Applicants outnumber accepted two to one as parents become excited about alternative to district schools

Tooele County’s first charter school, Excelsior Academy, opened at capacity in 2009 with only half those who wanted to get into the school actually getting in.

Excelsior Academy had been in the works since May 2007 when a group of local parents joined together to plan an alternative form of learning for their children. Excelsior was approved by the State Charter School Board in May 2008.

The state capped the new school’s capacity at 648, yet more than double that number filed intent-to-enroll forms. Student selection was done by a lottery.

Construction of the $9 million, 53,000-square-foot school started on Jan. 31 just west of SR-36 on Erda Way. Although the 27-classroom building was complete by the start of school on Aug. 24, some of the features outside — the playgrounds and fields — were not.

Ernie Nix was hired as the school’s director in January while still at the helm as principal of East Elementary School in Tooele. In April, by mutual agreement with the school district, he left East to begin preparing the charter school for opening day.

“We are certainly not trying to rush Ernie out the door,” said Tooele County School District Superintendent Terry Linares in April. “He has done an excellent job at East this year, but he has quite a task ahead of him now.”

The kindergarten through eighth-grade school has 29 teachers instructing 648 students. It based its curriculum around educator E.D. Hirsch’s Core Knowledge program. The curriculum is broken down into specific age-appropriate objectives by grade level. It’s designed to build on knowledge acquired in the previous grade and tackle interrelated subjects within a grade level.

Instead of reserving Wednesdays for a half day of school, like the district’s elementary schools, students are released early from class on Fridays at Excelsior. The last 45 minutes of each day is set aside for “club time” where students explore a variety of different topics such as learning guitar or studying Greek mythology.

Excelsior also implemented a new lunch menu for students that focused on nutrition, including hiring a child nutrition director. Each week’s meals are e-mailed to parents with a detailed breakdown of carbohydrates, calories, allergy issues, protein and cholesterol.

“I believe in a balanced education,” Nix said. “We’re giving [students] tools to succeed in life. My kids, when they leave here, will be exceptional readers. They’ll be able to write at a high level and do math at high levels. If a kid can read, write and do math well, they’ll have success.”

Missy Thompson: missy@tooeletranscript.com