After only one year of operation, the Spartanburg Charter School has met the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) requirements of the federal government, which is the gold standard in public school education measurement. The school, located in downtown Spartanburg, teaches students in kindergarten through sixth grade and is part of the South Carolina Public Charter School District. “We’re all very proud with this result,” says Dr. John von Rohr, the principal. “The local community worked hard to create this school. The board of our school planned for success. The staff of the school set very high standards for student achievement. The parents worked tirelessly. The students delivered.”

And what the students delivered is impressive. The students of the school met 15 out of 15 academic achievement objectives that were put forward for the school as benchmarks for success. Jonathan Butcher, who is the Director of Accountability for the South Carolina Public Charter School District, stated that it is exceptional for a school to succeed like this in its first year of operation. “This reflects a passion for excellence and a commitment to student success that should be applauded by everyone,” he says. Some schools in the state met AYP for the 2009-2010 school year, and some did not, though meeting AYP in the opening year is, indeed, rare.

The Superintendent for the District, Dr. Wayne Brazell, agrees that this is impressive. “They are applying individual solutions to meet the needs of individual students. Their inquiry-based curriculum is outstanding, and these standardized test results are simply reflecting the high quality of education taking place at the school day after day.”

The principal is not resting on success. “We have already set high standards for the 2010-2011 school year. The parents have been extremely supportive of the school, and now it is up to us as educators to continue to provide high quality instruction and support. Every child that attends Spartanburg Charter School will be given individualized attention in a nurturing environment that is structured around student success,” stated Dr. von Rohr.

Spartanburg Charter School served some 225 public school students last year and has approximately 300 public school students signed up for the 2010-2011 school year. The school building, which is located on Spring Street in downtown Spartanburg, was built in the 1930s. Today the school houses faculty and students who are engaging in a modern pioneering movement to enhance local public education through public charter schools.