NIAGARA WHEATFIELD
Parents voice support for charter school
Published: November 23, 2009, 12:30 am
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SANBORN — About 50 parents and others turned out at the Niagara Wheatfield School Board meeting last week to support the Niagara Charter School.
Many of the speakers at a public hearing gave personal testimony on how the school has helped their children.
Joanne Scott of Niagara Falls said she has seen “such progress and growth” with her grandson since he started that she cannot wait for her 3-year-old granddaughter to start one day.
“Our community needs that charter school,” she said. “To take it away would be a devastating blow to the area.”
Niagara Wheatfield School Superintendent Carl H. Militello said the hearing was being held in Niagara Wheatfield because it is the home district for the charter school, which opened at 2077 Lockport Road in 2006.
Militello said all comments would be forwarded to the state Education Department, which monitors the progress and effectiveness of charter schools.
The charter school operates a program of kindergarten through sixth grade with about 336 students.
The School Board also heard about the success of the new Twilight Program, which offers alternative instructional methods for some students from 2:30 to 6:30 p. m. during the week.
The program features smaller classes for the 20 students who attend as well as single-sex classrooms. With only one gender in the class, students have to deal with fewer distractions and are can participate in a more open dialogue. Some of the students would not have made it through regular high school, officials said.
The program, starting last month, has an attendance rate of 73 percent.
In another business, the board hired Jennifer L. Curci as assistant superintendent at a salary of about $100,000. She has been principal at Orchard Park Middle School for the last three years and was also assistant principal in the Williamsville district for eight years.
Curci replaces Michelle A. Spasiano, who left to become superintendent of the Franklinville School District.
niagaranews@buffnews.com
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