Renee Bowen w as alw ays interested in alternativ e schooling for her three children. “I knew early on that m y kids were highly creativ e,” the 40yearold Valencia resident said. “I felt lik e the traditional school systems would not be able to recogniz e their strengths and would just recogniz e their weaknesses o ver time.” When Bowen heard about Santa Clarita V alley International Charter School, her ears perked. She enrolled her children at the Castaic charter school, which emphasiz es projectbased learning instead of the tr aditional, textbook based education. Two of her children are in fifth gr ade, and her oldest is in sixth gr ade. Bowen’s oldest son has autism. Although he is highfunctioning, she w as worried about switching schools. Now, she sees a completely different kid. “He feels v ery confident,” she said. “He feels happ y, secure, safe. ” In the last few y ears, the charter school movement gained momentum in the Santa Clarita Valley, as parents tak e their children out of public, priv ate and home schools to enroll in charter schools. Charter schools are open to ev eryone, publicly funded and do not require tuition. Those wanting to open a new charter school must get appro val from a school district, count y or state office of education. Yet, despite their popularit y, charter schools often face an uphill battle in the Santa Clarita Valley. Concerns about charters Doug Bryce, president of the Saugus Union School District board sees v alue in charter schools. But he also sees less of a need for them in the Santa Clarita V alley. “In an area where you have lowperforming schools, I think charters are an absolute (option),” he said. “Obviously , we have a very highperforming district,” he said. “I just don’t know where they’re going to meet needs that aren’ t being met.” “I have seen a lot of sk epticism about charter schools in gener al,” Bowen said. “A lot 11/8/2016 2/2 of people I find don’ t understand what charter schools are. ” But charterschool officials see it another w ay. California’s charterschoolapproval system creates problems, because it puts traditional schools against charter schools, said Amber Golden R askin, SCV International’ s executive director of business development and oper ations. Other states, lik e Arizona, have completely different boards that o versee and manage charter schools, she said. At the same time, charter schools also are a new concept, especially locally . “I think it’s new, and it’s kind of scary,” Raskin said. “And it’s causing change.” Einstein demand The SCV’s newest charter school, the Albert Einstein Academ y for Letters, Arts and Sciences, opened its junior high and high school this y ear in Valencia. At first, the William S . Hart Union High School District didn’ t approve the charter, but through backandforth discussions and meetings, the board ev entually approved the school’s charter. Einstein Academ y leaders have tried to petition three local school districts for an elementary school charter, but have yet to find a home. More than 300 parents ha ve expressed interest in enrolling their children at the elementary school. This week, the junior high and high school organiz ed a lottery, because the school only had 100 spots and about 300 applicants. Many have flocked to the Einstein Academ y because of its collegeprepar atory education that emphasiz es foreign languages and smaller class siz es. “It’s how we’re teaching that mak es the difference, ” Einstein Principal Edw ard Gika said. Charter schools often ha ve more flexibilit y and freedom to streamline the education process. “It’s hard to do that when y ou have a school with 4,000 students, ” Gika said. Bowen hopes to see more charter schools locally . “The whole system is just brok en,” she said about the tr aditional approach to public education. “W e don’t need to teach to these tests. There needs to be other w ays.”
