Des Moines' new charter school now accepting applications, zeroes in on a location

Horizon Science Academy — Des Moines' first charter school in more than a decade — is accepting applications for the 2023-24 school year Monday as it negotiates on a site.

The announcement came during the Iowa Board of Education's Thursday meeting to where board members unanimously approved the tuition-free public charter school's contract.

The school expects to enroll as many as 190 students in its first year and will be located within Des Moines Public Schools' boundary, eventually becoming a K-12 school as additional grades are added each year.

Related:Des Moines could see its first charter school in a decade next fall: Why it's coming

Horizon is Iowa's fifth charter school, joining Hamburg Charter School and Choice Charter, an online school focused on credit recovery.

A 2021 law expanded who can open a charter school in Iowa, part of Gov. Kim Reynolds' continuing effort to increase educational options for families. During the current legislative session, Reynolds has also signed into law a bill creating education savings accounts that would give taxpayer money to students who wish to attend private schools.

Horizon — which focuses on science, technology, and math — has contracted with Concept Schools, an Illinois-based, nonprofit charter school management company, to oversee the operation.

Concept already oversees 31 charter schools in urban areas including Cleveland, Chicago, St. Louis, Indianapolis and St. Paul.

Horizon's board consists of former educators Carrie Bening and Sue Cronin; Jeff Goodman, an attorney; Christine Hensley, a former Des Moines City Council member; Kittie Weston-Knauer, a former school administrator; and San Wong, the Iowa Department of Human Rights director.

The school was founded by Roger Brooks and Sunnie Richer. The couple, who have backgrounds in business, have homes in Des Moines and Arizona.

“We have a few students and families who've already submitted interest applications," said Chris Murphy, Concept Schools' chief strategic growth and communications officer. "We have a lottery date set already for March 31 if we've exceeded some of our enrollment targets within these first six weeks."

A lottery is a random selection process for picking which students will be admitted to the school, according to the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. Horizon officials expect to enroll mainly low-income students and students of color.

Despite the contract being approved, details remain uncertain.

The start date for the next school year is listed on the Horizon Science Academy's website as fall 2023. School hours have also not been set. Murphy declined to seek an exemption during the meeting for the state requirement of 1,080 hours or 180 days of instructional time.

Additionally, officials are still securing a location for the school.

Officials are in negotiations to lease part of the Franklin Junior High School, 4801 Franklin Ave., an events space and former school in Des Moines, Murphy told Iowa Board of Education.

The former junior high school currently houses St. Thomas Classical Academy, a homeschool group with religious affiliations, two days a week, owner Jeff Young told the Des Moines Register. If a lease is signed, the two schools would inhabit the second floor of the 72-year-old building.

Young applauded the building's partial return to its educational roots.

Negotiations between Horizon Science Academy and Young are expected to wrap up within the next week.

Remaining issues include concerns over security and whether the state will allow Young to rent the first floor for events involving alcohol. Those events would not take place during school hours.

Families can learn more about Horizon and its application process at www.hsadesmoines.org.

Editor's note: A previously published version of this story erroneously reported the state's requirement for instructional time. It is 1,080 hours or 180 days.

Samantha Hernandez covers education for the Register. Reach her at (515) 851-0982 or svhernandez@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @svhernandez or Facebook at facebook.com/svhernandezreporter.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: New DM charter school accepting applications, negotiates a location