Details revealed for Madison's career-focused charter school
Wisconsin State Journal
by Abbey Machtig, Jan 4, 2025
The organizers behind a proposed STEM and career charter school have submitted their 62-page application to the Madison School District, which is deciding whether to sponsor the school.
Under the proposal from Madison-area philanthropists and real estate developers John and Jo Ellen McKenzie, the Forward Career and College Academy would prepare high school students for in-demand careers. Boys and Girls Clubs of Dane County CEO Michael Johnson, recently retired Omega School Director Oscar Mireles and Paul Vallas, the former CEO of Chicago Public Schools and the Philadelphia School District, are supporting the proposal.
The seven-member Board of Trustees submitted the application in December. It’s now up to the Madison School Board to decide whether to approve the charter agreement.
The board has not publicly discussed the proposal since September but is expected to review it again on Jan. 27. The board could make a final vote as early as February.
During an initial conversation, some Madison School Board members said they wanted to avoid creating competition with the district’s technical education and youth apprenticeship opportunities.
McKenzie told the Wisconsin State Journal via email he is still pursuing a charter agreement with the UW Office of Educational Opportunity. The final application to UW is due on Jan. 13.
Organizers are aiming for the school to open in fall 2026 with a cohort of 150 ninth-grade students. Enrollment would ideally grow to 600 students over the next three school years. The proposed charter school has not yet secured a location. If granted a charter agreement, it plans to use a facility already within the district.
The Forward Career and College Academy would build on the mission of the McKenzie Regional Workforce Center in Fitchburg — named for John McKenzie, who sparked the idea — which opened in partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Dane County in 2023.
According to the application, the school would primarily serve low-income students of color, students who are chronically absent or students who haven’t found success in traditional high schools.
“FCCA has a very different model that we believe can motivate students, particularly those that come from low-income households,” the application reads. “Programs like MMSD’s Pathways, although well intentioned, leave most of the exploration up to individual initiative. That is not going to work for disengaged students.”
By highlighting career opportunities and paths to financial security, students would “be valued as an individual with unique abilities and challenges.”
Within three years, the school’s organizers want to have a lower percentage of chronically absent students than the Madison School District, and to surpass the district’s four-year graduation rate and its proficiency rate on the ACT test for Black, Latino and low-income students.
In 2023-24, more than 35% of Madison students were chronically absent, according to the district’s state-issued report card. Students who miss more than 10% of all scheduled school days are considered chronically absent.
The four-year graduation rate for Madison students was 85.7% in the 2022-23 school year, according to the most recent data available from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
And on the English language arts ACT test, 13.3% of Latino students and 5.7% of Black students scored in the proficient or advanced category, according to DPI data from 2022-23. Nearly 10% of low-income students scored in the same categories.
Paid internships, work study
Students would start off-site internships in their third year at the school. Paid internships and work-study programs would be available in the trades, medical accounting, communications, engineering, human resources, legal, medical and tax services, according to the application.
In their first two years at the school, students would develop an individualized plan to define their career interests. That plan would be used to match students with employers for internships.
The Boys and Girls Clubs of Dane County and the Workforce Development Center pledge to help ensure broad participation among local employers. The school also plans to rely on employers who already work with the McKenzie Regional Workforce Center, including Duluth Trading Co., Findorff, Milwaukee Tool, SSM Health, Summit Credit Union and UW Health. Other partnerships for career experience could be added after a charter agreement is approved.
These employers would pay the students directly for their internship work, according to the proposal.
The Forward Career and College Academy is pursuing a waiver from the School Board to allow it to use private funding, likely raised through the McKenzie Foundation, for longer.
Board policy allows new charter schools to fundraise for private dollars for two years without any reduction to the money the school gets from the district.
Charter schools use state of Wisconsin per-pupil funding along with federal aid to create a yearly operating budget. When parents decide to send their child to a charter school, the money follows the student.
McKenzie is requesting the board allow the school to use private funds beyond the two-year window without any change to the per-pupil funding. The application doesn’t specify whether it would be a permanent extension, but said the money could be used to pay for expansions to the facility, new lab spaces or for transportation costs.
Blind admissions
The FCCA plans to open in fall 2026 with a cohort of 150 ninth-grade students. In each of the following three school years, 150 students would be added, for a total enrollment of 600 students.
Students would come from within the Madison School District’s boundaries and be recruited from the McKenzie Regional Workforce program, from boys and girls clubs, local churches and community centers.
The school would use a “blind admissions” system, through which any student with a completed application may be offered a spot. Race, ethnicity, gender or disability would not be a factor in admission, according to the application.
If there are more applicants than spots available, the school will use a lottery system to admit students. Siblings of currently enrolled students and children of employees would get priority placement.
The school would need to fill the equivalent of about 13 full-time staff positions to operate in its first year.
Eight teachers would teach math, English, science and social studies. Part-time employees would teach physical education, art, music and life skills classes. The school also would employ a special education instructor, a full-time administrator, an office manager and a cleaning professional. Staff numbers would grow each year as more students enroll.
The school is aiming for 30% of its employees to be people of color and to retain at least 85% of its staff each year.
Curriculum selected
McKenzie and the other developers have already selected the curriculums teachers will use.
For math, the school would use the Illustrative Math curriculum, offering geometry, algebra 1, algebra 2, an advanced math course for seniors and a ninth-grade math class to build foundational skills for incoming students.
The OpenSciEd curriculum would be used for biology, chemistry and physics classes.
In a sequence of four English classes, students would follow the Odell High School literacy program to study fiction and nonfiction.
Organizers selected iCivics for the school’s social studies curriculum. Students would take two American history classes and a civics course. Elective options include genealogy and world cultures.
Students also would take physical education and wellness classes twice a week, along with a personal finance class once a week. Students also could enroll in world language classes, fine arts and athletics.
Given that all students must complete some sort of internship or work-study program, the school plans to offer scheduling options. The school’s organizers may also opt to extend the school day or school year beyond the Madison School District’s schedule.
“The school aims to build a foundation for lifelong learning, career success, and community engagement,” organizers wrote in the application. “By providing rigorous academic programs, work-based learning opportunities, and extensive career counseling, FCCA will equip students with the tools they need to continue thriving long after they leave high school.”
