Greater Brunswick Charter School

Public elementary school/middle school

Greater Brunswick Charter School

Location

429 Joyce Kilmer Avenue,
New Brunswick, NJ 08901

Information
Type| Public elementary school/middle school
Established| 1998
Faculty| 33.0 FTEs[1]
Grades| K - 8
Enrollment| 395 (as of 2017–18)[1]
Student to teacher ratio| 12.0:1[1]
Website| School website

Greater Brunswick Charter School (GBCS) is a free, public charter school serving grades kindergarten through eighth located on 429 Joyce Kilmer Avenue in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The school has a Spanish-English bilingual program for grades K-4, and has plans to extend it through grade five.[2]

## History[edit]

The school opened in the 1998–99 school year. In 2004, it purchased its current building, formerly a bowling alley, with the help of a $500,000 government grant and a $2.5 million loan from New Jersey Community Capital and the Community Redevelopment Fund.[3]

Over the summer of 2010, the charter school expanded, creating over a dozen classrooms and a larger gymnasium out of warehouse space in the building. The funding for this was secured by the nonprofit organization Build With Purpose (then known as READS).[4] A year prior to this expansion, the school's middle school and one fifth grade classroom had been housed across the street from the school building. The following year, a playground was added, with assistance from KaBOOM!.

## Student body[edit]

As of the 2017–18 school year, the school had an enrollment of 395 students and 33.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.0:1.[1] 70.4% were Hispanic, 19.4% were black, 8.1% were white, and 1.8% were Asian. 63.4% of the students were eligible for a free or reduced-price lunch.[5] 55.2% of students primarily spoke Spanish and 44.8% primarily spoke English at home.[6] The school has a student:teacher ratio of 15:1.[7] GBCS will accept students from any district in New Jersey, although it gives preference to those from Edison, New Brunswick, and Highland Park.[8]

## Administration[edit]

Core members of the school administration include Vanessa Jones, the education director; and Hector Alvarez, the assistant education director.[9]

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c d District information for Greater Brunswick Charter School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed November 1, 2019.
2. ^ Greater Brunswick Charter School website: Dual Language Program Archived 2015-01-28 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed 1/23/15.
3. ^ Greater Brunswick Charter School website: About US. Accessed 5 February 2016.
4. ^ Build With Purpose article. Accessed 25 February 2016.
5. ^ National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS) website Archived 2015-01-19 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed January 23, 2015.
6. ^ Greater Brunswick Charter School 2013-14 School Performance Report, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed September 16, 2015.
7. ^ Education.com. Accessed September 29, 2015.
8. ^ Greater Brunswick Charter School website: Enrollment. Accessed January 23, 2015.
9. ^ Greater Brunswick Charter School Website: Directory. Accessed 9 December 2017.

40°28′44″N 74°27′46″W﻿ / ﻿40.47884°N 74.46284°W﻿ / 40.47884; -74.46284