- National Heritage Academies
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National Heritage Academies, Inc. (NHA) is a for-profit charter school management organization headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan that was formed in 1995 by entrepreneur J.C. Huizenga.
As of 2010, National Heritage Academies is a collection of 67 charter schools in the eight states: Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, New York, North Carolina, Colorado, Georgia, and Louisiana. The nationwide network of schools are classified as free open enrollment K-8 college preparatory public schools mostly in under-resourced communities throughout the United States. There is a separate company, PrepNet (http://www.prepnetschools.com/), which operates a network of college preparatory high schools.
Contents
Operating principles
The schools operate on four pillars: academic excellence, moral focus, parental partnership and student responsibility.
To encourage academic excellence, teachers are held to very high standards. Three times a year, each student takes a computerized adaptive test published by the Northwest Evaluation Association. Students are generally tested in reading, language arts, and math. Some schools choose to also test in science. For example, 4th and 7th grade students at Windemere Park Charter Academy of Lansing, Michigan take the science test in the fall and spring. RIT scores are produced at the conclusion of each student's test. Teachers use these score to inform instruction, provide support based upon academic ability, and measure individual growth.
Definition
Charter schools are public schools run by independent entities sponsored by a state-approved organization such as a state board of education, a state university, community college or local school district. The voluntary enrollment structure is intended to make charter schools more accountable for student achievement. As a result, charter schools are granted some level of autonomy and freedom from certain local and state regulations. Accordingly, charter schools may hire their own staff, develop their own curriculum and set their own educational programs and methods of operation under the oversight of the school board and authorizer/sponsor newest school from National Heritage Academies is East Arbor.
Links
Resources
- "Excel Charter School Gets Approval For Building," Grand Rapids Press, August 11, 1995, p. A12.
- Franklin, Amy, "Federal Court Dismisses Lawsuit Against Charter School," Associated Press Newswires, September 27, 2000.
- Golden, Daniel, "Common Prayer: Old-Time Religion Gets a Boost at a Chain of Charter Schools," Wall Street Journal, September 15, 1999, p. A1.
- Kirkbride, Ron, "Banking Syndicate Raises $25 Million to Expand National Heritage Schools," Grand Rapids Press, July 12, 2002, p. A6.
- Knape, Chris, "National Heritage Remains in Class of Its Own," Grand Rapids Press, August 13, 2003, p. A10.
- Molinari, Deanne, "Peter Ruppert: Inside Track," Grand Rapids Business Journal, June 30, 1997, p. 5.
- "National Heritage Makes Money Running Charter Schools," Associated Press Newswires, December 2, 2001.
- Rent, Katy, "Going to the Head of the Class," Grand Rapids Business Journal, November 19, 2001, p. 3.
- Riede, Paul, "State Oks Southside Charter School," Post-Standard (Syracuse), December 21, 2001, p. A1.
- Schuetz, Kym, and Roland Wilkerson, "Charter School Sale Would Fund Expansion," Grand Rapids Press, October 9, 1998, p. A1.
- Singhania, Lisa, "Companies See Profit in Charter Schools," Associated Press Newswires, April 28, 2000.
- Weiker, Jim, "Charter Group Says It Has Funds To Grow," Grand Rapids Press, January 18, 2000, p. B1.
- Wyatt, Edward, "Charter School to Raise Topic of Creationism," New York Times, February 18, 2000, p. 1.
Categories:- Charter schools in the United States
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