Alachua County schools to take over teaching services at juvenile detention center

Alachua County Public Schools will now take over education services for the Alachua Academy and the Alachua Regional Juvenile Detention Center after another private institution decided to end its agreement.

The district received notification from Sequel Youth and Family Services last month that it would not be renewing its contract to teach approximately 46 at-risk youth after working with Alachua County Public Schools since 2016.

The contract between Sequel Youth and the academy and detention center ends June 30, with Alachua County Public Schools taking over the next day.

3rd grade reading scores: Alachua County's 3rd graders test below state average on FSA reading for 5th year in a row

School district maybe overcharged: Was Alachua County Public Schools overcharged for textbooks? Here's what we know

CTAC Teen program: TeensWork: Children's Trust program to help Alachua teens pick up summer internships

Alachua County Public Schools officials said Sequel Youth decided to not renew its contract because of "staffing issues" from struggling to retain teachers.

"We worked with them to kind of come up with some plans to how to make that work while they continue to recruit teachers. But ultimately, they were not able to do it in a way in which the students had the education they deserved," said Kevin Berry, Alachua County's director of curriculum.

It's unlikely the school district will face the same issues, Berry added, since it can offer competitive pay and can pull teachers from across the district.

So far, the school has hired one teacher and are looking for additional teachers and a paraprofessional for core subjects math, social studies, science and English language arts.

Wanza Wakeley, will serve as the new principal in addition to her duties as director of secondary curriculum.

Since the district has decided to take over teaching services, the Alachua Academy building has been also renamed to the Challenge at Alachua Academy, which will serve girls from ages 12 to 18.

The Alachua Regional Juvenile Detention Center, located at 3440 NE 39th Ave. in Gainesville, is a secure facility that oversees youth who were detained by various circuit courts. Education services are offered year-round for 6-12 grade students.

Students at Alachua Academy are normally enrolled in the school for eight months, while time varies for students at the Alachua Regional Juvenile Detention.

Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that the district will seek a new education provider while it provides services temporarily. The district plans to handle services full-time at the detention center.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Alachua County schools take over teaching duties at juvenile center