Articles Tagged: Charter schools

A fourth charter school — called Horizon Science Academy — received approval Thursday from the Iowa State Board of Education to open this fall in Cedar Rapids.

Gov. Kim Reynolds on Tuesday unveiled a legislative agenda focused on overhauling Iowa’s property tax system, tightening immigration and election enforcement, expanding health care access and continuing education reforms.

Educators are again asking for an increase of 5 percent in funding for Iowa public schools, saying it’s crucial for keeping up with inflation, managing increased operating costs and making up for decades of underfunding amid statewide declining school enrollment.

Leaders of Iowa’s K-12 public schools are navigating an increasingly complex job, guiding districts through unprecedented changes such as broader school choice, politicization of schools, heightened public scrutiny and continued pandemic recovery.

Cedar Rapids Prep charter school intends to expand to a second location with plans to purchase the former GoDaddy building in Hiawatha for its middle school.

Closing schools “is necessary” as the Cedar Rapids Community School District examines how to reduce its annual budget by more than $10 million after a decade of declining enrollment.

A fourth charter school — called Horizon Science Academy — is seeking approval from the Iowa State Board of Education next month to open in Cedar Rapids.

In its first year, Cedar Rapids Prep has enrolled 255 students in sixth through eighth grade, with 25 students on a waiting list. The new charter school’s students are “owning and driving their learning” in “orderly classrooms where there’s not chaos and disruptions,” says Cedar Rapids Prep Principal Justin Blietz.

Reynolds and the Iowa Department of Education announced that Iowa was one of six states selected for a 2025 federal Charter Schools Program Grant to State Entities issued by the U.S. Department of Education.

Iowa schools — particularly those in districts with fewer than 1,000 students — are the “lifeblood” of their communities. But student numbers are declining, and data shows that trend will only intensify in the coming years. Many school leaders are turning to modern facilities, career education and innovation to attract and retain students.

More than 200 middle school students have enrolled

And what it could mean for education in Iowa

With the opportunity for a tuition-free experience similar to a private school, the school’s rigorous focus on college preparation plans to offer quality through small classes, a small faculty-to-student ratio and one-on-one interactions that reinforce a tight-knit community throughout middle and high school.

A guide to public school alternatives.

Thirty acres of the former Transamerica site at Edgewood Road and 42nd Street in northeast Cedar Rapids would be used for commercial development, while 19 acres would become home to Cedar Rapids Prep, a new charter school set to open this year.