BASIS, one of the most academically demanding charter programs in the nation, wants to bring five schools to Louisiana, with the first campus tentatively set to open in 2017.
BASIS CEO Peter Bezanson made the announcement Sunday evening in Phoenix, where he spoke to a delegation of 145 community leaders from the Baton Rouge and New Orleans areas who are on a three-day Super Region Canvas trip to Arizona’s Sun Corridor.
BASIS schools dominate the listing of “America’s Most Challenging High Schools” in this morning’s Washington Post, earning three of the top 10 spots. Baton Rouge had just one public school on the list: the LSU Lab School, ranked at No. 1,455. According to the Post, 100% of BASIS students passed at least one college-level exam in high school, while only 30% of the LSU Lab School students did.
Louisiana had just two other schools make the cut: Benjamin Franklin High School in New Orleans, ranked at No. 191, with 57% of its students passing a college-level exam, and KIPP Renaissance High School, No. 1,477, with 12% passing a college-level exam.
BASIS got its start in Tucson, Arizona, in 1998. It now operates 23 schools in eight metropolitan areas, including Washington, D.C., and San Antonio, and next year opens its first international campus in China. The open enrollment, free-tuition school is known for its rigorous academic standards. According to its website, its students have taken 10 advanced placement exams before graduation.
In an interview with Daily Report, Bezanson says BASIS was recruited to Louisiana by Chris Meyer of New Schools for Baton Rouge. A subsequent analysis of The Baton Rouge market indicated the community would be a good fit for the BASIS model.
“We’re looking at three or four different localities for the next three or four years,” he says. “But (Baton Rouge) is definitely our No. 1 choice.”
Bezanson and his staff already have visited the city to explore a number of potential campus sites. He says BASIS would most likely locate its initial K-12 school as close to downtown as possible.
“We’ll start in the middle of the city and then branch out from there,” he says.
BASIS schools typically serve 1,000 students. Bezanson says he believes Louisiana’s charter system overall is “trending in the right direction.”
“The political environment towards charter schools seems really positive,” he says. “The funding environment, while not amazing, is still better than here (Arizona). … It’s a breath of fresh air in Louisiana in a sense.”
The nonprofit New Schools for Baton Rouge is working to recruit top schools such as BASIS to the Capital Region. “Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Louisiana continue to be a place that great school operators want to come to,” Meyer says. “We have really great conditions and such a hunger and demand for better schools.”
Read more about BASIS. Parents can also indicate their interest in receiving information about BASIS schools in Louisiana.
The Super Region Canvas trip where the BASIS announcement was made is a joint venture between the Baton Rouge Area Chamber and Greater New Orleans Inc. The trip is meant to give participants greater perspective on how peer cities handle critical issues common to all communities. The trips have taken place about every other year since 2003. BRAC formerly organized the trips on its own, but in 2013 partnered with GNO Inc. to increase regional cooperation among south Louisiana’s business communities.
The event continues today with visits to Phoenix Union High School and Arizona State University SkySong for sessions on education, workforce, health care, biosciences and entrepreneurial ecosystems. Tuesday’s sessions will tackle transportation and infrastructure development.
—Penny Font
This story has been changed since it was originally published to clarify a reference to BASIS’ student demographics.
