There may soon be a new charter school in Chatham County.
Carolina Royal Academy was one of 14 applications received by the state Department of Public Instruction for the 2021-2022 school year. DPI announced the applications last week.
According to the application, the school would be located along U.S. Hwy. 64 in eastern Chatham County and proposes to have 525 students in grades kindergarten through 6th grade in its first year. The application sated that CRA would “seek an enrollment of a study body that closely mirrors that of Chatham County.”
“Carolina Royal Academy expects to attract interest from parents throughout Chatham County and Wake County,” the application said, “who believe their children will be nurtured to reach their maximum intellectual and personal potential in Carolina Royal Academy’s rigorous academic environment with character development and computer science programs.”
The school’s board is made up mostly of residents of Wake County, from which the school plans to draw 30 percent of its student population, with the rest coming from Chatham. There is no board member currently from Chatham, but the board will “look to add members who are residents of Chatham County.”
The board chose the Chatham County location because of its proximity to Chatham Park, Jordan Lake and western Wake County.
“The board wanted to provide parents with educational freedom by providing them with a high quality school choice option,” the application said. “The school’s location will allow it to draw students from Chatham and Wake counties.”
The school’s proposed budget says it will draw $1,059,030 from county taxpayers in its first year and a total of $2,968,736.72 that would otherwise go to the public school system. That number is based on 315 students from Chatham County attending. The school would expand services to 7th grade in its second year and 8th grade in its third year.
The application noted several times that the school’s curriculum would have a focus on computer science.
According to a DPI press release, North Carolina currently has 184 charter schools open. Chatham is home to three: Woods Charter School near Chapel Hill, Willow Oak Montessori Charter School in Pittsboro and Chatham Charter School in Siler City.
The state’s Office of Charter Schools will review applications before forwarding them to the N.C. Charter Schools Advisory Board, which, according to a press release, “will use an established structure, including external evaluators and applicant interviews, to review the applications. At the conclusion of this process, the CSAB will recommend applicants to the State Board of Education for approval.”
The timeline for the school’s potential approval may vary. Fourteen charter schools were approved in July for opening this year by the State Board of Education, and 12 more were approved to begin classes next August.
Reporter Zachary Horner can be reached at zhorner@chathamnr.com or on Twitter at @ZachHornerCNR.