NEWS

November 23,2016

The Babcock Neighborhood School that will open next fall in the town of Babcock Ranch is accepting K-8 applications for the 2017-2018 school year. Babcock Ranch is a new 18,000-acre eco-centric, solar-powered town being developed by Kitson & Partners 20 minutes east of Fort Myers off State Road 31 in Charlotte County. Construction of furnished models in Lake Timber, the first neighborhood to be built at Babcock Ranch, andPhase I of the downtown district are underway and progressing as planned. Situated at the heart of Babcock Ranch, BNS will put K-8 education within walking distance for the children of the town’s earliest settlers.

The first of multiple public schools to be located within the town of Babcock Ranch, BNS is a free public charter school open to all students in kindergarten through grade eight who qualify to attend a public school in Charlotte County. This includes out-of-district students who are allowed to request admission under Florida’s new open enrollment law. There are no other public schools within 10 miles of the Babcock Ranch downtown district. The first residents of Babcock Ranch will begin moving into their new hometown early next year and BNS will be ready to welcome its first students in the fall of 2017.

While many charter schools limit enrollment to early grades at start-up and then phase in upper grades, BNS is preparing to serve all grades in its inaugural year. The final determination will be based on student enrollment.

Babcock Ranch will eventually be home to more than 19,000 residences and approximately 50,000 people. The town’s master plan provides for multiple neighborhood schools and a central middle and high school campus. Those schools will be added as the population of the new town grows.

BNS offers a “place-based” environmentally focused “greenSTEAM” educational program that integrates science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics within a thoughtfully provided holistic learning environment. STEAM requires intentional connections among and between standards, assessments, and lesson design and implementation and integrates related standards across disciplines, allowing students to demonstrate mastery of subjects.

For more information about enrollment or Babcock Ranch, see www.babcockranch.com.