I was excited to be the guest speaker for the first class to graduate from the Charter Academy High School at Pensacola State College and was waiting to hear the class valedictorian give his remarks.
He began his speech, “I hated high school. I hated getting up in the morning to face the dread of another day at high school.”
The young man paused, head down, and my heart dropped, but he raised his eyes to the audience and began again, “That is, until I came to Charter Academy. Now I can’t wait to get out of bed and come to school. The teachers inspired me every day, they gave me academic freedom, and they taught me to be the best student I could be.”
He graduated high school with an Associate’s Degree and will be going on to University to complete his four-year degree.
Charter Academy is a recently opened dual-enrollment charter high school run by Pensacola State College and is located on the Warrington Campus of PSC.
The idea for the school was first discussed over a lunch between myself and Dr. Ed Meadows, the college President. At the time, I was the Commanding Officer of Naval Air Station Pensacola and was asking for advice from Dr. Meadows on how to improve educational opportunities for both military and local students in the Warrington area adjacent to the base. I felt a charter school may be the best fit, so I was filled with excitement when Dr. Meadows suggested that a charter school was indeed needed and that he would look into creating it through PSC.
While the school would target military families stationed at NAS Pensacola along with eligible local students, aspirationally, we hoped for it to be a quality school that would raise the bar for the entire school district because, as the saying goes, a rising tide lifts all boats.
Four years later, due to the vision and hard work of Dr. Meadows and the staff and faculty of PSC, that idea has become a reality.
Charter Academy is now a shining light of promise for the young men and women of Escambia County who wish to propel their future and reach their fullest potential.
I was struck by the flush of joy and excitement from each of the students who crossed the stage during the graduation ceremony. To a person, they each felt that Charter Academy had changed their lives. In an area that has seen so much controversy and challenge surrounding its schools, the Westside and Warrington can now look to the Charter Academy as an example of what can happen when we focus on the needs of the community.
The PSC Charter Academy is currently a two-year high school, beginning with 11th grade, where students can choose to graduate with a full Associate’s Degree.
As a publicly funded charter school, there is no cost to the student for the degree.
Currently, the school serves 11th and 12th grades in the dual enrollment program. However, Pensacola State College plans to offer the traditional high school charter at the Warrington Campus to include 9th through 12th grades beginning in Fall 2024. In addition, PSC will also initiate a CTE (Career and Technical) Charter Academy for 9th through 12th grades beginning in 2024. The CTE Charter will also be a dual enrollment program for both high school credit and college credit certificates, as well as the Associate of Science degree.
For the upcoming 2023-2024 school year, students entering eleventh grade can apply to attend for their final two years and, in accordance with school district policy, may continue with sports and extra-curricular activities at their previous high school.
If you would like to learn more about The Charter Academy at Pensacola State College or apply for admission, you can visit their website.
Guest Contributor: Tim Kinsella
Tim Kinsella is currently the Executive Director of the AWKO Center for Leadership at the University of West Florida. He recently retired from the US Navy following 33 years of distinguished service and was most recently the Commanding Officer of Naval Air Station Pensacola. Tim grew up in Ireland, but after more than two dozen household moves with his family, decided to call Pensacola home. Tim is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Director of the FBI’s Community Leadership Award and the US Navy League’s National John Paul Jones Award for Inspirational Leadership. He is passionate about improving educational opportunities for all children and helped to found a STEM academy for all Title One 5th Graders in Escambia and Santa Rosa Counties and a dual enrollment charter high school in the Warrington area. A dedicated husband and father, he spends his free time coaching youth soccer, supporting Liverpool Football Club, playing bad golf, and even worse guitar.
