PANAMA CITY — The Bay District Schools superintendent said he scrapped plans to start an alternative school serving beach-area, at-risk students because of “too much misinformation and too many directions it was going in.
“I didn’t think it was going to pass, so I pulled it” off Tuesday’s School Board agenda, Superintendent Bill Husfelt said. “We got to get our ducks in line before we do it.”
The meeting was the last opportunity the district had to approve plans to start the school in time for the start of the next school year. The school was proposed for the Arnold High School campus and would have served at-risk beach students and expelled students from throughout the school district.
Principals at Arnold and Surfside Middle School favored the alternative school, saying the long travel to existing alternative schools — Rosenwald High and C.C. Washington Academy — contributed to students dropping out.
Rosenwald has 246 students, and with 300 students being maximum capacity, overcrowding could result if other options are not sought.
“For some, transportation is a hindrance to them wanting to be referred to Rosenwald High due to the length of time they are on the bus,” said Chandra Tyson, principal at Rosenwald. “And sometimes that is deterrence for students who want to continue their education.
“If that is a barrier,” she added, “I think it’s apropos for the school district to come up with solutions.”
Darnita Rivers, principal at C.C. Washington, declined to comment and referred The News Herald to the school district’s headquarters for comment.
The district would have sought a one-year, $295,000 contract with Rader Group, an alternative school management company. The contract would have been based on the amount of federal funds the district received with 50 students enrolled at the school.