.
"We could probably fill that school up by ourselves so we're going to have to come up with a pretty clear process to determine how the students are selected," Strang said. "We want to have a nice representative body of our kids at that table so there might be kids with autism and great skill in the area of math or engineering that go there. We don't want those kids excluded from the opportunity."
Board President Curt Bradshaw said he was excited about the possibilities and funding opportunities that await.
"This academy, because it's designed to be innovative and cutting edge, is also designed to attract federal money so the design around this is to be able to attract significant dollars to be able to benefit kids academically for all of these districts tied to Aurora," he said.
University officials were not at Monday night's meeting.
questions: ( and I know there appears to be no answers today)
1/ What does this do to Project Arrow for the 204 district ? Rumors of centralization appear to be true, but maybe not under our control ?
-- or do the top 0.5% go here and we keep the rest ?
2/ How many more students leave 204 ? Losing 2-3% each year from ES as it is over the last 4 years - adding to that will speed up the lack of need for 3 HS's and grow the unused space in ES's beyond the current 2.5 schools..
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dist. 204 joins collaborative to groom future stars in math, science
By Justin Kmitch | Daily Herald StaffContact writerPublished: 4/27/2010 8:51 AM.Send To:
E-mail: To: From:
Name: E-mail: Comments:
.
(0) | read | postBuzz up! Indian Prairie Unit District 204 has joined a group of area districts working to develop a hybrid school that would include the benefits of both magnet and charter school models.
Assistant Superintendent for Instructional Services Jay Strang told board members Monday that the initiative being created by East Aurora District 131, West Aurora School District 129, Oswego Unit District 308 and District 204 likely would be a third- through eighth-grade school housed at Aurora University. It would serve the top 2 percent of students in each of the school districts in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math.
Strang said legislators are working now to ensure the venture would be a highly competitive public school in the magnet model but also receive tax dollars and private funding like a charter school.
"The university is asking for a step-up commitment at this point to say we believe in this initiative," Strang said, noting the end product is still years away. "There are not a lot of details at this point about how many kids from each school district would attend, where they would go, what types of teachers would teach those courses, how much money would come from federal and state grants and how much from corporate and private donors. All of that's to be determined."
The hybrid school also would be assisted by Aurora's Illinois Math and Science Academy, which would assist in developing the curriculum and instruction as well as the selection process and the matrix to determine which students get in.
"We could probably fill that school up by ourselves so we're going to have to come up with a pretty clear process to determine how the students are selected," Strang said. "We want to have a nice representative body of our kids at that table so there might be kids with autism and great skill in the area of math or engineering that go there. We don't want those kids excluded from the opportunity."
Board President Curt Bradshaw said he was excited about the possibilities and funding opportunities that await.
"This academy, because it's designed to be innovative and cutting edge, is also designed to attract federal money so the design around this is to be able to attract significant dollars to be able to benefit kids academically for all of these districts tied to Aurora," he said.
University officials were not at Monday night's meeting.
