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| all alone in the cosmos; gulen schools charter |
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Gulen schools super bowl mitt romney
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Princeton University and Gulen Charter Schools
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| Gulen charter schools are in action |
Saturday, November 19, 2011
The White House Hosts Students from Gulen Schools
Four students from the Pinnacle Academy, established by Turkish entrepreneurs in the greater Washington [a so-called gulen school], D.C., area, were at the White House on Monday to present their project, which took first place in the National Engineers Week Future City Competition in the capital’s metropolitan area in February.On Monday President Barack Obama hosted the White House Science Fair to honor the winners of a series of competitions in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
At the fair, Obama viewed winning student projects and took the time to congratulate the students on their hard work and stressed the importance of technology and engineering in middle school education.
Principal of the school Mustafa Akpınar said the Pinnacle Academy’s presence at such an important event is an honor for the students and the school (admin tagg: gulen charter school). “This event highlights how the Pinnacle Academy is succeeding in our goal to provide a quality education that emphasizes math, science and technology. As an educational community, the Pinnacle Academy hopes to build upon these successes,” he said.
At the fair, Obama viewed winning student projects and took the time to congratulate the students on their hard work and stressed the importance of technology and engineering in middle school education.
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| Who thinks that Mr. Obama is one of those politicians who took a Turkey trip? |
Eighth grade students Zehra Yılmaz, Selin Altıntaş, Nurbanu Şimşek and Madina Khurishanova from the Pinnacle Academy in Oakton, Virginia, represented Washington, D.C., at the 2010 Future City Competition National Finals. The team developed a digital and three-dimensional model of Yeshilist, an imaginary city that anticipates the accommodation needs of citizens who lose their homes during an earthquake. “Yeshilist has solar panel roofs, wind-powered community centers, cork brick homes and cable trains made of Lego pieces that are scattered around the city. The National Engineers’ Week Future City Competition promotes engineering as a creative profession by challenging middle school students to design their vision of the city of tomorrow through computer simulation and a three-dimensional model.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Peoria's Quest for Gulen Charter Schools?
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| Gulen's thoughts on education is respected by thousands of educators. Thus it is normal to see charter schools teachers that are influenced by him. Yet this does not make the schools as gulen charter schools. |
Below is the article that was appeared in Pjstar a couple of weeks ago. Isn't it nice to see that the anti-charter school campaign is loosing points in the public eyes. Those o-called gulen charter schools -if you wish to call them in this way- are indispensible components of the respective societies that they are located.Nobody can deny it (tag: gulen charter schools, gulen schools, peoria).
Quest, the city's first modern-day public charter school, opened in the fall of 2010 with more than 220 students in grades five through seven. This fall, a new class of fifth-graders entered and those seventh-graders advanced to the newly formed eighth grade.
Plans are to add a class of 75 students each year until the school hosts grades five through 12 and has 650 students spread over two buildings.
"To start a high school, we have to offer so many more programs," Quest Principal Engin Blackstone said last week, mentioning classes such as chemistry and physics and expanded extracurricular and sports programs. "Those are in the planning stages now."
Quest is managed by Concept Schools, a private company based in Des Plaines. Quest differs from District 150 schools in that it provides a longer school day, more instructional time spent on math, reading and language arts, and Saturday classes available for students who are struggling.
"There are a lot more activities here and the classes are more challenging," said Sommer Rose, a seventh-grader who previously attended Von Steuben.
Added Blackstone: "Our goal is to provide better educational opportunities to District 150 parents and students. If we're not doing anything different, to me, there's no point to exist."
Concept has a five-year contract with Peoria District 150, which in 2015 can decide to renew or terminate the agreement. Expect the latter.
"I'm excited about the success at Quest," said District 150 Superintendent Grenita Lathan. "For us, it's a benefit to the district because the children have another option. You always want children to stay in your district and you want there to be choice.
"(Quest) is expanding into high school for next year and they will continue to have district support. They are meeting the needs of the district and the community."
Filled with students from more than 20 District 150 schools, Quest showed significant academic gains in its first year. Based on ISAT scores, 85 percent of Quest students were proficient in math and 78 percent in reading.
"Overall, the program is going very well," said Blackstone, a native of Turkey who recently gained his U.S. citizenship. "We have a dynamic curriculum. We want to keep it hands-on and integrate technology into our teaching.
"We have a data-driven plan based on our assessment tools. The system sets learning goals for each student."
