East Boston’s Excel Academy Charter School is in the process of expanding once again and will hold a community meeting with the Boston Redevelopment Authority next week.
On Wednesday, December 18 at 6:30 p.m. at the Paris Street Community Center Excel and the BRA will discuss plans to construct an Excel High School along the Bremen Street Park next to the new East Boston library.
According to Excel CEO Owen Stearns, the school plans to build a 70,000 sq. ft. facility consisting of 35 classrooms for grades 9-12 at the site located at 413 Bremen St., which is currently a parking lot.
The proposed facility would also allow Excel to house its third middle school, currently located on Saratoga Street near CVS.
At full capacity, over 800 middle and high school students would be utilizing a state of the art development that will include community rooms, a cafeteria, and a gymnasium, in addition to administrative and office space for Excel’s student support services. The proposed project will also include an on-site 30-car pickup/drop off area, a dedicated bus pull-off area, a 50-space parking lot, and outdoor space for student use.
“After 10 great years serving middle school students in East Boston and Chelsea, we are thrilled to have the possibility of launching a high school and serving even more students,” said Stearns. “The Bremen Street location is an ideal spot – next to a beautiful new library, easily accessible to public transportation, and near an increasingly vibrant Day Square.”
Stearns added that Excel is looking forward to working productively with the surrounding community throughout the development process.
“With the launch of its first high school, Excel will further expand its capacity to serve its mission: to prepare students to succeed in high school and college, apply their learning to solve relevant problems, and engage productively in their communities,” said Stearns.
For the last six years, Excel’s students have ranked number one in Massachusetts on the MCAS and currently 79 percent of Excel’s college-age graduates are still persisting in college.
Close of comment period on the project will be Monday, January 6, 2014. Comments can be mailed to Raul Duverge, BRA, One City Hall Sq, 9th Fl, Boston MA 02201 or by email at [email protected].