In the NEWS: Transportation/Environment/Charter HIGH SCHOOL

In Brief 02-27-07
Staff Reports
Article Launched: 02/27/2007 12:00:00 AM PST


GRAND TERRACE
Council to discuss transportation routes
The City Council tonight will consider joining with neighboring government agencies on an agreement to improve transportation routes between San Bernardino and Riverside counties.

The proposed agreement calls for widening Pigeon Pass Road and Reche Canyon Road into four-lane corridors to relieve traffic congestion between the two counties.

City officials say that approval of the agreement ensures that Grand Terrace would have input into the environmental review and design of the projects.

The agreement has been adopted by the cities of Moreno Valley and Colton, as well as the Riverside County Transportation Commission and San Bernardino Associated Governments.

The council meets at 6 p.m. in the Council Chambers, Civic Center, 22795 Barton Road.


10:00 PM PST on Monday, February 26, 2007

By MASSIEL LADRÓN DE GUEVARA
The Press-Enterprise

A charter high school will open in Colton this fall to 112 freshmen, offering coursework developed from the principles of the Advancement Via Individual Determination program, officials said.


Greg Vojtko / The Press-Enterprise
Eddie Campa, pastor at Community Temple and chief financial officer for Nova Meridian Academy, looks over building preparations for the charter school. The Colton Joint Unified School District approved the charter school.

Each year, a freshman class will be added until the Nova Meridian Academy is a high school serving grades nine through 12, said David Silas Tellyer, chief executive officer.

The goal of the academy is to prepare the average student through the AVID program with the qualifications necessary to be accepted into a four-year university, Tellyer said. Advancement Via Individual Determination is a college-prep program for high school and middle school students.

"The AVID program has a 90 percent plus success rate of getting students into four-year universities, so we have expanded on that, and instead of making the program an elective, it is the foundation of the school," Tellyer said.

The coursework will be rigorous, he said.

Students will be required to take one advanced-placement science course, three years of Spanish and four years of math, he said.

By the time students graduate, they will have about 20 more credits than students graduating from a regular high school, he said.

Charter schools receive public funds but are exempt from some traditional school rules, said Marta Reyes, director of charter schools division for the California Department of Education. Although charter schools must be sponsored by a local school district, county office of education or the state Board of Education, they are free to choose their curriculum and learning materials, she said.

"They are designed to create a different type of environment that will heighten student performance," Reyes said.

Charter schools must participate in all state testing and show that students are making progress, she said.

The Colton Joint Unified School District approved the Nova Meridian Academy, said Katie Orloff, district spokeswoman.

Colton High School is the only comprehensive high school in the district, Orloff said. The district also includes Slover Mountain High School, a continuation school, and Washington Alternative High School, she said.

Colton High has about 3,300 students enrolled, Orloff said.

Construction of a high school in Grand Terrace is scheduled to start in August.

"But the value of having a charter school is in offering parents a choice, not easing overcrowding in a district," Orloff said.

Parents who chose to send their children to the charter school can participate in a leadership organization, through which they can make recommendations and voice concerns to the board of directors, Tellyer said.

Parents will be able to view their children's grades online any time throughout the semester and review their child's assignments, he said.

The district is considering allowing students from the charter school to try out for sports teams at Colton High School, Tellyer said. If there is enough interest at the academy, students will have an option of intramural teams or after-school programs, he said.

Reach Massiel Ladrón De Guevara at 909-806-3054 or mdeguevara@PE.com