New charter school in Lakewood Ranch promises an education for the ‘whole child’

Lakewood Ranch Preparatory Academy has broken ground on its 18-acre campus, making way for a school that touts innovative programs and personalized learning.

Approved by the Manatee County School Board in April, the charter school is situated at the Lakewood Ranch CORE , an area that includes research facilities, outdoor activities and event spaces — all focused on education and health.

Charters — which are public schools with more autonomy than traditional schools — have grown to more than 680 campuses in Florida, which introduced charter schools to the public education system in 1996. Lakewood Ranch Prep will be Manatee County’s 14th charter school.

Initially, Lakewood Ranch Prep will open to students in K-6 and ninth grade. Those students will help “develop and build the culture” at Lakewood Ranch Prep before it opens a second building and starts a K-12 expansion in August 2023, said Bradley Warren, the incoming elementary and middle school principal.

He said the Lakewood Ranch CORE — which stands for collaboration, opportunities, research and exploration — was a natural fit for the incoming school, which is slated to open its first building at 5550 White Eagle Blvd in August.

The school has an acronym of its own: wellness, innovation, science and health (WISH). And all of the incoming classes and programs are based on that model, Warren said.

In part, that means meditation, yoga, outdoor activities and other “brain breaks’‘ will be built into the school day. Health and emotional intelligence, the principal said, were just as important as academics.

“We’re passionate about educating the whole child,” he said. “For too many years, schools were focused simply on their students’ brains and, more specifically, one half of their brain.”

Warren and the incoming high school principal, Cheryl Cendan, will work with all of the K-6 and ninth-grade students under one roof in the first year.

Cendan said the classrooms may be unfamiliar to people expecting a traditional education. Retractable walls will allow teachers to expand or shrink their classrooms, allowing for large collaborations or small-group instruction.

Within those classrooms, students might be standing during their lessons, or they might be sitting on floor mats and bouncing chairs — whatever helps them focus and learn.

“I know we live in a world of standardized tests, but there is no such thing as a standard student,” Warren said.

He and Cendan also underscored the technology plan at Lakewood Ranch Prep. Students will have the option to explore virtual reality and to communicate with other students throughout Manatee County or even the world.

And from the moment they enter kindergarten, students will have individual learning plans that include their goals and progress. That personalization will grow over the years, as students enter the upper school and explore their passions, career interests and post-graduation plans, Cendan said.

Students will have the chance to interact with experts from different industries, to take college-level courses, and to pursue internships in a field they’re excited about.

“There’s great schools where we are,” Cendan said. “We are surrounded by excellence. What will really set us apart, though, is that personalization.”

Enrollment at Lakewood Ranch Prep — a collaboration between Charter Schools USA and the Southwest Charter Foundation — is expected to hit 740 students in the first year and 1,965 after the K-12 expansion is complete.

To stay updated on the school’s construction and progress, visit www.lakewoodranch-prep.org.

This story was originally published February 7, 2022 at 5:00 AM.