ROGERS -- Springdale is out and Pea Ridge is in at the Regional Educational Alternative Program Academy.
The Rogers School Board on Tuesday approved an agreement with the Bentonville and Pea Ridge school districts on operation of the academy, which serves high school students set for expulsion from their home district. It also serves some students who, by agreement with parents, need a more restrictive environment, according to a Rogers School District document.
Rehl Retiring
The Rogers School Board voted Tuesday to accept some employees’ retirements, including that of Grace Hill Elementary School principal Jennie Rehl, who has worked for the School District for 39 years.
Source: Staff Report
The academy is at 501 Elm St. in Rogers. A consortium representing the Rogers, Bentonville and Springdale districts has run the academy since it opened 11 years ago. Springdale officials notified the group last month the district intends to discontinue its involvement in the academy after this school year.
"They decided they wanted to go their own way," said Robert Moore, Rogers' assistant superintendent for secondary curriculum and instruction. That opened up space for Pea Ridge, which has asked in the past about getting involved, Moore said.
Under the one-year agreement, effective this fall, Bentonville and Rogers each will have 20 student slots available to them at the academy. Pea Ridge will have five. Each of the three districts this school year had 25 guaranteed slots.
Certain students who have been expelled are allowed to enroll at the academy to keep up with their course work.
Kids make mistakes, and the academy allows them to stay on track with their education, Moore said. Students must meet criteria before leaving the academy and returning to their home campuses, according to the governance agreement.
The academy was established through a grant from the Walton Family Foundation. It has served hundreds of students. A governing board of the participating districts' superintendents or their designees directs the academy.
The Rogers School District serves as the fiscal agent of the academy. Consortium members pay a certain cost per day per student each semester. This school year the academy's budget was $540,000, according to a district document.
In other business at its Tuesday meeting, the Rogers School Board approved an agreement with Alternative Learning Experiences to provide help for students struggling with addictions.
"We're ready to have it as part of our mosaic of mental health services for kids," said Mark Sparks, deputy superintendent.
A student enrolled in the program receives a needs assessment to determine an individualized service plan that addresses both treatment of the student's addictions and what the student needs educationally to graduate high school, according to a program brochure.
The program is a division of Alternative Opportunities, a nonprofit organization that offers social, educational and behavioral health services in Arkansas, Missouri and Oklahoma.
Moore estimated Rogers would send three or four students a year to the program. The school district pays based on how many days each student is enrolled in the program. That daily payment will equal what the district receives from the state each day for one student, Moore said.
NW News on 03/18/2015