Consultant says Key ready for municipal charter high school

The Islander News. November 26, 2008.  By: KELLY JOSEPHSEN. kjosephsen@islandernews.com

Key Biscayne's education consultants say the Village is ready for a modern, innovative municipal charter high school — but is not prepared to totally abandon traditional styles of education.

Consultants from Fielding Nair International and EdVisions conducted two sessions each of two workshops last week. In doing so, they discussed feedback they received at similar events last month.

FNI's Prakash Nair said Key Biscayners seem to be settling in the middle of a continuum between a totally innovative school where the community is literally the classroom and students direct their own education; and one where classes are held both inside and outside a school building and the curriculum is a blend of self-learning and teacher-led learning.

"You're not ready for a school without walls. But you wouldn't have us here if you wanted to do what everyone else does," he noted.

Nair added more details about the Village's desires will emerge based on last week's workshops. He said he hoped "Workshop One" would serve as a general overview of where the consultants currently feel the community is in terms of a high school, as well as an opportunity to generate additional feedback. In "Workshop Two," he hoped to provide a detailed picture of the type of school consultants think the Village wants — then let residents tell them if they're moving in the right direction.

The consultants used surveys, consensus-building exercises and good, old-fashioned open discussion to generate the feedback they're after.

Information collected from all the workshops will allow FNI to draft a feasibility study as to whether it's possible to open a high school on the Key, and, if so, what type of school would best meet local needs. FNI expects to submit the study next January.

Then, the Village Council will hold public meetings to review the document. After that, the Council has promised to make a decision by next summer as to whether it will apply to the Miami-Dade School District to open a charter high school for the 2010-2011 school year.

Nair said last week's sessions should help his team of consultants answer several important questions, including whether the community as a whole wants a school, what kind of school would be best for the Village, how much the project would cost and where it would be located.

First, however, consultants gave an overview of feedback they received from the October workshops.

"We did hear you last time — we heard all your questions and concerns," promised FNI's Jennifer Lamar.

Clare Vogel of FNI went on to list questions and concerns that came up again and again in October. She said the consultants are studying each issue as they prepare their feasibility study.

Some common topics of concern include:

-  if kids who attend the sort of innovative, non-traditional school proposed by FNI can still ace college entry exams and get into good universities.

- how the school would be funded.

- the possibility of incorporating Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate programs.

-  where the Village would find the right teachers, and how those teachers would be held accountable.

- how the new building will impact the adult community.

While those concerns came up during general discussion last month, FNI also received feedback via surveys that asked participants to rate how they felt about images of the education world — desks in a classroom, kids studying outside, computer work stations, gymnasiums, etc.

Vogel said the images represented the "actual" state of education as well as FNI's "ideal" school. The "actual" images — like rows of desks facing a blackboard and big, empty auditoriums — scored very low with the audience, she reported, with an approval rating of 11.8 percent.

Meanwhile, the "ideal" images — like a small group studying under a tree and high-tech computer work stations — were well-received, with a nearly 80-percent positive reaction.

Those are solid, scientific numbers, Vogel said. "This gives us a sense of where you are on that scale" between a traditional school and an innovative school, she noted.

Vogel added it doesn't appear Key Biscayne as a whole is ready to go all the way to a non-traditional school. Nair went into more detail on that statement.

He gave three examples of schools FNI has helped develop: a totally non-traditional "school without walls," in which the com­munity is literally the classroom for stu­dents' self-directed learning; a school that integrates outdoor, field-based learning with traditional classroom lessons; and a school that sticks to the classroom model but incorporates one-on-one, hands-on learning experiences.

He pointed to a picture of the second, hybrid approach: "We're kind of playing around in this area."

Nair added the workshops will give him a better idea of where the Village falls on the continuum. At this point, though, he foresees a blend of teacher-led and student-directed learning, and expects Key Biscayners to want some sort of building for the school — not only to provide students a home base, but to serve as a symbol for the community to take pride in.

Although available space is at a premium on the island, Nair said it wouldn't be that hard to find enough room for a school that meets local teens' needs.

He noted traditional high schools provide an average of 150 square feet of space per student — meaning 60,000 square feet for the 400-student school Key Biscayne is after.

However, less than 20,000 square feet of that average is actually educational space, he said, with the rest devoted to hallways, cafeterias, athletic facilities, auditoriums, etc.

That sub-20,000 square feet is all the Village would need, Nair said. "You're using facilities you already have. There are facilities right in your own back­yard that you can use," he remarked, listing the Atlantic Ocean, Community Center, private sector locations and more as examples.

And, since it's unlikely 400 students would walk in the door the first year the high school opens, the Village could split its building plans into two phases, Nair added.

That said, he stopped short of saying where the school might be located. That information will likely be part of the feasi­bility study and follow up meetings.

Meanwhile, Nair did briefly address curriculum, noting "project-based learning," where students meet educational standards through hands-on projects, is the wave of the future.

In Key Biscayne, he said, it appears residents want a model where students have a lot of control over their own projects, but are still supervised by teachers.

Also, Nair noted, it would be best to split the school into several thematic "learning communities" — perhaps an art school, man­agement school and science school. That way, he said, each segment can be limited to 125-150 students, which allows for better relationships between students and their teachers.

After describing where he feels the com­munity is, Nair listened to residents' ongoing concerns and suggestions. Some workshop attendees wanted to know if the school would be open to the public after-hours, and Nair assured them it would.

He added even people who don't have kids and never enter the facility will benefit from it, as a world-class school would raise property values on the island.

Meanwhile, many of the questions focused on students' futures after attending a non-traditional school. Nair told residents students will still have to meet state and federal requirements, and their progress in doing so can be monitored closely by their teachers.

He added college admissions officers want students with a rich variety of experiences — something project-based learning provides.

Finally, Nair briefly addressed funding questions. He noted many charter schools survive based solely on funding from their school district. Key Biscayne's school would certainly use school district money, but the Village is fortunate to be in a position to supplement that through private fundraising.

In the end, Nair said, the community can create a school that kids are excited to attend — and that in turn develops the "whole human being" by exposing students to a variety of relevant experiences. He urged parents to stay involved in the process in order to make their opinions heard.

"It's a privilege parents almost never have. Don't waste this golden opportunity," he said.

Advisory committee

Meanwhile, in other school news, the Council on Tuesday, November 18, gave its final approval to the creation of a Charter High School Advisory Board. As FNI moves forward with its feasibility study and public input process, the committee will pro­vide assistance and support.

The seven-member board will include someone who is familiar with 21st Century schools, a community advocate, a proven community leader, residents with back­grounds in special education and child psy­chology, a parent representative and some­one with strong technology credentials.

Mayor Robert Vernon stressed the board will be solely advisory in nature, and will provide a forum for other residents to discuss how a charter school can best meet the needs and wishes of the community. The final decision on whether to move forward with the project, however, will be up to the Council.

"They will dissect the minutia of the proj­ect and come forward with their recommen­dation," Vernon remarked. "It's ultimately the seven people up here that decide the fate of any big project."

He added he will appoint people to the board who will "ask questions and not just agree to everything."

Vice Mayor Michael Davey agreed that is important, noting, "We need people who can look at the numbers and say, 'Is this doable?"

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