UPDATED Wednesday, September 14, 2011 --- 3:20 p.m.
Press Release: Madison Preparatory Academy Announces Inaugural Board of Directors
Madison Preparatory Academy today announced its inaugural Board of Directors. Board members represent a diverse cross-section of corporate and community leaders from the Greater Madison area who are all passionate about and dedicated to ensuring Madison Prep becomes a reality for young men and women. They are:
· Tyler Beck, Undergraduate Student, UW-Madison
· Dave Boyer, CEO, MCD, Inc.
· David Cagigal, Vice Chair, Urban League of Greater Madison
· Elizabeth Donley, CEO, Stemina Corporation
· Rosa Frazier, Clinical Professor/Immigration Law, UW-Madison Law School
· Dennis Haefer, Vice President of Commercial Banking, Johnson Bank
· Donna Hurd, Executive Director, Boardman Law Firm
· Torrey Jaeckle, Vice President, Jaeckle Distributors
· Rev. Richard Jones, Pastor, Mount Zion Baptist Church
· Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings, Chair of Urban Education and Professor of Curriculum & Instruction and Education Policy Studies, UW-Madison
· Maddy Niebauer, Managing Director of Strategy & Human Assets, Teach for America
· J. Marshall Osborn, Retired Math Professor, UW-Madison
· Fran Petonic, President, Meriter Foundation
· John Roach, Owner & CEO, John Roach Projects
· Mario Garcia Sierra, Director of Programs, Centro Hispano
· Derrick Smith, Area Manager, Thermo Fisher Scientific Corporation
· Terrence Wall, President, T. Wall Properties
About Madison Preparatory Academy: Madison Preparatory Academy (Madison Prep) is a tuition-free public charter school that will serve as a catalyst for change and opportunity, particularly for young people of color. Its mission is to prepare students for success at a four year college or university by instilling excellence, pride, leadership and service. The school will open in Fall of 2012 to students from the Madison Metropolitan School District, pending approval from the district in Fall 2011. For more information, contact Laura Deroche-Perez at 608.729.1230 or lderoche@ulgm.org.
Website: madison-prep.org
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UPDATED Thursday, May 19, 2011 --- 9:45 p.m.
As school districts struggle to make ends meet an increasing number of parents desperately hope to get their children into public charter schools.
Planning for an all boys Madison Preparatory Academy is moving forward.
Across the nation trying to get into charter schools is turning into a literal lottery. Parents feel helpless and most hate the process.
Yet 329 students show up to compete for just 45 spots in a public charter school near Atlanta.
A ping pong ball lottery determines the children's education future.
It's a situation that could soon be playing out in Madison.
Kaleem Caire is president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Madison.
He says, "Well the first thing is our boys aren't doing well in the schools"
Caire is leading a group planning to start the all boys charter school.
He says, "We have to build better schools for our kids and we're absolutely determined to do that."
Caire says in Madison the graduation rates for African American and Latino males are hovering around 50-percent and he sees a charter school as the answer.
He says, "Generally in charter schools a lot of the rules that confine traditional public education, those rules don't exist in charter schools."
Most of the development work for the school is being done at the Urban League building but they're already eying two different sites as possibilities for the school on the South and East sides.
They've cleared one hurdle but are still waiting to receive final approval from the Madison School Board in fall and they have only put up a basic web site yet there is already a huge demand
Caire says, "Every day we're getting, hey we want to enroll our kids in the school. Here is how many students. Here is who they are."
If the rest of the country is any indication there wouldn't be a problem filling the desks.
Caire says, "This is a mission we have to proceed with."
There is still debate about whether charter schools are the answer.
At the Dekalb Academy charter school in Atlanta students score 98-percent above the district in reading and math and 78-percent above the state.
But another recent study found only 17-percent of charter schools offer "superior education" and 37-percent were worse. About half produced the same results as traditional public schools.
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Posted Friday, December 17, 2010 --- 3:25 p.m.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin is objecting to a publicly-funded all-male charter school in Madison.
In a letter to school district officials, the ACLU says there's no proof that separating girls from boys will result in a better education. The union says it doesn't oppose the public charter school as an alternative to Madison district schools, rather it objects to providing males with different opportunities by separating the genders.
The Urban League aims to improve the academic performance of minority boys with its Madison Preparatory Academy. Urban League president Kaleem Caire tells The Capital Times that an opinion from a state attorney says Wisconsin law allows single-gender public schools when alternatives are also available.
Information from:
The Capital Times
http://www.madison.com/tct
Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
