Consultant sought to provide guidance on charter high school
Islander News. March 6, 2008.
Kelly Josephsen. kjosephsen@islandemews.com
Village officials are accepting proposals from consultants to help them study the idea of building a municipal charter high school on the island.
The application deadline is Monday, March 17. From there, a committee of residents and Village staff will evaluate the proposals and make a recommendation to the Village Manager, who will in turn make a recommendation to the Village Council before the Council makes the final pick.
The Village will host an informational meeting tomorrow, March 7, at 9 a.m. in the Building, Zoning and Planning Department conference room to answer questions from potential applicants.
For now, a Request For Proposals, available online at www.keybiscayne.fl.gov, gives an idea of what the Village is looking for. The RFP was drafted by Village Manager Chip Iglesias and members of the High School for Key Biscayne Stakeholders Group, a group of parents pushing for the school.
Essentially, as the RFP states, the Village needs help studying the viability of a municipal charter school — one that is state-funded but linked to the Village — for approximately 400 students.
The consultant will be expected to develop several models for establishing such a school, including both a school sponsored by the Village and co-sponsored by the Village.
That includes information on advantages / disadvantages, organizational structures, start-up and operating costs and funding sources; as well as feeder patterns for charter schools and district schools.
Meanwhile, getting into more of the nitty-gritty, the Village wants a detailed Facilities Requirement Plan for a 400-seat school detailing what facilities are needed, operating revenue and expense projections, availability of Capital Outlay Funds, potential state and federal funding and staff salaries and benefits. A review of student demographics in Key Biscayne will be incorporated.
Finally, the Council is asking for an overview of the process used to create a municipal charter school.
This will cover the application process and schedule, role of the school's governing board, attendance zones/enrollment preferences, insurance, extracurriculars, accountability requirements, certification and college entrance requirements, employees, responsibility of the sponsor and school district and grant opportunities. Logistical matters like transportation and food services would also be addressed.
Residents and Village staffers who review the proposals will take a careful look at whether applicants have the experience and expertise to provide the aforementioned services. Specific criteria include:
— Experience in studying, analyzing and successfully implementing municipal charter schools
— Ability to analyze operating budgets for charter schools
— Ability to analyze mixed-use opportunities between schools and municipal facilities
— Experience working on similar school projects in small communities
Price, of course, will also be a consideration; as will be ability to get the work done in a timely manner.
The firm that is selected will be expected to complete its work within 45 days, then make two public presentations and two more presentations to the Council.
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