BUTTE — Public educators in Butte say that for years they have been looking for ways to reach their at-risk student population.
Now, the Butte School District is seeking approval from the Montana Board of Public Education to open a new charter school that focuses on job readiness and the trades to reach students who are at risk of dropping out of school.
"These students are important to our community; them being successful is important for our community," says Keith Miller, a Butte educator.
Miller is the principal of East Middle School and a member of the team that has been collaborating on the plan for the Butte Pathway Academy, a proposed public charter school that aims to prevent students at risk from dropping out of school.
"We want to give them the ability to go out into the world after high school and right the job force," says Ron Ricketts, a member of the team who has been working to bring the charter school to Butte Public Schools.
Ricketts — the curriculum director for Butte Public Schools — says the academy will accept 60 students who will have traditional classes that are geared toward their interests in the mornings, but in the afternoon they will work on community-oriented projects and apprenticeship programs.
Ricketts says the goal of the public charter school is to offer students flexibility.
"This gives those students that don’t fit the mold of a regular high school student, it gives them the opportunity to jump in and be successful," says Miller.
Funding for the public charter school will cost over $350,000 and will focus on high school students.
Butte School District says the charter school will not impact funding for other Butte schools. The Public Board of Education will make a decision on the proposed charter school in January 2025.
