Over the last two months, parents and staff of North Star Academy -- a free, public charter school in Newark -- have been pounding the pavement to spread the word to Newark families about its openings for the 2012-2013 school year.
North Star is sending staff and parent volunteers to visit supermarkets, local businesses, and organizations to talk to prospective families throughout the city to ensure they all have the opportunity to apply.
Based on state law, North Star accepts students by random, public lottery. Students enter the school in kindergarten and the fifth grade.
Since 1997, North Star Academy has solidified systems of academic and cultural excellence across its schools. With steady increases in test scores over the years, North Star Academy was recently awarded the prestigious Blue Ribbon Award for Excellence by the US Department of Education.
Additionally, 100 percent of North Star graduates have been accepted to four-year colleges, and this year, North Star students had the highest scores throughout all Newark public schools on the SAT — a nationally-recognized college entrance exam.
"It was so exciting for me to see how quickly my son and daughter learned to read and write legibly in kindergarten," Worthham said. "The quantity of information my oldest daughter, Brooklyn, is exposed to in the middle school far exceeds my expectations. I love the structure of the school and the dedication of the teachers and leaders."
In 2012, North Star will serve an additional 550 students, putting the total to over 2,100 students next year.
"I am thrilled to welcome our class of 2020—our newest fifth graders next year," said Keith Burnam, who will serve as principal of a North Star middle school. "As a native of Newark it’s a great honor to build upon the successes of our existing schools and help another class of students that will graduate high school and go to college."
Interested families of rising kindergarten or fifth grade students must prove residency in Newark by completing a short application. Applications are available at any of the North Star school sites or online at www.northstaracademy.org.
The application deadline is Monday, January 27, 2012 and the public lottery will take place at the Clinton Hill Middle School (600 Clinton Avenue) on Wednesday, February 1, 2012. The website also provides more information about the school.
"North Star is stopping the mediocre educational expectations for minorities and raising the bar," Wortham said. "The issue was never the competency of minorities. It has always been an issue of opportunity. Every time the lottery comes around they offer more children an opportunity for a better future."
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