High-tech
Quest says its success is based at least in part on the access to technology its students have.
Grant money has created a high-tech atmosphere in the school, starting with the large, flat-screen television that hangs in the foyer and broadcasts the student-produced newscast that happens on a weekly basis.
The school has integrated technology into every classroom, including 10 sets of "clickers," which are remote-like devices with a variety of applications.
"It's as instant as it gets," fifth-grade teacher Marcus Belin said of the units used to take and score tests and other exercises. "They know their grades before they go home."
In addition to a fully equipped computer lab and computer stations in assorted classrooms, the school has two mobile computer stations, each containing 30 laptops on wheels.
"This is better because of all the technology we have," said Ernest Gray, a fifth-grader who formerly attended Woodrow Wilson. "It's easier for me to learn."
The college experience
Part of the Quest mission is to prepare students for college. The mindset of being a college student is reinforced at nearly every turn.
Classrooms are named after different universities, some of which reflect the alma mater of that teacher. Colors, crests and logos from schools such as Bradley, Illinois State, Northern Illinois, Eastern Illinois, Florida State and Iowa, among others, adorn classrooms and hallways.
"We're getting them ready for college," Blackstone said. "So we thought it was a good idea to emphasize that and give them some information. We want the idea to stick in their minds that they're going to college."
The message appears to be sticking.
"It's a better education here," said Gillian Fauntleroy, a seventh-grader who came from Rolling Acres. "They're getting me ready to go to college."
Getting in
The board of directors for Quest, headed by former Caterpillar CEO Glen Barton, is currently looking for a second campus. The school's first choice is the former Columbia Middle School, which is less than a mile away. The plan is to relocate the middle school there and expand the Loucks building into a high school.
It's fair to say that interested families are beating down the doors.
The school is open to all students residing in District 150. A public lottery determines who gets an invitation for admission each year. For the 2011-12 school year, 263 applications were received for fifth grade.
Yet only 49 slots were available because 26 applicants had siblings already attending the school. Under state law, that means they are automatically chosen. Those not among the first 75 are put on a waiting list.
So, how hard is it to get in?
"I couldn't even get my own daughter in," Blackstone said.
Greg Stewart can be reached at 686-3251 or gstewart@pjstar.com.
Quest for success
Quest Charter Academy posted significant academic gains in its first year. Here is a by-the-numbers look at the school that plans to add one class per year until it is a grades 5-12 school of 600 students.
300 - Current enrollment
62 - Percentage of students who are African-American
22 - Percentage of students who are Caucasian
7 - Percentage of students who are Hispanic
85 - Percentage of students who tested as proficient in math on the 2011 ISAT exam.
78 - Percentage of students who tested as proficient in reading on the 2011 ISAT exam.
90 - Number of students who qualified to participate in regional/state math, science and technology competitions.
96.5 - Attendance rate for the 2010-11 school year.
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
The University of Chicago Defames the Gulen Charter Schools Delusion
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| Martin Marty Center puts an insight on the debate going on around the gulen charter schools |
Well, if you want to hear a scholarly utterance other than Joshua Hendrick on the Gulen Movement and the charter schools that are allegedly being run by it (aka gulen schools), here is a charming article by a fellow at the U of Chicago Divinity School. It is not a voice from within because the writer is obviously not Turkish as his name is not, but a largess sound in an efford to put the movement in its proper context.
Needless to say, the creation of the gulen charter myth is part of an efford to foment Islamophobia in this country. Despite their generous budget that they have in their pockets to spoil the outstanding reputation of the Turkish run charter schools, the anti-Gulenists could not accomplish a considerable progress in their mission in the eyes of American public. Let's read what Chicago thinks about the ongoing debate on the gulen charter schools that are aallegedly operated by the followers of Gulen and the Gulen movement.
Contextualizing the Gulen Movement
A variety of fears have been expressed regarding "Gülen" charter schools in Texas, from possible financial irregularities to indoctrination of children in Islam. However, neither official state inquiries nor academic studies have found any evidence to such effect. A look at the history of the movement can help us understand it as an attempt by Muslims to contribute positively to modern life while maintaining their beliefs and values.
In line with the founder's vision of reaching out to the world and being inclusive of everyone, the movement has grown to become truly global: in addition to more than 1,000 schools in 130 countries, the movement is linked to think tanks, newspapers, TV and radio stations, as well as universities and financial institutions. Ten to fifteen percent of the entire Turkish population is estimated to belong to the movement, and with each member contributing five to twenty percent of their income, it has become one of the most well funded modern religious movements in the world.
