Yet another charter school is eyeing Orange County to set up a campus.
Navigator Schools, a network of public charter schools serving more than 1,800 students, is planning to open schools at three locations in Orange County following approval from the Orange County Board of Education. Their combined enrollment may eventually total 3,000 students. Part of the funding is coming from a $12 million federal grant.
It marks an expansion for Navigator, which already has four existing primary to secondary schools across Northern California.
“Orange County is an area that needs great schools and doesn’t have many charters compared to a lot of other places in the state,” Navigator Schools Chief Executive and Superintendent Caprice Young told the Business Journal.
Charter schools, which typically have greater freedom to design their curriculum than public schools, are growing in popularity. At least 40 schools are listed on the Orange County Department of Education’s website, including the Samueli Academy and the Irvine Chinese Immersion Academy.
Another charter school, Magnolia Public Schools, also recently received approval from the Board of Education to open two new campuses in Orange County.
Magnolia, which specializes in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) education, opened a TK-6 school in Anaheim, followed by a TK-2 school in the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District in August.
The Business Journal last week disclosed that the former KDOC-TV building in Santa Ana, which sold for $11.3 million, is being converted into a charter school for an undisclosed client; Navigator confirmed that it is not that tenant.
The first campuses, a TK-8 school and a high school, are slated to open next year in Orange and serve approximately 420 students.
The other two regions Navigator is considering are Anaheim or La Habra, as well as San Clemente, to cover as much of the county as possible, Young said.
The expansion is being funded by a $12 million grant from the federal government to support the creation of schools in six different locations within the next five years.
Navigator will serve an estimated 3,300 students in Orange County once all three sites are built out.
Focus on Disadvantaged Students
Young says the region needs more charters, particularly those that serve immigrant students whose primary language isn’t English.
Currently, multilingual students make up 35% of Navigator’s student population.
“When we look at the test scores of traditional public schools and even some charter schools in Orange County, what we see is a really large gap between kids who come from socioeconomically disadvantaged families versus middle class,” Young said.
“It’s those disparities that we’re looking to address.”
Founded in 2011, Navigator aims to “cultivate learners who are not just academically proficient but are also socially responsible and globally aware,” according to its website.
What differentiates Navigator from other charter schools is its squads instructional model, Young said.
In Navigator’s middle school classrooms, it’s the students who lead the lessons under the teacher’s guidance.
Students are grouped into teams of three, with one group designated to learn the assignment early on and be student teachers for a particular lesson.
The squads model is said to keep students engaged and has caused test scores to “skyrocket,” according to Young.
Navigator claims that its four schools outperform the state of California and surrounding school districts in reading and math.
Enrollment at Navigator’s four schools has been increasing. Over the last six years, enrollment has nearly doubled from approximately 1,000 to 2,000 students.
Part of that is due to adding more grade levels, Young said.
When Navigator opens a school, it starts off with just three or four grade levels, then adds a level every year.
Support from Local Business Leaders
Several local business and philanthropic leaders are supporting Navigator’s move to OC.
Navigator has formed a leadership council, which includes Jeannie Kim, president of Santiago Canyon College, Andy Horowitz, a member of Chapman University’s board of trustees, and Oswaldo Diaz, director of financial planning and reporting at Think Together—OC’s largest nonprofit focused on education.
“It’s a really diverse group of advisors who have been very actively engaged,” Young said.
The upcoming high school in Orange will be the first high school for Navigator.
Young said that their director for the OC schools, Justin Steiner, will use the same dual enrollment pathway models he created as a principal of schools in the Central Valley for Navigator.
“What’s especially exciting is that our high school students will be graduating with both a high school diploma and a community college degree,” Young said.
Navigator is partnering with local community colleges and Arizona State University’s online college, so students can learn online as well as in classrooms alongside college students.
There has been high demand from parents for Navigator to create a high school, according to Young.
“We wanted to do it right from the very beginning so that our four-year-olds would have pathways all the way into college through us,” she said.
Opening a high school will also ensure that eighth graders will not have to go through a lottery system in order to stay within the Navigator network.
Navigator accepts all students on a lottery basis, a system that determines which students will be enrolled when it receives more applications than space allows.
Cartwright Business Park
Address Price Square Feet
17500 Cartwright Road $11.5 million 32,111
17575 Cartwright Road $4.3 million 13,250
17595 Cartwright Road $10.9 million 25,841
2485 Da Vinci $5.8 million 18,000
2495 Da Vinci $4.7 million 13,765
2505 Da Vinci $5.1 million 15,900
TOTAL $42.3 million 118,867
