Greater Brunswick Charter School
| Greater Brunswick Charter School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| 429 Joyce Kilmer Avenue, New Brunswick, NJ 08901 |
|
| Information | |
| Type | Public elementary school/middle school |
| Established | 1998 |
| Grades | K - 8 |
| Enrollment | 382 (as of 2013-14) |
| Student to teacher ratio | 15:1 |
| Website | School website |
Greater Brunswick Charter School (GBCS) is a free, public charter school serving grades kindergarten through eighth located on 429 Joyce Kilmer Avenue in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The school has a Spanish-English bilingual program for grades K-4, and has plans to extend it through grade five.[1]
Contents
History
The school opened in the 1998-99 school year. In 2004, it purchased its current building, formerly a bowling alley, with the help of a $500,000 government grant and a $2.5 million loan from New Jersey Community Capital and the Community Redevelopment Fund.[2]
Over the summer of 2010, the charter school expanded, creating over a dozen classrooms and a larger gymnasium out of warehouse space in the building. The funding for this was secured by the nonprofit organization Build With Purpose (then known as READS).[3] For a year prior to this expansion, the school's middle school and one fifth grade classroom had been housed across the street from the school building. The following year, a playground was added, with assistance from KaBOOM!.
Student body
As of the 2013-14 school year, 382 students were enrolled at the school. 70.4% were Hispanic, 19.4% were black, 8.1% were white, and 1.8% were Asian. 63.4% of the students were eligible for a free or reduced-price lunch.[4] 55.2% of students primarily spoke Spanish and 44.8% primarily spoke English at home.[5] The school has a student:teacher ratio of 15:1.[6] GBCS will accept students from any district in New Jersey, although it gives preference to those from Edison, New Brunswick, and Highland Park.[7]
Administration
Core members of the school administration include Donna Medea, the education director; Vanessa Jones, the assistant education director; and Gregory Ramero, the supervisor of instruction.[8] Vanessa Jones will be the education director effective July 1, 2016.
Performance Programs
Theatre
For several years, the school would hold an annual elementary mid-school day production of skits about early Americans, laced together by patriotic numbers. This show was removed in 2011, and a proper theatre program was placed in 2014.
The first play, a one-performance trial, was 10 Ways to Survive the Zombie Apocalypse by Don Zolidis. The production was performed in-school in June 2014, and was successful enough for a more proper planned theatre season for the next school year.
Originally, a production of Trifles was planned for fall 2014, but it was cancelled due to casting difficulties. This was followed by a sold-out, 4 show run of Seussical Jr in February 2015.
However, the program was changed drastically with a switch of musical directors, and the 2016 show was an original titled GBCS the Musical, using "classic showtunes and an original script to describe life at GBCS."
Choir
A choir program was added for students 4th grade and up in the 2010-11 school season, however they never performed; the following year it was switched to 3rd grade and up, and though they performed numerous times in the 2011-12 season, they never performed in the 2012-13 season.
The program was reworked for 2013-14's school year, making an elementary school choir and a middle school choir, each of which performed at various school events, concluding with an end of the year concert, however it was changed in the 2014-15 year to just a single school appearance and a competition at Six Flags.
References
- ↑ Greater Brunswick Charter School website: Dual Language Program. Accessed 1/23/15.
- ↑ Greater Brunswick Charter School website: About US. Accessed 5 February 2016.
- ↑ Build With Purpose article. Accessed 25 February 2016.
- ↑ National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS) website. Accessed January 23, 2015.
- ↑ Greater Brunswick Charter School 2013-14 School Performance Report, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed September 16, 2015.
- ↑ Education.com. Accessed September 29, 2015.
- ↑ Greater Brunswick Charter School website: Enrollment. Accessed January 23, 2015.
- ↑ Greater Brunswick Charter School Website: Directory. Accessed September 26, 2015.
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