The Monroe Charter Academy board of directors has asked the State Board of Education for a deferral of the school opening until the school year beginning in 2019. A letter to the 180 parents applying for the K-5 school (opening in 2019 as K-3 and adding a grade level each year) said:

“The Board of Directors wishes to thank you again for applying to our school. That trust in us and our classical education plan for your young student means much to this board and is accepted with great humility. We are dedicated to upholding our end of the bargain- providing your family with a rigorous academic experience and a character-building environment where your child will thrive and grow.

To deliver on our promise we need a school “home.” As you might know, the state does not provide funding for our facility, and we therefore have to work very hard to find a building and make all the pieces of the facilities “puzzle” work. This has been the most challenging of all our tasks as a board and our consultants who are assisting us.”

The next step for the new public charter will be obtaining state approval for the delay. The board in the interim will begin seeking proposals to acquire land and build a school as a priority over seeking existing facilities. The charter asks anyone interested in the project to contact the board at monroecharteracademy@gmail.com for more information or visit www.monroecharteracademy.org.

North Carolina charter schools often are delayed due to facilities challenges. The Monroe school’s vice chair, Jim Stegall, said, “We want to do this right, rather than do it right away.”

The school’s new plan is to open with 288 students in grades K-3. The school will announce shortly when applications will be taken for the school and existing applicants will be kept informed about these dates.