A: Where can we build the school?

Based on the recommendations from Fielding Nair International, a 25,000 sq. ft. of efficiently planned facility will serve the needs of a 400-students school. After exhaustive search for a location, the most viable options found are the empty lot at 530 Crandon Blvd., a reconfiguration of the 2nd floor at the Village Hall, and / or the Village Hall parking lot.

Each one of the above locations presents advantages and disadvantages, with the option of the parking lot at the Village Hall being the most appropriate.

Village Hall  parking lot seems like the most viable  option. The planned garage at this location permits building the school on top of garage without reconfiguration of the Village Hall.

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A: Is there space available outside of our Village to build the school?

No. Virginia Key has been looked at a potential location for many years. However, neither the City of Miami nor the School District have an interest or desire on building a school in that location.

Last version of Virginia Key Master Plan excluded the possibility of a school as the City of Miami has enough capacity in adjacent neighborhoods. For information on the Virginia Key Master Plan please see http://www.virginiakeymasterplan.com/

Even if the School District and the City of Miami decide at a very distant future to build a school in Virginia Key, it would be a school managed by the School District and not by our community, and will be subject to the same administrative concerns and quality of education issues the non-magnet high schools already face in Miami-Dade. It would also be located outside our community and would not provide the same benefits as a community based school.

Other locations, such as Calusa Park or the old Miami Zoo, have been explored and proved not feasible due to significant deed restrictions in the use of the land.

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A: Would the M-DCPS expand MAST Academy or build a school next to MAST to serve the needs of Key Biscayne and adjacent neighborhoods?

MAST is a nationally recognized county-wide magnet high school open to all Miami-Dade County students. It has a strict admission criteria, and over 1,000 students apply each year for 115 spaces.  M-DCPS keeps MAST and other magnet schools at a maximum capacity of 550 students.

As a magnet school, MAST has an admission criteria not appropriate for a boundary school as it would have to reject many children from its feeder as the entrance requirements are very stringent and not all children will meet them. In addition, MAST has a focus on science and marine studies, disqualifying students with an interest in other academic interests such a pure college preparatory curriculum.

The alternative would be to convert MAST from a magnet school to a feeder school for children of Key Biscayne. However, M-DCPS will never dispose of a performing school to meet the needs of our community.

Another alternative would be to build a regular district school on the approximately 36,000 sq. ft. next to  MAST's parking lot. However, district high schools regulations require a minimum amount of space and students' capacity requiring several acres of land. These district schools normally serve over 2,000 students and require to contain playing fields, cafeterias, etc., making it unfeasible to build a school in the limited space available. 

Most importantly, M-DCPS is investing approximately $160M in remodeling and expanding Miami Senior High, located at 2450 SW 1^st Street. In addition, Booker T. Washington Senior High, located at 1200 NW 6^th Av., is operating at  68% of capacity  (see this link to Booker T. statistics). This schools are nearby The Roads and Brickell, and M-DCPS could not justify building new capacity when some existing schools operate under capacity. Even if M-DCPS had the money, which they don't, M-DCPS can not justify building on the grounds of MAST Academy or in Virginia Key, even if M-DCPS could get the land for free from the City of Miami. 

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A:  How can the school be funded? How much will it cost?

In summary, the school would be self funded by the proceeds from the FDOE, based on a base per-student allocation and complemented with additional allocations for IB, IP, ESOL and ESE programs. Charter schools also receive implementation grants and capital outlay funds for school construction after the third year of operation.  The projections are that the school would receive funding of approximately $49.1M during the first 15 years of operation, with an estimated total cost of $46.7M - including $10.5M of facility’s amortization and maintenance - providing an estimated surplus of approximately 2.4M.

As with any new enterprise - particularly a nonprofit - the school would need financial assistance for the start-up operations and facilities. The main reasons for the need of financial assistance are the controlled slow build up of school's enrollment, delay in reimbursement of advanced programs (AP and IB) and capital outlay funding not available until after the 3rd year of operation. For operations only, the school would need working capital estimated at $415,000, which could be paid back after the fourth year of operation. Including facilities, the need for working capital would increase by approximately $2.2M, which would be paid back during the life of the 15 years loan / bond. Total working capital needed, including facilities, is estimated at $2.6M.

School enrollment and personnel:

Operating budget:

See  http://www.fldoe.org/fefp/pdf/fefpdist.pdf for details on school funding.

Other revenue:

State and Federal grants, allocated to charter schools for implementation and program design, as well as capital outlay funding available to charter schools after their 3rd year of operation, will contribute to school funding. See documents of reference for implementation grants and capital outlay. It would also be expected for the school to do fundraising, estimated at $200 per student. Capital outlay funding for construction starts after year three of operation.

