United Federation of Teachers Contact
Chris Policano
(212) 598-9233 (O)
(917) 846-0933 (C)
Green Dot Contact
Ashish Kapadia
(212) 598-9203
akapadia@animo.org
South Bronx Hub Site Selected for Green Dot Charter School
Opening in September in Partnership with NYC Teachers Union
Firm's Los Angeles School Model Well-Suited to Needs of Bronx Community
With Large Population of English Language Learners;
Founding Principal is Former Teacher at Jane Addams High School
Green Dot Public Schools, the most prominent charter school operator and educational reform organization from Los Angeles, will open a charter high school this fall that will share space with Intermediate School 162 in an underutilized building at 149th Street and St. Ann's Avenue in the Hub area of the South Bronx, officials announced today.
The new school is the outgrowth of a partnership between Green Dot and the United Federation of Teachers, the labor union representing New York City's 100,000 public school educators, said UFT President Randi Weingarten. It will open in September with about 120 students in 9th grade and will add a grade each year until it fills grades 9 through 12, and class size will average about 25 students, she said.
About 900 middle school students currently attend IS 162 in a building with enough space to comfortably house both schools, Weingarten said.
"The UFT and Green Dot looked at a lot of different locations, and this one seemed to provide the right mix of space and opportunity to address a critical need in the community," she said.
"Our schools in Los Angeles have a great track record of serving communities with large Spanish-speaking populations of students, many of whom are new immigrants or are still learning English," said Green Dot founder and chief executive officer Steve Barr. "We know we'll be serving many students with similar backgrounds in the South Bronx, and we are confident our new school will fill a need and fit well with the neighborhood," he said.
The innovative partnership between the UFT and Green Dot is the first collaboration of its kind in the nation because charter schools usually do not employ teachers in unions and thereby avoid being bound by union contract requirements. Green Dot goes against that trend and is the only non-district public school operator in California that has proactively unionized teachers and actually encourages its employees to unionize.
"Green Dot's core principles are very much in sync with those of the UFT," Weingarten said. "Our educators welcome the opportunity to work in schools that have small classes, foster collaboration and respect for educators and actively involve parents."
Barr said the new Bronx charter school will replicate the progressive working conditions Green Dot provides in Los Angeles, including giving teachers a voice in determining school policy and curriculum, a fair disciplinary process and the flexibility to adjust the contract in key areas over time as needed.
Ashish Kapadia, former assistant principal for organization and supervision at the Eximius College Preparatory Academy, a College Board school in the Bronx, will head the Green Dot school. He was chosen after an extensive search involving more than 100 candidates interviewed by a team of Green Dot principals and staff. Born in the Bronx, Kapadia graduated cum laude from the University of Chicago and went on to earn master's degrees from New York University and Queens College at the City University of New York. He also taught for seven years at Jane Addams High School in the Bronx, specializing in government, economics and history.
The State University of New York Board of Trustees approved plans for the Green Dot charter school last October 26, just eight days after a District 7 Community Education Council public hearing on its plans. It was later approved by the State Board of Regents.
Green Dot currently operates 12 public charter high schools in Los Angeles' highest-need communities that outperform comparable traditional public high schools. Its schools have no more than 500 students each and they implement a college preparatory curriculum for all of its students. The firm has produced real results for its students, graduating 98 percent of its seniors with up to three-quarters going on to four-year universities.
"We're proud of our academic track record, and we're looking forward to working with the UFT to achieve great results here in New York City, too," Barr said.
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