All boys charter school picks location, will start school year Monday

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - Smith Academy For Excellence (SAFE) finalized where it will hold school in its inaugural school year.  The all boys charter school has a one-year lease to use the old St. John Lutheran School.  SAFE begins the school year Monday, August 13.

"We need a facility that would get us off to a good start," Thomas Smith, a leader with the academy, said.  "A facility that was already established and that had the ability to accommodate our population and the kind of activities we were involved in.  This was a very good fit for us."

SAFE will serve students in grades six through nine this year.  The plan is to add one or two grades each school year, until it is a K-12 school.  The expansion should take six years.  Smith said the school expects approximately 80 students for the 2012-2013 school year, but added walk-ins have been taking place. 

SAFE originally planned to build a new facility in the southeast side of Fort Wayne, where the the majority of its students live.

"All the pieces did not fit into place," Smith, who served 20 years as a principal in Fort Wayne Community Schools, said.  "We needed to buy the property, we needed to get the contracting and everything done, and get the financing.  All those things did not come together.  We knew the time frame was short when we started.  We weren't able to complete all those steps it took to get the ground up facility started for this year. 

Smith added the academy still plans to build, or renovate a building, in the future.

Larissa Martin enrolled her son in the school.  She said the change in facility did not overly concern her.

"The benefits outweighed the concerns, regarding them not having a location solidified," she said.  "For a young black man, in our society, this is needed."

Martin had sent her daughters to a local private school, and believed her son needed to be in an all boy school system.

"Girls are distractions to the young men when they are trying to go to school," Martin said.

Smith said the boys only school, and its personalized teaching practices won over parents considering SAFE.

"Boys learn differently, and we believe impacting the lives of these young men could have a great deal of impact on our community," Smith said.  "Many young men struggle with growing up and being strong academically.  We believe we can impact the lives of young men academically, socially, and behaviorally.

Smith said SAFE is one of two all boys charter schools to open in Indiana.  The other is in the Indianapolis area.

Smith Academy is still accepting applications. Information is available at the school's website , or by calling: (260) 579-6939.