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Enrollment has opened for a new pre-K through 9 charter school set to open its doors in the Asbury Park area this fall.

College Achieve Public Schools (College Achieve), a tuition-free public school network aims to produce students who will go on to graduate from top colleges and universities across the nation.

Their curriculum curriculum is based on the Toulmin College Writing Model and will emphasize science, technology, engineering, arts, and math [STEAM] education, officials said.

“We’re happy to be able to bring families in this neighborhood an education focused on the goal of college for every single one of our kids,” founding board member Travis Ally said, a parent of five school-age students. “We are happy to provide parents with a quality choice in public education and be a part of the effort to raise achievement in a town where fewer than half of the students graduate high school.”  

College Achieve Greater Asbury Park Charter School will enroll 276 students entering kindergarten, first,  fifth, and sixth grades, progressing to over 1,000 students in pre-K through ninth grade by 2020. The yet to be identified campus will serve students in Asbury Park,  Neptune Township and surrounding areas, officials said.

The local campus will be College Achieves third charter school, having opened similar programs in the Plainfield area. 

“College Achieve opened our eyes to what public education could and should be,” said parent Stacey Magazine in a written statement. “My daughter comes home from school motivated and happy. She believes that she can and will succeed in school and now dreams of college.”

To achieve their goal of graduating college ready students, College Achieve Greater Asbury Park will more than double the amount of time devoted to science instruction, with students starting science lab work in kindergarten. Students are expected to study science five hours a week, well above the national average of 2.2 hours in K-6 schools. By the ninth grade, College Achieve students will have received over 1,700 hours of science instruction, compared to less than 1,000 hours in traditional public school students, officials said.

The literacy component, based on a high-level thinking and writing model, aims to challenge students to read, understand, and engage deeply with issues prior to making an argument, which they must then develop and defend.

“We have designed our high school around the experiences our students need to make their desired future become a reality, be it in the form of work-study internships, international travel, or summer college programs,” said Rachelle Nelson, founding principal of the first College Achieve charter school in Plainfield. “The American high school has not changed its design in 100 years.  In too many places, the traditional approach is not working. It’s time for innovative ideas and programs to radically change how we prepare our students for college, careers, and life.”

For more about the College Achieve, visit www.collegeachieve.org. To enroll, visit http://www.collegeachieve.org/apps/form/enroll-AsburyPark.

[Photos courtesy of College Achieve]

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