Some parents shouted for joy last night when they heard their child's name called at the Patrick Henry School of Science and Arts in South Richmond.
About 100 people, mostly parents, showed up to hear the results of a lottery to establish the ranking for choosing 130 students from more than 250 applicants for the new K-5 charter school set to open in July.
The lottery numbers were picked out of a spinning hopper by City Council President Kathy C. Graziano and State Secretary of Education Gerard Robinson.
While the final determination was not settled last night, the numbers given to each applicant will be used to help decide who gets in. Those children whose names were called first have a better chance of being accepted.
Rhonda Hickman was very excited when the number of her son, Lael, was called. If accepted, he will start first grade in the summer.
She said the neighborhood-school environment and a strong sense of values appealed to her. "I want him to have that opportunity," Hickman said.
Vanessa McCauley had the longest wait for her son, who is set to start kindergarten. His number was called 31st, out of roughly 57 kindergarten seats.
She said what attracted her to Patrick Henry was a proposed curriculum -- focused on science and the environment -- not traditionally found in public schools.
"I was just blown away by the curriculum," she said.
Parents and guardians will be officially notified by mail by March 20. That gives Patrick Henry's staff a chance to work out some kinks in the admissions process.
One admissions issue that remains involves siblings of those accepted. School officials were hoping to grant the siblings of applicants pre-lottery status, which would nearly guarantee those children a seat. However, the Richmond School Board hasn't approved that policy yet.
Patrick Henry will be the sole public elementary charter school in the state if it opens as scheduled in July in the former Patrick Henry Elementary School at 3411 Semmes Ave. in South Richmond.
The school plans to operate on the quarterly system year-round and to use nearby Forest Hill Park as an outdoor classroom. It aims to increase enrollment to 350 students by the 2012-13 school year.
Contact Holly Prestidge at (804) 649-6945 or hprestidge@timesdispatch.com.
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement