Propel charter school moves into Pittsburgh school district
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Kim Hoerr, left, a first-grade teacher, and Betsy Miller, center, who teaches kindergarten, work with other teachers to create a mission statement for the new Propel school on the North Side.
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The first time principal Ariane Watson toured the closed school building that was to become home to her new school, Propel Northside, she and others had to use a flashlight because there was no power.
Still, she had no trouble envisioning the school filled with elementary schoolchildren busy with their work and activities.
"Even in the dark, I could just picture this building coming to life," Ms. Watson said. "But it really isn't about the physical building. It's what we are creating. Our mission, our vision," Ms. Watson said.
Ms. Watson's vision will become reality tomorrow when Propel Northside opens its doors for the first day of class in the former Columbus Middle School on Buena Vista Street in the Central North Side. The school will open with 200 students in grades K-four, with 20 students in each class and two classes at each grade level. A grade will be added each year until the school holds 400 students in grades K-eight.
As with all Propel schools, there already is a waiting list.
The opening marks the eighth school for Propel since 2003, but the first one in the city. Propel operates seven charter schools in suburban Allegheny County. It also marks the first time a Propel charter was granted without the need for the organization to appeal to the state charter appeals board.
After initially rejecting Propel's charter application in February, the Pittsburgh school board approved it in April and then approved a $10,000-a-month lease with Propel to use the shuttered Columbus Middle School for the first year of operation. Propel plans to move the school to another site on the North Side next year.
"We are looking forward to working with a school district that we know is committed to making changes across the city. We want to be part of what they are doing," said Jeremy Resnick, Propel's founder and executive director.
The system's total enrollment for fall 2011 is about 2,500 students, making it larger than 17 of the public school districts in Allegheny County.
In October 2010, Propel won a $3.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to "replicate and expand high-quality charter schools that have demonstrated success." The grant is to be used to expand one charter school, Montour, and start four more.
Propel Northside is one of the four, with plans for a Propel school in the Sto-Rox School District the next step.
First Published August 21, 2011 12:00 am
