Alaska blazes trail for charter schools in Northwest

Alaska, the first state in the Northwest to pass a charter law (1995), has 16 schools currently operating. Fourteen of them, together enrolling more than 1,800 students, are briefly described here. As distinct from one another as Alaska is from Florida, the schools have as few as nine and as many as 600-plus students. They emphasize subject areas from hard sciences to fine arts. They teach skills from the most basic social skills to the most advanced Internet skills. Here's a brief peek:

Academy Charter School Housed in several portable classrooms, this K-5 school in Palmer enrolls 106 students in its back-to-basics program emphasizing the sciences. Daily, 120-minute labs are taught by specialists.
Aquarian Charter School This Anchorage school for grades K-6 provides a "gifted" curriculum to all of the 220 students it serves at the Charter School Complex. Using the Accelerated Learning program, the school stresses experiential activities in homework.
Aurora Borealis Charter School A back-to-basics K-8 charter enrolling just over 100 students in Kenai, this school is noted for academic rigor, including Latin and Greek for students at all levels. Emphasis is on direct instruction with research-based programs such as Saxon Mathematics and Shurley Grammar. (For a detailed look at Aurora Borealis, go to All in the Family.)
Ayaprun Elitnaurvik Charter School Serving a largely Alaska Native population, this 149- student school in Bethel aims to strengthen Yup'ik language and culture with its Yup'ik Immersion Program. The school works closely with local organizations such as the Association of Village Council Presidents and the Bethel Senior Center.
Chinook Charter School The first charter school in Alaska, this K-8, multiage school serves its 95 students in space donated by the Army at Fort Wainwright. Using a Montessori approach, along with an apprenticeship program and community service, the school works with families to develop weekly and yearly individual goals for students.
Delta Cyber Charter School This electronic correspondence program serving 149 middle and high schoolers throughout Alaska teaches telecommunications skills and academic content through interdisciplinary, cross-curricular learning projects and other online resources. Electronic collaborative learning groups network students across the state and beyond.
Family Partnership Charter School Located in a small strip mall, this K-12 school based in Anchorage serves 674 home schoolers by linking each student and his or her family with a certified teacher who helps them plan an individual education plan. Curriculum materials and other resources are also provided.
Homer Charter School Serving 21 students in grades 3-6, this school housed in portable classrooms on an elementary school campus in Homer uses Socratic methods, projects, themes, and manipulatives to deliver an interdisciplinary education.
Juneau Community Center This year-round, multigrade, K-6 school serving 60 children in downtown Juneau offers piano and music instruction to all students in grades 1-3; violin instruction to all students in grades 4-6; and art instruction at all grade levels. The integrative arts program is delivered across expanded time blocks, drawing heavily on community resources such as museums.
Ketchikan Charter School Emphasizing mastery of basic skills in core academic subjects, this school located at the public high school offers a structured curriculum tied to the Alaska state standards. Parent involvement is mandatory for the families of its 113 students.
Midnight Sun Family Learning Center This 95-student school tucked into a small strip mall in Wasilla offers a family-oriented program in which siblings learn together in multiage classrooms. Core knowledge concepts and technology are integrated into the program, which encourages meaningful parent involvement.
New Beginnings Charter School Owned and operated by the Fairbanks Native Association (a nonprofit resource agency), this school for students in grades 8-12 serves a population that is more than 50 percent Alaska Native at two sites—a residential treatment center and a nonresidential location. Each of the 37 students has an individualized instructional plan for the self-paced program. The school provides linkages to social services agencies for students who need them.
Takotna Training Center This nine-student high school in Takotna, housed in a renovated school building, uses a "modified" Paideia instructional approach (a reform movement based on student-centered learning). The program integrates didactic instruction, coaching, and Socratic seminars.
Wiseman Charter School A K-12 school serving 11 students in the Yukon-Koyukuk School District incorporates educational aspects of rural village life (such as trapping, hunting, and fishing) into its multiage program. Self-assessment, peer teaching, problem solving, and community interaction are integral to the approach.