Charting a future course in Buffalo, Tonawanda
Four charter high schools grant diplomas to their first graduates
In a class of just 66, William Slaughter and Amber Galarza easily could be lost among the thousands of high school graduates this year.
Instead, they’re among distinguished firsts.
On Sunday, they and 64 classmates were the first to receive diplomas from Charter High School for Applied Technologies in the Town of Tonawanda.
“Looking into the future, we’ll define ourselves by how you define yourself,” Principal Carrie Dzierba told the school’s first graduates during their commencement at Villa Maria Academy.
Three other charter schools — all in Buffalo — also graduated their first classes. The Buffalo Academy of Science issued 43 diplomas; Western New York Maritime graduated 38 students; and Enterprise Charter had 20 graduates in its first class. An overwhelming number of the graduates are college-bound, including 60 from Applied Technologies.
Slaughter, the valedictorian, is headed to the Rochester Institute of Technology, where he plans to study mechanical engineering. Galarza is going to Daemen College, where she intends to major in social work and minor in criminal justice.
Both said their time at Applied Technologies exposed them to those fields of specialization and possible careers.
That’s precisely the school’s aim, said Superintendent J. Efrain Martinez: “To have graduates who are very clear about a career path and, at the same time, flexible enough to change the way they do their work.
“Because that’s the reality,” Martinez said. “We have to reinvent the careers of the future.”
Slaughter and Galarza entered Applied Technologies as sixth-graders when the school opened in 2001. Both have friends attending traditional public high schools and have noticed some differences.
“Other schools, they are so big you really don’t get close to your teachers,” said Slaughter. “Here, you can have a personality with your teachers.”
Galarza said she has friends who were uncertain about whether they’d be able to graduate.
“Here, they go out of their way to get us extra hours for our classes and to make sure everyone passes,” Galarza said. “I’m just thankful that I came here and don’t have to go through the trouble.”
This year’s high school graduation rates elsewhere weren’t immediately available. But the numbers produced by local charter schools crush the statewide results for 2006, the most recent year for which data was available from the state Department of Education.
Overall, the four-year graduation rate in 2006 was 67 percent, according to state data. It was 47 percent for African- Americans and 45 percent for Hispanic students. Charter schools typically serve a larger minority population than traditional schools.
The 66 of 72 students who graduated from Applied Technologies put the school at roughly 91 percent, according to Thomas R. Lucia, director of public relations. Buffalo Academy of Science had a graduation rate of roughly 89 percent; Maritime Charter, 88 percent; and Enterprise reported 83 percent.
All graduates of Buffalo Academy of Science were accepted by colleges, according to Catherine Oldenburg, dean of academics. “We are very, very proud of that,“ she said.
Lt. Col. Lawrence W. Astyk, the principal/commandant at Western New York Maritime, said 79 percent of its graduates are heading to college, while others are joining the military or entering the work force.
All of Enterprise Charter’s graduates also are headed to college, said Jill Norton, chief academic officer.
Because of the number of students and their parents choosing to go to Applied Technologies, construction continues at the Kenmore Avenue campus.
Additional classrooms and an auditorium are planned.
“I thought we were done with construction, but, no, it’s going to continue,” Martinez said. “We have to respond to the demands of the customer.”
But instead of focusing solely on his students’ accomplishments, Martinez said: “I am proud of the work of the staff. They who are closer to the children are the ones who did the hard work.”
Buffalo News reporter Andrew Rafferty contributed to this report. jhabuda@buffnews.com