In addition, it would be expected for the PTSA and afterschool programs to raise additional revenue. At a minimum, PTSA's goal would be to raise and equivalent of $200 per students each year.

Estimated Profit and Loss (without facilities):

Additional opportunities for raising revenue, such as naming rights or contributions from major donors or foundations, will be sought by the school.

Cash Flow (without facilities):

Facilities cost:

For planning purposes, we estimate school's construction to be $7,000,000. This amount would be expected to be capitalized using a 15 years loan at 4% interest rate for a yearly cost of principal and interest of $621,000. This payment could be reduced to $349,588 in the event the school project qualifies for an interest free loan under the federal stimulus package.  If needed, a 20 years loan would reduce yearly payments by over $110,000 per year.
As per Florida Statue 1013.62(5)(e), Capital outlay funds are available for charter schools after three years of operation. For high schools, the amount per student in the 2009 - 2010 school year is $830.29. See details at FDOE's site here.

Total Budget, including facilities:

Cash Flow (with facilities):

Download a pdf with budget overview here.  See detailed operating budget here.

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A: Will my property tax increase to pay for the school?

No. As stated above, school operations would be self-funded with no subsidies required from the Village.

If the Village decides to assist the school with the $2.2M to $2.6M in working capital needed to operate the school the first years of operation, we should look at the Village's operating budget to determine the extend to which it can support the school. If there are not sufficient funds, the school would be subject to private contributions to build the working capital as prerequisite to build the school. 

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A: The economy is in shambles. Is the proposed initiative fiscally responsible?

Would it be fiscally responsible for our Village to establish a school in our community at these economically challenging times?

As a premise, school must be self-sufficient - with no subsidy from the Village. There are mechanisms to isolate the Village, and its tax payers, from the financial responsibility of operating the school. In short, residents would not have a tax liability on school's operations.

In addition, there are significant financial benefits to the community.

For instance, the school would bring back to the community over $49M during the first 15 years of operation from the taxes we send across the bridge each year. It would also expand retail business customer base by 400 students and their families - providing with better shopping options to all residents. Our real estate property values would also benefit.

In conclusion, proposed initiative would not only provide our over 3,400 children the choice of attending a high-quality college preparatory program in their community, or the benefit to the community of establishing a lifelong learning center for all residents of our Village, but would be fiscally responsible.

In fact, forfeiting our right to get taxes back to work for our community, while enhancing our retail business and our property values, would be fiscally irresponsible.

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A: What kind of school and curriculum is being proposed?

See details in the curriculum section.

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A: Will the school compete with Gulliver or Ransom Everglades schools?

No. Economics of scale and funding would not allow the school to compete with these schools with tuition in excess of $25,000 per year. However, the school would have the opportunity to compete with the best public schools in the country.

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A: How would the school impact real estate property values in our community?

Based on Village's consultants report, supported by scientific data produced by many research projects in communities across our country, proposed High School would have a positive impact in real estate property demand and values. By how much would the school increase property values in our community?

An exclusive USA TODAY study finds that in city after city, it's customary for a house to be worth at least 10% more than a comparable house across the street if that street is the boundary line between a highly rated school district and a laggard. In some cases, houses in the best school districts cost almost twice as much as those nearby. Read report here.  See also:

 The Impact of School Quality on Real House Prices. By David Brasington. Department of Economics. Ohio State University. A scientific study of 134 communities concludes that schools quality is the most important cause of the variation in property prices. 

School Quality and Property Values In Greenville, South Carolina. Kwame Owusu-Edusei and Molly Espey. Clemson University Public Service Activities. This study of Greenville, South Carolina, concludes high-ranked schools have values capitalized into single-family house prices. Further, greater distance to assigned K-12 schools has a negative impact on the value of the property.

Neighborhood School Characteristics: What Signals Quality to Homebuyers? By Kathy J. Hayes, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and Professor of Economics, Southern Methodist University, and Lori L. Taylor, Senior Economist and Policy Advisor, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. This study suggests that this premium for school quality can be among the most important determinants of housing prices.

The impact of schools on housing values in Westchester County. A study of median housing prices in selected school districts in Westchester County found homes in the Rye Neck district had the best return on investment, while those within the Pleasantville school system appreciated the least.

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A: How many children will benefit from the school? What is the projected students enrollment?

Based on Census 2000, the University of Florida and Key Biscayne 2007 Master Plan Evaluation and Appraisal  Report (EAR), consultants estimated at 3,428 the number of children in the 1 - 19 age range as of the end of 2008 - and an estimated 872 of them in high school age. This segment of our population had a 55% growth from the 1990 Census to the 2000 Census.  See youth population projections and high school age estimations.

Enrollment projections for proposed school are:

At capacity, 400 students will benefit years each year from attending the school.

