Photography by Elizabeth Jochum
Fifteen years ago, St. Louis’ first charter schools opened their doors. Among that small, initial group of schools were Lift for Life Academy and Premier Charter School (formerly known as St. Louis Charter School), which still remain. Today, 26 charter schools are in operation across St. Louis.
Of course, not all charter schools have worked. The state has closed 18 of them over time. Yet Douglas Thaman, executive director of the Missouri Charter Public School Association, sees those closings as part of an evolution. “It supports the theory behind charter schools,” he says. “Rather than perpetuating mediocrity, poor schools are closed, and students are enrolled in schools that can better meet their academic needs.”
Robbyn Wahby, deputy chief of staff for Mayor Francis Slay, is the mayor’s point woman for education reform. She sees charter schools as a major part of the wider range of educational choices for city residents. “Charters are no longer an experiment or some risky venture; these are solid alternatives,” she says. “Neighborhoods benefit greatly from having a quality charter school. Parents have access to a public school in their neighborhood. New homebuyers know there are options if they are planning to have children. Research shows that property values increase as the quality of the public schools increase, and that leads to more stability, a greater sense of community, and lower crime.”
Wahby credits the mayor’s push for charter schools and the improvement in certain public schools as the reason for a 5 percent increase in public school enrollment in the city, a reversal of decades of declining enrollment. “We’re headed in the right direction,” she says. “The work ahead for education providers in the city is to accelerate the pace of replication of what works.”
Charter-school supporters initially hoped that the schools would be innovative alternatives for parents who didn’t want to send their children to existing public schools. The argument was that a charter school—a “public” school outside the purview of the school district—would be able to nimbly adjust to the demand of urban education.
That’s happened on a limited basis, but the movement has encountered a lot of resistance and confusion about its goals. Thaman believes that the longer charter schools exist and thrive, the message will spread and misconceptions will diminish. “Charter schools continue to try to debunk the myths that they select only the best students and do not serve the needs of students with disabilities,” he says. “Every charter school is required to have open enrollment and implement a fair and equitable process of enrolling students.”
Wahby concurs. “National polling shows that many people still think charter schools are private schools, voucher programs, offer religion, or select or reject students,” she says. “None of this is true.”
Each of the charter-school providers has a sponsoring university: Saint Louis University,
Lindenwood University, the University of Missouri–Columbia, Southeast Missouri State University, Washington University in St. Louis, the University of Missouri–St. Louis… St. Louis Public Schools is also the sponsor of a charter school.
The range of choices has grown significantly. For instance, St. Louis Language Immersion Schools alone include four different schools: Chinese, French, Spanish, and an International School offering English, Spanish, and French.
Grand Center Arts Academy features a visual–and–performing arts theme. It offers classwork for grades 6–11 and plans to add a 12th grade this fall. The middle and high school is located in the historic Carter Carburetor Building, across from Powell Hall, and students perform inside the historic, recently renovated Sun Theatre.
Before becoming principal, Matt Frederickson was Rockwood School District’s director of curriculum. He’s seen firsthand one advantage of charter schools, compared to traditional public schools: They have the ability to adapt to changing demands more quickly. It can take years for an idea to move from the pilot stage to implementation in a public district, Frederickson says, whereas change can happen more quickly at Grand Center Arts Academy.
“We can be much more flexible and responsive as our needs are identified,” Frederickson says. “We are currently adding courses to further prepare our students to be college- and
career-ready. Our teachers have started developing these courses this year and will be ready to implement them next year. We have even developed four new courses in the fall semester that are being offered in the spring.”
Lift for Life Academy was one of the first charter school to open, and a high school was added in 2008. Now, both schools are housed in the Manufacturer’s Bank and Trust Co. building, near Soulard.
“St. Louis city public schools have some great schools,” says co-founder Marshall Cohen, who remains Lift for Life Academy’s executive director. “There are good charter schools. There are good choices for city parents. It keeps us all trying to get the best product out there. You have to make sure you have a good program to attract parents. It’s not like years ago, when you only had one or two choices. Now, you have a whole bunch of choices.”
Aside from the educational theories, funding mechanisms, and institutional conflicts, Cohen believes that it’s about preparing young adults for life. “We want to know: ‘When these seniors walk out the door, are they marketable people? Can they go to a university, a postsecondary institution, a technical school, or the military? Can they do what it takes to get good jobs? Can they be self-sufficient?’” Cohen says. “They’re going to inherit the country from us. We want to make sure they have what it takes.”
