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.[2]
| Greater Brunswick Charter School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
 | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public elementary school/middle school |
| Established | 1998 |
| Faculty | 33.0 FTEs[1] |
| Grades | K - 8 |
| Enrollment | 395 (as of 2017–18)[1] |
| Student to teacher ratio | 12.0:1[1] |
| Website | School website |
History edit
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.[3]
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).[4] 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 edit
As of the 2017–18 school year, the school had an enrollment of 395 students and 33.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.0:1.[1] 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.[5] 55.2% of students primarily spoke Spanish and 44.8% primarily spoke English at home.[6] The school has a student:teacher ratio of 15:1.[7] GBCS will accept students from any district in New Jersey, although it gives preference to those from Edison, New Brunswick, and Highland Park.[8]
Administration edit
Core members of the school administration include Vanessa Jones, the education director; and Hector Alvarez, the assistant education director.[9]
References edit
- ^ a b c d District information for Greater Brunswick Charter School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed November 1, 2019.
- ^ Greater Brunswick Charter School website: Dual Language Program Archived 2015-01-28 at the Wayback Machine. 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 Archived 2015-01-19 at the Wayback Machine. 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 9 December 2017.