Young Women’s Leadership Academy

November 19, 2013

UPDATE

Background• Georgia Miller and several other

community leaders met with district leadership to discuss creating a single gender girls school in Wilmington based on a modelthat has been successful in New York and other states.

Key Milestones to Date• NHCS leadership and Young Women’s

representatives met during the summer to discuss the school concept.

• Board of Education members met with YWL proponents to discuss the concept.

• The idea was presented to the Board.• Board members visited schools in NYC.• A draft MOU was prepared for discussion purposes.• A facility meeting was held to discuss possible

school sites.

Discussion Items• Costs• Facilities• Timeline• Roles for each organization

Costs• Any new school brings with it cost to both

partners. YWL has raised considerable private funds to help make the school a reality.

• The district would have costs associated with opening a new school.

• There would be ongoing operational costs and one-time capital cost.

One-Time Capital Costs• Technology Start-up $75,000 • Kitchen Equipment $90,000• Furniture $130,000 • Facility Upgrades $877,000• Facility upgrades could be less depending

on the site selected.

The Planning Year (Not including capital expenses)

• YWL would cover most of the cost related to this year. – Principal Salary: $92,000 (salary and benefits) – This would be a combination of YWL and state funds.

• NHCS would provide the following:– Office Space (The district would provide an office space for the

planning year.)– Clerical Support: Estimated at $12,750 (3 months of

support)– Supplies: Up to $10,000– Total: $22,750

Year 1• Begin with 6th grade - 75 students. • There would be some cost that would be

covered by state allotments.• Some costs would have to be covered by

local revenue above our current funding levels.

Year 1 (continued)• YWL would provide support to the students

and help with the curriculum.• NHCS would have to cover the following costs:

– 6 teachers: Three state funded and three locally funded

– Building operational funds (Local)– Clerical support (Local)– EC Teacher (local)– Guidance Counselor (Local)– Transportation (Local)

Year 2Cost Items: • Additional grade added with 75 more

students.• Six additional teachers:

– three locally funded– three state funded.

• Additional Transportation costs.

• Technology assistant added.

• Additional custodian.

Year 3Cost Items:• Additional 75 students added and the school

grows to eighth grade, creating a complete middle school.

• Additional six teachers will be added with a combination of state and local funds.

• YWL will provide a career/college counselor through their grant funding.

• Transportation costs will increase with the additional students.

One-Time Costs• There are a number of one-time costs associated

with opening a school. While a part of these are fixed costs, the selection of site will have a significant impact on final cost.

• One time costs:– Textbooks– Furniture– Technology – Building renovations– Food Service set-up

Facility Issues• There are two possible locations for the

school utilizing NHCS facilities.• Each site has its own positives and

negatives.• There is still the possibility of a private

site.

Two NHCS SitesBlount

• Pros:– Larger than JC Roe– Less renovation cost needed– Community is familiar with

the school– Building is in excellent

condition• Cons:

– Cannot accommodate beyond 9th grade

– Limited acreage– Would require relocating

existing programs (Mosley PLC & Pathways)

JC Roe• Pros:

– Large land area with room to grow

– Located near Brigade Boys and Girls Club

– No school programs to relocate• Cons:

– High renovation cost– Building cannot accommodate

more than three grades– Close to industrial

area/shipyard