The existing public school population supports estimated capacity. Year 1 enrollment target will be met with just 62% of middle public school graduates enrolling in the new school.

Of the 122 Key Biscayne middle school children that graduated from public schools in 2008, 71 enrolled in public high schools for the current 2008 – 2009 school year, suggesting 51 students, or 42% of middle school graduates from the public school system, decided to attend private high schools. Coral Gables Senior High School enrolled the majority of students.

Enrollment in the public middle and high school system is expected to continue to grow at an alarming rate, particularly under a stressed economic environment. 

• An average of 127 children residents of Key Biscayne will graduate each year from public elementary schools (123 of them from our local Key Biscayne K-8 Center)

•  In the current 2008 – 2009 school year, 139 children residents of Key Biscayne will graduate from public elementary at our KB K-8 Center, an increase of 19% over the previous year.  

• While 11 students graduated from Coral Gables Senior High School in the 2008 - 2009 school year, 51 enrolled in the freshmen 2009 - 2010 school year at the same school.

Reference: M-DCPS enrollment data for Key Biscayne students: 2006-2007; 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 school years.

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A: What is a municipal charter school?

Is a public school, funded by the State with school tax dollars already paid. The school is controlled by the municipality where the school is located, instead of the school district. The governance of the school, as established by the municipality, decides the curriculum and how the school is administered. The school is responsible for meeting State Standards in education. It enjoys the freedom of a charter school, and serves the needs of the community. Children of the municipality receive top enrollment priority. The school does not get an allocation of NCLB students from the school district, as a traditional school may get.

See additional information on the charter schools section.

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A: Why a municipal charter school instead of a regular district school?

In spite of the high school taxes we pay ($51.8M in 2008), M-DCPS has not responded to the needs of our community. The 55 years old elementary school building continues to deteriorate, and the performance of regular (non-magnet) district-managed schools is well below what could be considered a fair education.

M-DCPS is been identified by the Florida Department of Education as a "district in need of corrective action". "This means that the district did not meet all state student achievement criteria in reading, writing and/or mathematics for four or more years".  Read more details here.

We, as a municipality, can do significantly much better than the school district by planning and implementing our own school with operations funded by State and Federal resources coming back to the community from the property taxes we already pay. Many municipalities are already running their own schools, as allowed by Florida legislation approved in 1999. Pembroke Pines, City of Aventura, Oakland , Miami Shores and Coral Springs are among municipalities already operating their own schools and outperforming regular district schools.

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A: Are there examples of nearby municipal charter schools?

Since Florida authorized municipalities to operate schools in 1999, several municipalities have decided to establish charter schools to overcome traditional public schools challenges. nearby examples of municipalities include Pembroke Pines, City of Aventura, Cape Coral, Oakland , Miami Shores, Coral Springs and, most recently, the City of Hialeah became a charter school authorizer.

While our Key Biscayne charter school will not be the first, it can certainly be the best.

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A: How are charter schools funded?

Charter schools are funded by State and Federal funding the same way a regular public school is funded. Funding is regulated by the Florida Statutes and independently of how M-DCPS manages its finances. See details here.

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A: Federal and State Government have been reducing funding for public education.  How can we make sure funding will be in place to support the school?

We would expect a more reasonable funding policy under President Obama's administration. In fact, reversing the funding decline of the past as well as pursuing much needed true public  education reform.

President Barack Obama has identified public education as one of the 3 top priorities of his administration. He is committed  to ncrease funding for charter schools and other reform-based models. Arne Duncan, his choice for Secretary of Education, has a good track record in effectively pursuing education reform and creating competition within the public school system, providing choices and supporting charter schools in Chicago, the third largest School District in the country.  Watch nomination video.

In Mr. Duncan's confirmation hearing on January 20, 2009, he "warmly endorsed Teach for America and its founder, Wendy Kopp, as well as the larger movement of social entrepreneurs seeking to improve public education through tactics like founding charter schools and seeking to end teacher tenure. He called himself a “big supporter” of charter schools."  And he also endorsed turning public schools into community centers: “The more our schools can become community centers,” Mr. Duncan said, “the better we’ll do.” Public schools, he said, should be “open not 6 hours but 12 hours a day.” Read NYT article.

Obama understands better than many the importance of a good public education, as he is a product of it. Obama He has a proven track record in giving education a top priority. For instance, he doubled the number of charter schools in Illinois and is now pledging to do the same for the entire country, and increasing their funding to meet 21st Century education needs.  See a video on Obama's view on charter schools here and his "Blue Print for Change: Education" here.

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A: How does a municipal charter school differ from a traditional district school?

In many different ways, but primarily in freedom from the policies of the school district and accountability. See comparison table.

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