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New magnet school may forgo sports
By ROBERT KING, Times Staff Writer
BROOKSVILLE -- It sounds revolutionary and perhaps heretical, but Hernando County school officials say they will consider forgoing sports programs at their next school as a way to boost its focus on math and science. Also, to ensure that kids who are gifted in those subjects get a seat in the school, the district may offer some spots to students based not just on the luck of a lottery, but also on the merit of science fair projects. And, after taking a recent field trip, the officials may have changed their minds about not allowing kindergarten children and eighth-graders to share the same buses. As the county's next magnet school continues on the long road from concept to reality, those are just a few of the ideas being batted around by school officials. And much remains to be decided. Current thinking is that the combination elementary-middle school will open in August 2005. Its most likely location would be along Elgin Boulevard, near Barclay Avenue, on the east side of Spring Hill. Exactly how it would be paid for is in question, though voters will probably be asked to support a new sales tax. On Tuesday, School Board members firmly established what has long been expected -- that this will be a magnet school drawing students from around the county to a school with a theme. Two principals who are interested in leading the school -- John DiRienzo of Spring Hill Elementary and Sue Stoops of Brooksville Elementary -- proposed Tuesday that the school have a math and science theme. Their proposals had common traits: student uniforms, required parent participation and an emphasis on hands-on learning to show kids how science and math apply to the real world. Both principals said they would be willing to scale back, if not completely forgo, sports programs in order to make more money and land available for science-related efforts. They said land that sports fields might consume could be better used for outdoor classrooms and experimental projects. Intramural sports, which would require less elaborate facilities, could still be a possibility. The county's first magnet, Chocachatti Elementary, used a lottery to sort through 1,700 applicants for barely 700 seats. The second magnet, Nature Coast Technical High School, also employed a lottery for underclassmen. The next school may need a lottery, too. But board members, particularly Jim Malcolm, latched on to the idea that a certain percentage of students could get around it by making a successful proposal -- similar to a science fair project -- that shows their science acumen. For obvious developmental reasons, such proposals would not apply to the youngest students. Most board members liked what they heard, but Malcolm was hoping for more specifics. "I would have liked to see more of an actual prototype that's been tried and practiced," he said. Superintendent Wendy Tellone said her understanding was that Tuesday's presentations were to help board members decide if they wanted a magnet school. She asked for experienced principals to offer proposals, and Stoops and DiRienzo came forward, she said. To address Malcolm's desire for specifics, both principals agreed to work together to seek out schools where math and science magnets already exist and are successful. Already, board members and principals have been visiting K-8 schools to get an idea how they should be designed and operated. In their first visit, to Marion County, board members were surprised to see that 5-year-olds and 12-year-olds were sharing the same buses without problems. Previously, board members had said such a combination might be unsafe. Now, they say they are open to the idea. -- Robert King can be reached at 848-1432. Send e-mail to rking@sptimes.com
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