Emerging over the latter half of the twentieth century in Turkey, the Gülen movement is quite unique and hard to define. It lacks any overarching organizational hierarchy or bureaucracy, and can be described as an alliance of loosely affiliated grassroots-based institutions. The usual model is for religiously motivated professionals--businessmen, doctors, engineers, teachers and the like, inspired by the life and teachings of a charismatic Turkish Imam called Fethullah Gülen--to organize local circles (based either on location and neighborhood or education and profession) to discuss local needs and plan investments in education and other community projects. Meetings are held weekly and include readings from the Quran, the Prophetic tradition, Mr. Gülen's writings or other inspirational materials.
Referring to the movement as Hizmet (meaning "service" in Turkish), members of the movement are united by their shared goals of spreading modern education, contributing towards charity, and promoting inter-faith harmony.
Fethullah Gülen was born in 1941 in a small village in eastern Turkey. He received an informal religious education and grew up amongst pious individuals constantly exploring spirituality and its relevance in the modern world. Strongly influenced by the Sufi preacher Said Nursi who taught an embrace of modernity grounded in sacred texts, Mr. Gülen educated himself in science, philosophy, literature and history alongside his study of Islam. In 1966 he was appointed Imam to Izmir, Turkey's third largest city. Living an ascetic life and refusing to take wages for his services, it was here that his ideas on education and service to the community began to develop. By the 1970s Mr. Gülen had become extremely popular, finding special favor amongst Izmir's business and professional middle class, who appreciated his commitment to the free market and his emphasis on business growth.
The growing power and influence of the movement has aroused a fair share of suspicion from a wide array of critics both inside and outside of Turkey. Essentially, much of the criticism centers on the question of motivation: what are the members of the movement really motivated by? What explains the inordinate commitment of its members, their sacrifices in time and money? Is it secular at heart or slowly but surely laying the foundations for an "Islamic" state in Turkey?
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| Let's listen to a U of Chicago fellow what he thinks about the gulen schools |
It was in the backdrop of such developments that an international conference on the Gülen Movement was organized at the University of Chicago's International House in November 2010. Many of the speakers addressed these fears and the maligning of the movement in Turkey, pointing to the growing insecurity felt by the old Kemalist elite in the face of a rising "Anatolian" elite amongst whom the movement is popular. The latter have risen to prominence gradually as education, wealth and political power came to individuals hailing from Turkish regions away from the big cities. This polarization of today's Turks is quite stark, readily visible everywhere Turkish communities exist, not only inside Turkey.
The development of this schism between Kemalist and non-Kemalist Turks goes back more than half a century. A trend that caught impetus in the 1950s in Turkey was the increasing visibility of Turks from traditional backgrounds in more and more of Turkey's major cities such as Ankara. Periodicals and dailies from this period expressed the distress this caused the urban elite, who depicted ugly, dark-faced, bearded men with prayer beads wearing baggy trousers (salvar) and women wearing a baggy outer garment (carsaf) as fanatics and relics of a superstitious past. In fact these men and women were immigrants to the bigger cities seeking better opportunities in education and livelihood and represented a much larger section of the population than the urban elite imagined. The active offensive taken against them by the urban elite only served to sharpen their religious identities and made them search for ways to reconcile traditional Islamic religiosity with modern life in Turkey. Over time, guided by the teachings of Mr. Gülen, the Gülen movement grew to offer working models to this effect.
Fatma Disli, a member of the movement, commenting on her reasons for joining the movement, said that had she worked in a non-Gülen company, she would have been asked to take off her headscarf. "Most of the companies would have asked me to take off my headscarf. They only allow cleaning women to wear headscarves... [What attracted me to the movement was that] the people I saw there were really hardworking, virtuous people who were practicing their religion, but at the same time had important jobs. I realized that it's possible to be religious and to have a career."
References
Gulen Institute, "A Brief Biography of Fethullah Gülen."
Azak, Umut. Islam and Secularism in Turkey: Kemalism, Religion and the Nation State. I. B. Tauris, 2010.
Ebaugh, Helen Rose. The Gülen Movement: A Sociological Analysis of a Civic Movement Rooted in Moderate Islam. Springer, 2009.
"Islam Inc." BBC Radio 4, May 29, 2011.
