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Bob Kinsley letter: New Hope's charter should be renewed

ROBERT A. KINSLEY

 

The New Hope Academy Charter School's charter should be renewed by the York City School Board. Let's remember the students who attend New Hope and their families. They are there by choice. For whatever their reasons, these families believe that New Hope is a better alternative for their children. The benefit of New Hope and other charter schools is that parents have the ability to choose the best alternative for their child's individual needs. With the education of 724 students at stake, New Hope's charter should be renewed.

 

Many of these students and their families have chosen New Hope because it is able to provide smaller class sizes and a more structured environment with multiple behavioral, emotional and social supports for students that perhaps are not available at a traditional school. It has been reported that the students at New Hope are growing academically at a faster rate than students at York City schools. We believe that is a good sign that New Hope is offering a much-needed alternative.

 

The arts program at New Hope operates from the Strand-Capitol Performing Arts Center, the YWCA facilitates New Hope's after-school program, New Hope utilizes the resources of Martin Memorial Library and the gym program is held at the YMCA. This innovative way of providing the students at New Hope with access to community resources is beneficial not only to their growth and development, but the model more fully utilizes community services and is more cost-effective in delivering a quality education.

 

Charter schools are held to high standards of accountability, as they must follow state mandates and the provisions outlined in their chartering document. New Hope is maintaining these high standards. But most importantly, charter schools are accountable to the families they serve. If a school is not making satisfactory progress, parents can always choose to send their child elsewhere. New Hope's parent satisfaction rate is over 98 percent, so they must be doing many things right.

 

While it is understandably tempting for the York City School District to want to recoup the income from New Hope's students by not renewing New Hope's charter and forcing those students who live in the city district to return to the York City schools, this should not be a consideration. Rather, consideration should be given to the students and their families and the impact such a decision will undoubtedly have on their lives.

 

York is home not only to New Hope, but also Lincoln Charter School, Crispus Attucks YouthBuild Charter School, Helen Thackston Charter School and York Academy Regional Charter School. Each serves a different purpose that contributes to the success of its students. The New Hope Academy Charter School deserves to remain one of the viable alternatives that make up the diverse opportunities available in York. We urge the York City School District to renew the charter of the New Hope Academy Charter School.

 

Robert A. Kinsley is founder and CEO of Kinsley Construction.