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District details growth and site moves as it expands charter program
Summary
The district highlighted charter school growth, two new charters that opened this year, and recommended site placements for Appleton Bilingual School and the Hmong American Immersion School for 2025-26; charter governance, safety plans and transportation challenges were central to discussion.
Appleton Area School District staff presented an update on charter schools, describing expansion, contract templates and two new charters now operating in the district.
Assistant Superintendent Ebony Grice and charter liaison Al Brandt reported that Appleton now authorizes 15 charter schools and is supporting new charter openings with revised contract templates, governance-board guidance and safety-plan templates being shared through the Wisconsin Resource Center for Charter Schools (Works).
The district described two recently opened charters: Omolade Academy (25 enrolled at opening) and Hmong American Immersion School (in startup phase). Staff said federal charter grant rules allowed atypical staffing funded for the start-up year: Omolade employed an instructional coach leader as a site leader and Hmong American Immersion received a one-year impact directorposition to launch operations and recruitment.
On site recommendations, the Appleton Bilingual School (ABS) is proposed to relocate to Huntley Elementary for 2025-26; Johnston Elementary was recommended as the host site for the Hmong American Immersion School the same year. Staff said Huntley currently has room and that ABS, which enrolls about 50 K-5 students now, would fit in available space. The board heard the districtis still working through the operational impacts such as shared staffing, transportation and before/after care.
Transportation and access surfaced repeatedly. Charter administrators said some charter families lack convenient transport; the district noted many charter operators are developing carpools, some schools might use charter-grant funds to buy vans for student transport, and Valley Transit rules prohibit creating routes intended exclusively for students because federal funds require open public access. Board members also discussed whether district or city investments in sidewalks and crossings affect walking-to-school decisions.
Brandt and Grice said the district is tightening oversight: updated contract templates stored as Google Docs, clearer measurement methods for success (beyond state tests), required governance-board handbooks and renewal-review processes including a charter steering committee. Two charters (Tory and Kaleidoscope) were named as upcoming contract renewals.
Board members asked about enrollment impacts on host schools, continuity for staff, and how open-enrollment and waiting lists would be handled if multiple programs inhabit the same building. District administrators said classroom teachers at ABS plan to move with the program and that staffing will be coordinated by HR during the staffing-projection cycle in December-January.
The board was told a charter fair is planned for Jan. 11 at West High School to help recruitment and outreach for charter programs.
