FOCUS D.C. Public Charter School Bulletin

June 27, 2003


--Soldiers' and Airmen's Home On Road to Becoming Charter School Campus
--Eleven Charter School Applicants to DCPCSB

Soldiers' and Airmen's Home on Road to Becoming Charter School Campus FOCUS Consultant Links Charter Schools With Developer

Gil Blankespoor, FOCUS's real estate consultant, reports that plans are progressing for creating a charter school campus at the
Soldiers' and Airmen's Home site along N. Capitol Street. Two schools -- Tri Community and the new DC Preparatory Academy -- will occupy temporary building or trailer space there this fall. Up to four other charter schools have tentative plans to locate there the following year in the 120,000-square foot Grant Building and two smaller buildings.

Since joining FOCUS over a year ago Gil has worked with many existing and startup charter schools that are looking for commercial buildings and land suitable for school use. He has helped a large number of existing charter schools to analyze sites and to finance building improvements, often referring them to lenders specializing in charter school finance and architects and attorneys experienced in working with charter schools. He referred five of these schools to two commercial real estate brokers who have developed, partly in response to Gil's initiative, a specialty in representing charter schools looking for space.

Gil also is working with seven new schools which hope to be approved to open in Sept. 2004, educating them on the size space they need, the potential for finding space in various wards, the relative merits of purchasing or leasing and the requirements of lenders should they decide to purchase, and the cost per square foot of leased space affordable under the Facilities Allowance. Finally, he directly represented two schools on specific buildings, resulting in two signed leases.

Gil has been involved from the beginning with the developers of the Soldiers' and Airmen's Home site and is working with several of the schools interested in locating there.

Gil's services are funded by foundation and individual grants to FOCUS and are free to charter schools.

Eleven Charter School Applicants to DCPCSB

The D.C. Public Charter School Board has received 11 applications for charter schools to start up in September of 2004. First-stage decisions on these applications will be made in the middle of August. The Board Of Education has extended its application deadline until August 15 and will announce its decisions in October.

The school hopefuls (descriptions provided by the DCPCSB):

Stepping Stones
PCS (pk - age 5): early childhood Life Skills Center of DC PCS
(ages 16 and up): non-traditional high school for at-risk

youth WELLNESS
PCS (age 2 - 5th): academics and holistic health

DC Bilingual PCS
(age 3 - K): bilingual/multicultural instruction; sponsored by Calvary Bilingual Multicultural Learning Center

William Doar PCS for the Performing Arts
(pk - 12th): college prep and performing arts; sponsored by the William Doar, Jr. Educational Foundation, Inc.

EL Haynes PCS (pk-2nd): math and science
Leaders Academy PCS (pk - 12th): academics and character education

Star Academy PCS (pk - 8th): math/science and literacy

Eddie Banks Academy of Hope and Excellence PCS (5th - 8th): academics

Howard University Middle School of Math and Science PCS (6th-8th): math, science, and technology; sponsored by the Howard University

Ledroit Park Initiative
Two Rivers PCS (age 3 - 8th): expeditionary learning


Friends of Choice in Urban Schools
1530 16th Street, NW #001
Washington, DC 20036
(202) 387-0405 phone
(202) 667-3798 fax
www.focus-dccharter.org