Charter School Coming to New Tampa?

A non-profit organization has applied to the Hillsborough County School District to establish a charter school in New Tampa.

Advantage Academy of Hillsborough Inc. is proposing an elementary and middle school called New Tampa Academy at Highwoods Preserve and Brinegar Circle, not far from the  and near the Richmond Place and West Meadows communities. Jenna Hodgens, supervisor of charter schools for Hillsborough County, said the school board will decide on the application on Dec. 13.

The developer will hold a public meeting on the project at 7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 14, at , according to the Richmond Place website.

The applicant would like to open New Tampa Academy in August 2012 as a kindergarten-through-seventh-grade school with 665 students, then growing to 960 students and adding an eighth grade in its fifth year of existence, Hodgens said. The curriculum would focus on math and science.

Charter School Associates is the management company working with the applicant. A telephone message left Friday by Patch was not immediately returned.

The application comes at a time when interest in charter schools in Florida and Hillsborough County is at an all-time high, according to a recent story in the Tampa Tribune. Not everyone likes them however.

“We are against the charter school on Highwoods Preserve,” @TampaGurlFl wrote in a tweet. When asked why, the local resident wrote, “read up on charter schools" and added she had traffic concerns.

What are chater schools?

Charter schools are a hybrid concept. They are independent public schools that operate separate from the public system and have their own school boards. They manage their own finances and design their own curriculums. However, they still must hire certified teachers and meet state requirements for student performance.