UPDATE: IDEA Public Schools has announced locations for 3rd and 4th campuses in San Antonio. IDEA Monterrey Park will be at 222 SW 39th Street, San Antonio, TX 78237 (map). IDEA San Antonio #4 (permanent name coming soon) will be at 6130 Walzem Road, San Antonio, TX 78239 (map), with a temporary office at 8700 Fourwinds Drive, San Antonio, TX 78239 (map).
Last month, I went on a tour of IDEA Carver, the first IDEA Public Schools campus in San Antonio. From what I saw of their direct instruction methods and their pro-books culture, I became convinced that IDEA schools are a good thing for San Antonio. IDEA plans to build 20 schools in San Antonio, and they just announced the location for their second campus, at the intersection of South Flores Street and West Harding Boulevard. Here’s a map:
[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=100+W+Harding+Blvd,+San+Antonio,+TX&aq=&sll=31.168934,-100.076842&sspn=11.624226,21.225586&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=100+W+Harding+Blvd,+San+Antonio,+Texas+78221&t=m&ll=29.351656,-98.488913&spn=0.03591,0.054932&z=14&output=embed&iwloc=near&w=640&h=480]
Area landmarks include Mission San José and Mission Espada, and Stinson Field. The new school will be located within the boundaries of Harlandale ISD, but IDEA has its own charter—there will be no affiliation with Harlandale schools.
The new school—no name yet—will open in Fall 2013 serving grades K, 1, 2, and 6, adding new grades every year until it becomes a full K to 12 school.
Features at the new campus: three science labs, a library, a hybrid-learning lab, soccer fields, and 32 classrooms in a 59,000 square foot building. For more details, see “IDEA Public Schools finalizes land purchase for new site in San Antonio”, IDEA Public Schools news release, November 5, 2012.
The funds to buy the land and build the new school came from a recent $60 million bond issue, the largest in IDEA’s history. “IDEA Public Schools Completes $60 Million Bond Offering”, IDEA Public Schools news release, September 12, 2012.
Parents who applied for the lottery at IDEA Carver but didn’t get in will be excited to hear about the new campus. With this growth, IDEA will be able to extend the promise of “College For All Children” to more San Antonio families. In a few years, when IDEA has 20 campuses in San Antonio, can you imagine what College Signing Day will look like? I’m really looking forward to seeing that.
