SUNY Trustees Renew Nine Charter Schools
January 26, 2016
New York – Upon recommendation of the SUNY Charter Schools Institute, the SUNY Board of Trustees’ Charter Schools Committee (“Committee”), acting on behalf of the full SUNY Board of Trustees, today approved 9 resolutions to approve the applications for charter renewal of 9 SUNY authorized charter schools: 7 in or around New York City – in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens; and 2 in upstate New York – in Rochester.
SUNY charter schools currently serve over 56,000 New York students and their families. Ninety percent of SUNY authorized charter schools outperformed their district of location on the 2015 New York State mathematics assessment and 73% outperformed their district on the ELA assessment.
Brief summaries of each decision follow. Full Committee resolutions and renewal recommendation reports can be found here: http://www.suny.edu/about/leadership/board-of-trustees/meetings/meetingNotices.cfm.
- Explore Charter School (Brooklyn) was originally chartered by the New York City Schools Chancellor and opened in 2002. It merged with a SUNY authorized charter school in 2015 and is located in public space at 655 Parkside Avenue, Brooklyn, NY in New York City Community School District (“CSD”) 17. The school currently serves students in Kindergarten through 8th grade. Explore Charter School received a short-term renewal of three years.
- Explore Excel Charter School (Brooklyn) opened in 2011. It is located in public space at 1077 Remsen Avenue, Brooklyn, NY (Kindergarten through 4th grade) and 956 East 82nd Street, Brooklyn, NY (5th through 7th grade) in CSD 18. Explore Excel Charter School received a short-term renewal of three years and approval to grow to serve 8th grade.
- Icahn Charter School 1 (Bronx) opened in 2001 and is located in leased facilities at 1525 Brook Avenue, Bronx, NY (Kindergarten through 4th grade) and 1506 Brook Avenue, Bronx, NY (5th through 8th grade) in CSD 9. Icahn Charter School 1 received a full-term renewal of five years.
- Icahn Charter School 5 (Bronx) opened in 2011 and is located in a leased facility at 1500 Pelham Parkway, Bronx, NY in CSD 11. The school currently serves students in Kindergarten through 6th grade. Icahn Charter School 5 received a full-term renewal of five years and approval to grow to serve students in Kindergartenthrough 8th grade.
- True North Rochester Preparatory Charter School (Rochester) opened in 2006 and is located in leased space at 899 Jay Street, Rochester, NY (Kindergarten through 4th grade), 630 Brooks Avenue, Rochester, NY (5th through 8th grade) and 175 Martin Street, Rochester, NY (9th through 10th grade) all within the Rochester City School District. True North Rochester Preparatory Charter School received a full-term renewal of five years and approval to grow to serve students in Kindergartenthrough 12th grade.
- True North Rochester Preparatory Charter School—West Campus (Rochester) opened in 2011 and is located in leased space at 1020 Maple St., Rochester, NY within the Rochester City School District. The school currently serves students in Kindergarten through 2nd and 5th through 8th grades. True North Rochester Preparatory Charter School—West Campus received a full-term renewal of five years and approval to grow to serve students in Kindergartenthrough 8th grade.
- Academy of the City Charter School (Queens) opened in 2011 and is located in a leased facility at 31-29 60th Street, Woodside, Queens, NY in CSD 30. The school currently serves students in Kindergarten through 5th grade. Academy of the City Charter School received a short-term renewal of three years
- East Harlem Scholars Academy Charter School (Manhattan) opened in 2011 and is located in public space at 1573 Madison Avenue, New York, NY in CSD 4. The school currently serves students in Kindergarten through 5th grade. East Harlem Scholars Academy Charter School received a full-term renewal of five years and approval to grow to serve students in Kindergarten through 8th grade.
- Invictus Preparatory Charter School (Brooklyn) opened in 2011 and is located in public space at 370 Fountain Avenue, Brooklyn, NY in CSD 19. The school currently serves students in 5th through 8th grade. Invictus Preparatory Charter School received a short-term renewal of three years, with conditions.
SUNY is the largest charter school authorizer in New York State and the largest university-based charter school authorizer in the country. The SUNY Charter Schools Institute was created by the SUNY Board of Trustees to assist it in carrying out its responsibilities under the New York Charter Schools Act (the “Act”). Guided by the rigorous standards set by the SUNY Board of Trustees, the Institute’s oversight of SUNY authorized charter schools is comprehensive, including: evaluating initial applications for the opening of charter schools; ongoing oversight and evaluation of operating schools; conducting a comprehensive evaluation when a school applies to renew its charter; and reporting to the school and the public on each school’s performance and progress. Charter schools in New York trade greater autonomy for greater accountability for academic outcomes. Each charter school has a charter contract that is signed by its board of trustees and the authorizer of the school. As part of the contract, the accountability plan for each school establishes the academic goals that must be met and how those goals will be measured. Contracts last a maximum of five years as set by the Act. In order to continue operating, a charter school must apply to renew its charter at the end of each charter term. Receiving approval to continue operating is the core of accountability required by the Act.
About the State University of New York
The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY’s 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country’s oldest school of maritime, the state’s only college of optometry, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.4 million students amongst its entire portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.1 billion in fiscal year 2023, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and one in three New Yorkers with a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit suny.edu.
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Holly Liapis
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