Stourton, Edward.. "What is Islam's Gulen movement?" BBC, May 24, 2011.
"Gülen: Society not divided into Kemalists, Muslims in Turkey." Today's Zaman, June 17, 2011.
Baqar Syed is an MA student in the History of Religions at the Divinity school. His main interests lie in Weberian sociology and South Asian Sufism.
Monday, October 3, 2011
Huffington Post Dismisses the Gulen Charter School Case
Islamophobia Network Targets Top Performing American Schools
Posted: 9/26/11 10:35 AM ET
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| the gulen charter schools are set free from the charges of promoting hate against americans |
This September, I was interviewed by a communications firm on the topic of Islamophobia. The firm is planning a campaign to counteract Islamophobia in America and was conducting interviews with Washington policymakers who have addressed this topic. The interview came on the heels of a Center for American Progress (CAP) report published last month, called "Fear Inc: The Roots of the Islamophobia Network in America," which found a well-financed, well-organized network of advocates, experts and media partners conducting a strategic campaign throughout America and "spreading hate and misinformation," as CAP put it.
Islamophobia is on the rise in America, but this is hardly surprising. Scan recent American history to witness the consistent creation of an "other", whether it was anti-Catholicism and anti-Semitism in the 19th century (and beyond), the first Red Scare in the early 1900s, the Japanese-American scare and second Red Scare in the mid-1900s, or the Muslim American scare in the early 2000s. There is purpose here. When entire races, religions or regions are dehumanized, it is easier to wage war, expel immigrants, and forge new, discriminatory (or oppressive) domestic and foreign policies to deal with these vilified populations.
Turkish-Americans are the latest to feel the heat. Despite serving as NATO's number two troop supplier and recently agreeing to host a NATO radar defense system, Turkey is often accused by Washington for contradicting US foreign policy aims and objectives when negotiating with Iran, Syria, Israel and Libya. Additionally, Turkey's market-friendly version of political Islam has often rubbed the West the wrong way.
Now, targeted discrimination aimed at the Turkish American community is centering on a Turkish educational effort, which was identified in CAP's "Fear Inc" report. The new supposed Turkish threat to America: "Muslim Gulen schools, which [members of the Islamophobia network] claim would educate children through the lens of Islam and teach them to hate Americans". The authors of the CAP report flatly reject this assertion, however, saying that the schools started by Turkish-American Fethullah Gulen are "nothing of the sort" and that "they are a product of moderate Turkish Muslim educators who want a 'blend of religious faith and largely western curriculum'."
CAP is on to something. Two Gulen charter schools ranked 5th and 6th on Newsweek's 2011 Top Ten Miracle High Schools and two Gulen schools ranked 144th and 165th on Newsweek's 2011 list of America's 500 Best High Schools. So what is going on here? Gulen talks of peace and tolerance and was compared by Georgetown professor John Esposito to the Dalai Lama and praised by Madeleine Albright and James Baker III for his advocacy of democracy and dialogue. You would think this is the type of Muslim that America wants. While I recognize that there are legitimate concerns regarding the use of public funds for these charter schools, and concerns about the Gulen movement's democratic proclivities in Turkey, it seems that at the heart of this is an undercurrent of phobia about Islamic teaching in America.
Having received my high school diploma from a Christian school and my master's degree at a Mennonite university, which received funding from the US State Department, I know how comfortable this country is with Christian education. Islamic education, however, remains new. The Khalil Gibran International Academy in New York, for example, which aimed to teach Arabic and train students to become "ambassadors of peace and hope", was vilified as having a "jihadist" agenda. Teachers were termed "terrorists" and founders were called "9/11 deniers," to which Georgetown's Esposito responded: "It's an agenda to paint Islam, not just extremists, as a major problem."
Islamophobia is on the rise in America, but this is hardly surprising. Scan recent American history to witness the consistent creation of an "other", whether it was anti-Catholicism and anti-Semitism in the 19th century (and beyond), the first Red Scare in the early 1900s, the Japanese-American scare and second Red Scare in the mid-1900s, or the Muslim American scare in the early 2000s. There is purpose here. When entire races, religions or regions are dehumanized, it is easier to wage war, expel immigrants, and forge new, discriminatory (or oppressive) domestic and foreign policies to deal with these vilified populations.
