Fourth charter school to open in Cedar Rapids this fall

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.

Two school districts in Iowa also received approval to open charter schools: Council Bluffs Community School District — in southwestern Iowa — and Sumner-Fredericksburg Community School District — in northeastern Iowa.

Iowa public school districts have been able to open their own charter schools since 2002, although the model is rare with only two operating in Iowa, Mike Huguelet, executive director of the Iowa Coalition for Public Charter School, said in an interview with The Gazette last month.

House File 813 — signed into law in 2021 by Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds — significantly expanded opportunities for charter schools to establish in Iowa by allowing independent groups to apply directly to the State Board for charter approval.

Today, there are 10 charter schools operating in Iowa and eight more have been approved to open in 2026.

The charter school applicants presented to the board Thursday were three of six that submitted applications for approval by the Iowa Department of Education. The others withdrew their application for consideration ahead of the Board of Education meeting after being told they would not be recommended for approval, said Barbara Ohlund with the Iowa Department of Education.

Charter schools are tuition-free schools that are publicly funded, but independently run under an approved charter with the state. In Iowa, charter schools receive per-pupil aid from the state, just like public schools.

  Buy Photo

In Iowa, charter schools operate with a governing board that is not democratically elected — unlike traditional public schools — under a five-year charter granted by the Iowa State Board of Education. A charter school must attract students and produce positive results within five years or risk losing its charter.

Horizon Science Academy Cedar Rapids

Horizon plans to open August 2026 to about 140 kindergarten through fifth-graders in the Northwest Neighborhood. The school will grow by one grade level each year, eventually offering K-12 programming.

The school is projected to enroll 140 students in its first year, growing to 365 students by the 2030-31 school year, according to its charter application.

Class sizes at Horizon will be no more than 25 students, and no more than 20 students in kindergarten, said Chris Murphy, chief growth and strategy officer for Concept Schools, a nonprofit charter school management company.

Murphy said families in the Corridor are “craving school choice.”

Iowa Board of Education members said the school sounded like an “ideal environment, especially in the elementary years” and called it a “comprehensive, competitive program.”

The school will focus on science, technology, engineering and math. If the school is approved, enrollment will be on a first-come, first-served basis. If more students apply than there are seats available, they will be entered into a lottery for a chance to attend Horizon, Murphy said.

The school also will offer a Concept Young Scholars Program designed to improve students’ academic success and prepare them for college and beyond, and a Concept College Readiness Program, which starts in middle school to prepare students for college.

The school’s preoperation costs will be funded through federal charter school grants and a zero-interest loan provided by Concept Schools.

Concept Schools already manages two other Horizon Science Academies in Iowa — one in Des Moines and one in Davenport — and more than 16,000 students in 41 K-12 campuses across the U.S.

Murphy said students enrolled in a Concept school — like Horizon — grow an average of 1.2 academic years for every year of attendance, according to their data. Concept schools have a graduation rate of more than 95 percent.

Across all of Concept’s campuses, 91 percent of students are from low-income families, 25 percent are multilingual and almost 10 percent receive special education services, according to their five-year strategic plan published last year.

Council Bluffs’ STEM Innovation High School

The Council Bluffs Community School District’s STEM Innovation High School — a charter school — will serve grades nine through 12. The school expects to open to students for the 2027-28 school year.

The school will emphasize science, technology, engineering and math and use real-world problem-solving and community partnerships based on workforce needs and community aspirations, according to the charter.

Tracy Matthews said the school aims “to inspire and empower students to become tomorrow’s leaders, innovators and changemakers.”

Extracurricular opportunities will be aligned with the charter vision such as robotics, coding, technology, innovation and entrepreneurship clubs.

The school district plans to construct a new facility for the school that will include flexible lab spaces, a robotics and drone area, Artificial Intelligence-coding and creative design studios.

The district has received $24 million from foundations and private donors to upstart the school. School leaders anticipate that about 10 percent of the students attending STEM Innovation High School will be tuition-paying residents of Nebraska.

In its first year, the school projects to enroll 150 students and grow to 300 students by the 2030-31 school year, according to the charter.

There are about 7,580 students enrolled in the Council Bluffs Community School District. Almost 1,000 resident students of the district are open enrolled out into neighboring schools.

Sumner-Fredericksburg’s Future Frontiers

The Sumner-Fredericksburg school district anticipates opening its Future Frontiers charter school this fall in Fredericksburg. School officials project the school will enroll 30 students in ninth through 12th grade in its first year. The school will have capacity for 220 students by the 2030-31 school year, according to its charter.

Future Frontiers will focus on highly individualized learning with 40 percent of the day focused on hybrid academics and 60 percent of the day dedicated to work-based learning.

Superintendent Ryan Cunningham said the model aims to provide a way for “students to earn meaningful credentials while staying in their home communities.”

Students enrolled in the school would get a minimum of five work-based learning experiences each year, giving them a “better idea when they graduate of what they want to invest their time, energy and resources in,” Cunningham said.

Officials with the Iowa Department of Education said the charter school model is “unique” to Iowa, focusing on work-based learning with strong connections to the community.

To obtain a high degree of individualization, the intended program requires a high volume of strategic partnerships and agreements from surrounding communities, school districts and employers, according to the charter.

The school will employ a director of teaching and learning, a director of operations, a director of outreach and a school business official. Teaching positions will be offered via stipends.

The recruitment plan maintains focus on the needs of rural students, especially in the Sumner-Fredericksburg community. The enrollment territory is expected to expand significantly in year two of operations.

There are about 711 students enrolled in the Sumner-Fredericksburg school district.

The upstart of the school is being funded by unspent Teacher Leadership and Compensation dollars.

Comments: (319) 398-8411; grace.king@thegazette.com