NY charter school throws foster kids a safety net

Associated Press:

A Harvard-trained administrator thought she had heard it all as a gatekeeper in a city office responsible for supporting charter schools when Bill Baccaglini walked enthusiastically through the door with one more idea.

"I thought, 'Here we go, another big idea,'" recalled Jessica Nauiokas. But she found herself liking his plans so much that she offered to be the Bronx school's principal. "I walked out of the meeting and said, 'Wow. That actually is a compelling idea.'"

Thus explains how Nauiokas became principal at the Haven Academy Charter School, where a third of students are in foster care. Another third are in families receiving preventive services to diminish the need for foster care. The rest are from the Mott Haven community, which is in a Congressional district where a soaring poverty rate keeps a third of residents on public assistance.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at July 12, 2011 2:41 AM
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