Turkish-Americans are the latest to feel the heat. Despite serving as NATO's number two troop supplier and recently agreeing to host a NATO radar defense system, Turkey is often accused by Washington for contradicting US foreign policy aims and objectives when negotiating with Iran, Syria, Israel and Libya. Additionally, Turkey's market-friendly version of political Islam has often rubbed the West the wrong way.
Now, targeted discrimination aimed at the Turkish American community is centering on a Turkish educational effort, which was identified in CAP's "Fear Inc" report. The new supposed Turkish threat to America: "Muslim Gulen schools, which [members of the Islamophobia network] claim would educate children through the lens of Islam and teach them to hate Americans". The authors of the CAP report flatly reject this assertion, however, saying that the schools started by Turkish-American Fethullah Gulen are "nothing of the sort" and that "they are a product of moderate Turkish Muslim educators who want a 'blend of religious faith and largely western curriculum'."
CAP is on to something. Two Gulen charter schools ranked 5th and 6th on Newsweek's 2011 Top Ten Miracle High Schools and two Gulen schools ranked 144th and 165th on Newsweek's 2011 list of America's 500 Best High Schools. So what is going on here? Gulen talks of peace and tolerance and was compared by Georgetown professor John Esposito to the Dalai Lama and praised by Madeleine Albright and James Baker III for his advocacy of democracy and dialogue. You would think this is the type of Muslim that America wants. While I recognize that there are legitimate concerns regarding the use of public funds for these charter schools, and concerns about the Gulen movement's democratic proclivities in Turkey, it seems that at the heart of this is an undercurrent of phobia about Islamic teaching in America.
Having received my high school diploma from a Christian school and my master's degree at a Mennonite university, which received funding from the US State Department, I know how comfortable this country is with Christian education. Islamic education, however, remains new. The Khalil Gibran International Academy in New York, for example, which aimed to teach Arabic and train students to become "ambassadors of peace and hope", was vilified as having a "jihadist" agenda. Teachers were termed "terrorists" and founders were called "9/11 deniers," to which Georgetown's Esposito responded: "It's an agenda to paint Islam, not just extremists, as a major problem."
All of this is new to many Americans, and it is likely scary, especially since the prevailing association vis-à-vis Islam is violence. We have few notions of Islam and nonviolence, in large part because our fear has focused on the extreme outliers and because our largely Christian nation has not yet fully embraced -- in media, policy, education or law -- religious diversity, no matter how nonviolent, peaceful and tolerant the religion's majority. It is time we do so. There is much to embrace -- if only we open our eyes to it.
Michael Shank is a doctoral candidate at George Mason University's School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution, a board member of the National Peace Academy and an associate at the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict.
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The Digest: The label of Gulen charter schools is baseless as seen on the article here, and it is a production of anti-Muslim network.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Headlong Clarification on Gulen Followers and Gulen Charters
Here is further reading:
Loose ends on my charter schools piece
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| gulen followers does not run gulen charter schools |
We need to understand one thing. There are thousands, if not millions, of people out there who are influenced in one way or another by Fethullah Gulen's thoughts on education, religion, etc. These people are everywhere. They are directors, teachers, principles, CEO's, politicians, workers, artists, etc. You can expand the list forever. These people do not make the instituions where they present as Gulen institutions because of their voluntery affiliation in thought to Mr. Gulen. If a charter school's principle loves Gulen, that school does not become suddenly a gulen charter school merely on account of his love of Gulen.
Here is further reading:
Loose ends on my charter schools piece
Charter school research
There's a bit of a dearth of local charter school research, particularly relating to the question of how well these schools do in addressing the persistent achievement gap. The last major state report came out in 2008, but interns within the finance department of the N.C. Department of Public Instruction did take a look this year at charter schools that target at-risk students. The authors found the schools with the strongest academic performance had extended learning days, smaller school size and other steps in place.
TMSA and the "Gulen movement"
Google "Triad Math and Science Academy" and one of the top hits is a website that connects staff and board members to Fethullah Gulen, an moderate Islamic theologian from Turkey whose followers have a global religious movement. I talked to a couple parents earlier this year who believed that school staff are Gulen supporters and were concerned enough about the Turkish influence at the school to pull their children out. (By the way, concerns about Gulen's connection to charter schools have been covered by other national papers, including The New York Times and USA Today.
Months ago, I checked with the state education department and was told that the department had looked into it, but couldn't substantiate the concerns.
I also asked Principal Hakan Orak, a Turkish immigrant, about the claims.
