New charter school possible for trouble-makers

The state can provide a $450,000 grant to launch a new charter school.

By HAROLD GWIN

VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER

YOUNGSTOWN — A regional alternative education program for high school students who get into trouble at school and with the law would likely be set up as a new charter school.

The Mahoning County Juvenile Justice Center and the Youngstown city schools are forming a partnership to pursue development of a program that would require high school students who get expelled to attend an alternative school that would provide both academic and vocational education, as well as behavior modification.

The court would assign the students to the school. Failure to attend or complete school work could result in incarceration.

The plan is to make it a countywide program serving all county public schools.

Juvenile court Judge Theresa Dellick has said she would like to have the program in place for the start of school this fall.

Shelley Murray, city school board president and chairman of a school board ad hoc committee looking at alternative education, said Wednesday that the JJC committee working on creation of the program is looking at it being set up as an independent charter school with its own board of directors. Youngstown’s Choffin Career & Technical Center could be contracted to provide some of the vocational training for the school, she said.

Ohio charter schools require a sponsor, and Murray said the Youngstown city schools could fill that role. The district already sponsors the Mahoning Valley Opportunity Center, a charter school.

The state can provide $450,000 in start-up funds for a new school, Murray said, and Dr. Wendy Webb, Youngstown schools superintendent, said the planning committee is looking for additional state money to fund the effort. The state is excited about this project being a model for others to follow, Webb said.

Having the city school district serve as the sponsor might not be the best way to move at this point, she said, pointing out there is a lot of bureaucracy involved when a school district serves as sponsor and that could delay the start of the alternative school.

The court could sponsor it, and so could the Mahoning County Educational Service Center, which provides educational services to the public schools, she said.

Richard Denamen, superintendent of the educational service center, said the ESC would be interested in looking at that possibility.

It already sponsors two charter schools — Mahoning Unlimited Classroom and Youngstown Community School, he said.

An administrator with the ESC staff, Cynthia Cairnes, helped write the alternative-school proposal.

Murray said a school location will also be needed and there has been some discussion about utilizing the former Sheridan Elementary on Hudson Avenue. The building is used for storage now.

City school board member Richard Atkinson, a member of the board’s ad hoc committee, asked if transportation would be provided for students assigned to the school.

That’s a matter still under discussion, Webb said.

Anthony Catale, another school board and ad hoc committee member, said he likes the approach the district is taking to addressing concerns about student behavior that disrupt the traditional classroom setting.

“I’m all for an alternative program,” he said.

The planning committee has estimated that there are 900 students in the county eligible for the program at any given time.

gwin@vindy.com