The old Fairfield City Schools Administration Building is being renovated, and will soon become Fairfield Academy.
The renovations will cost anywhere from $300,000 to $400,000, with the school slated to open in August.
The Academy, which is a combination e-school and alternative school, will ultimately have a capacity of 120 students, with 50 enrolled thus far, according to the school district's curriculum director Lani Wildow. Wildow says Patricia Weidman will be the Academy's administrator. It will also have two intervention specialists and four teachers, and will share a social worker and a counselor with other district buildings.
According to a Journal-News.com article, the Academy is the result of Fairfield's desire to help students who do better in alternative schools, and to recoup some of the losses in students it is suffering due to online school enrollment. The district estimated the loss to online schools to be approximately $1.5m annually. Both the new alternative school and the e-school will award Fairfield diplomas.
Wildow noted it is important that all students receive a high school diploma, but recognizes that the traditional 8:00 am to 2.30 pm Monday through Friday hours and a brick-and-mortar school do not work for everyone, and hamper some students’ chances of graduation. The Academy will allow students to choose how they learn while still providing a first-class education.
The Academy might work with brochure printers on a mailer for parents describing the school's aims, as well as its curriculum.
