News Article - Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

For Immediate Release
Monday, November 16, 1998
Contact:	Jan O'Keefe Feldman

Ten Charter School Finalists Are Announced

Malden - Massachusetts Education Commissioner David P. Driscoll announced today that one-third of the preliminary applications for new charter schools have cleared the first stage of review. Nine Commonwealth charter school applicants and one Horace Mann school applicant have been selected to submit final applications. Included in the next round for up to five new Commonwealth charters are four proposals from Boston, two from Lowell, one each from Springfield, Newburyport, and Nantucket. The Horace Mann finalist is a proposal from Springfield. Thirty-one applications were received for Commonwealth charters, and four others applied for Horace Mann charters. The applications were evaluated by panels of teachers, school leaders, and Department of Education staff. Commissioner Driscoll reviewed the results of these evaluations and selected these ten finalists. The ten applicants proceeding to the next round will submit a 50-page final application by December 11, 1998. The final phase of the review process will include a rigorous panel evaluation, public hearings, comment by school district superintendents, and applicant interviews. The Board of Education will vote on the award of charters in February, 1999. Following is a list of the ten finalists:

Charter School Finalists	School Location	Expected School Opening	1st Year Grade Levels	1st Year Enrollment	5th Year Grade Levels	5th Year Enrollment	Contact Person	Telephone
Boston Classical Charter School	Boston	1999	K-4	200	K-8	360	Jennifer Malonson	617-327-4979
Faraway Charter School	Nantucket	2000	K-3	80	K-7	160	Joan Ottinger	508-228-8710
Frederick Douglass Charter School of Boston	Boston	2000	5-6	120	5-9	300	Jacquelyn Walsh	617-425-1945
John F. Kennedy Charter School for Public Policy	Boston	2000	5-7	120	5-11	280	Brett Peiser	617-269-7557
Lowell Charter School	Lowell	1999	K-3	240	K-6	420	Carol Kierstead	603-422-8888
Lowell Community Charter School	Lowell	1999	K-5	600	K-12	1300	Diane Leary-Uong	978-970-0106
Media and Technology Charter School	Boston	1999	9-10	80	9-12	160	Michael Goldstein	718-783-3600
River Valley Charter School	Newburyport	1999	1-6	150	1-8	275	Leigh Snow	978-462-0423
Robert M. Hughes Charter School	Springfield	1999	K-5	120	K-8	160	Sabriyya Abdur-Rauf	413-787-2101
Springfield Horace Mann Charter School Essential Skills	Springfield	1999	9-10	300	9-12	600	Patricia Keenan	413-787-7085

Last Updated: November 16, 1998