He denied that TMSA was a "Gulen school," but did add: "A lot of people in Turkey are inspired by Gulen. There may be people inspired by Gulen who are here. That doesn't make it a Gulen school."
Marcy Schneider, president of the school's Parent Volunteer Organization, backed up the principal. Schneider, a former homeschooler who volunteers at the school for 20 or more hours per week, said she hasn't seen any suspicious behavior among faculty and staff.
"We have had some people decide to move on because of that issue," she said. "My children would not be here if I felt there was any undercurrent or underhanded brainwashing going on."
List of failed charter schools in North Carolina
In my story I refer to two charter schools that either closed or failed to open in Guilford County. Find the total list of failing North Carolina charter schools here.
Minority recruitment
One development I am following is the recruitment of charter school leaders of color, an effort led by Parents for Educational Freedom in North Carolina and Partners for Developing Futures, a social venture investment fund. The fund started in 2008 and has so far invested $2 million in seven charter schools, according to program director Isha James.
About 125 black educators, community leaders and business people attended an informational meeting hosted by the two groups on Sept. 19 at the Grandover Hotel in Greensboro.
One of the attendees was Precious McKoy, who directs a mentoring program for middle and high school students in Greensboro. She and a friend have discussed opening a college prep charter school for high school students.
"We're definitely interested in being able to build on top of what we're currently doing," she said.
Today we published a story I wrote about the status of existing charter schools in Guilford County. Much of what I learned during my reporting would not fit in that article, so I've included below some loose ends you might be interested in:
Monday, September 19, 2011
Toledo Blade Is Not Interested In the Foolish Label of Gulen Charter Schools
See how the so-called Gulen charter schools are featured in Toledo Blade.
Printed Monday, September 19, 2011
Horizon to move students to former grocery
Horizon Science Academy will move its high school students to a new West Toledo location next fall -- several years after leaders started planning for the change.
High school grades will move from their downtown Toledo site to a former grocery store in DeVeaux Village, at Sylvania Avenue and Douglas Road. The sale of the site, which was part of the former Seaway Food Town chain, was closed last week, said Pete Shawaker, a commercial real estate agent with CB Richard Ellis/Reichle Klein, who handled the deal.
The building arrangement is somewhat convoluted. The property was purchased for $1.425 million by OG-Ohio LLC, a limited liability company for New Plan Learning, a nonprofit company affiliated with Concept Schools, a charter school management company that runs Horizon, along with other Ohio and Illinois charter schools.
The site is zoned for regional commercial use, but the Toledo City Council approved a special-use permit last year after planning staff recommended the 58,000-square-foot building be used for the school.
Mr. Shawaker said the property at 2600 West Sylvania Ave. was under contract with New Plan Learning for about nine months, but the company needed to issue bonds before the Toledo purchase -- and others the company is conducting for Concept Schools -- could be finalized.
"It took awhile to get those bonds sold," Mr. Shawaker said. "That's why it dragged on so long."
Horizon Science Academy-Toledo currently rents space at the Secor Building, 425 Jefferson Ave., for third through 12th grades.
Murat Efe, superintendent for Concept School's North Ohio division, said Horizon schools' elementary school grades will remain at their Springfield and downtown Toledo locations.
Renovations for the Sylvania Avenue property have been budgeted at $3.7 million, according to Murat Arabaci, president of New Plan Learning and formerly of Concept Schools. The school will eventually have 30 classrooms, a gymnasium, a football field, a career center, cafeteria, and laboratories. It will be retrofitted for 630 students, Mr. Arabaci said.
Concept Schools officials originally had hoped to move students into the building by the start of the 2010-2011 school year, Mr. Arabaci had said last year. Students now are expected to move at the beginning of next school year.
Horizon will lease the building from OG-Ohio for 30 years, starting at about $500,000 in the first year, Mr. Arabaci said, increasing eventually to about $736,000 a year.
Horizon's Toledo school enrolled about 270 high school students and 100 elementary school students last year; the high school was rated in continuous improvement, the equivalent of a "C" grade, though the elementary school was rated in academic watch, a "D" grade.
Signs advertising the school have been up for months on the ground floor of the Nicholas Building at Huron and Madison streets, though Mr. Efe said there is no plan to move any of Horizon's operations into the building.
He said Concept was looking for a new site for its elementary grades last year and may have considered the location at the time, but will remain at the Secor building.
Contact Nolan Rosenkrans at: nrosenkrans@theblade.com or 419-724-6086.
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