A Message From John Sun, President & CEO

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

We hope that you enjoyed a good start to the new year. As we gear up for 2016, we are highlighting Pacific Charter School Development’s work in the San Francisco Bay Area, where PCSD is meeting and working with high-performing charter schools seeking to grow. There is great demand in the community for growth of high-quality schools, and PCSD is committed to delivering affordable facilities in the Bay Area. Our local team is ramping up and engaging with potential school and community partners, municipalities, and even school districts. We are starting projects in Vallejo and San Jose, and look forward to supporting growth in Oakland and Richmond, among others, all in the mission of expanding access to high-quality charter seats. We look forward to a busy and exciting 2016, and wish you the same.

Warm Regards,

John Sun

Bay Area Projects

KIPP Bay Area is growing quickly and will double their school enrollment in the next five to seven years. In order to fulfill their mission to create high-quality schools, they need high-quality facilities for students.  In the Bay Area, KIPP currently operates out of Prop 39 facilities, which are limited in space and customization. Their long-term solution now includes working with a San Jose school district on a ground lease for a long-term new facility. This partnership creates a win-win option where KIPP will able to focus on meeting the needs of their growing enrollment instead of yearly facility needs.

Adam Kaye, Director of Real Estate for KIPP Bay Area, was hired to help KIPP create their long-term facilities plan in the Bay Area. “One middle school, located in San Jose, will reach twice as many students as it expands grade levels in the new facility . PCSD is providing guidance and direction to fulfill our growing need for a quality facility, thereby aligning with our mission.” 

Caliber Schools is is a new and innovative Bay Area Charter Management Organization committed to providing a rigorous, holistic, college preparatory education for underserved communities. Caliber Schools has a successful K-8 school in Richmond, Caliber Beta Academy, and will be expanding to Vallejo in 2016, with a permanent site in 2017.

A team from Caliber Schools recently traveled to Los Angeles to glean ideas from previous PCSD projects to help envision the future school in Vallejo. For its new K-8 in Vallejo, Caliber is building a facility that will help revitalize a neighborhood and provide a physical plan that will help Caliber deliver its educational model. The building will have large, open collaborative spaces as well as breakout rooms and community spaces. Ron Beller, Co-Founder and CEO of Caliber Schools said, "PCSD has been a great partner in defining the scope, navigating financing and planning the project. We are working together to ensure that the project comes in on time and on budget while still meeting Caliber's educational needs."

The team has secured the land and financing for the new Caliber Schools site, and will start construction this fall after completing the entitlements and design processes.

Our team

Our team in the Bay Area is James Heugas, Project Director, and Whitney Rubin, Project Manager.  James has been working on our school openings in Washington State and will travel regularly to the Bay Area, and Whitney is based in the Bay Area, in Milpitas. 

In The News

In California, where most state funding for charter school facilities has run out, a recent study asked the state to increase and overhaul school construction bonds. The study found that any increase in funding should be matched with high-need districts, where students are often do not have access to modern, well-maintained facilities. 

In Los Angeles, the Great Public Schools Now Initiative launched, with an ambitious plan to double the number of high-quality charter seats in Los Angeles Unified School District. PCSD will have projects in Los Angeles funded by Great Public Schools Now, as facilities are a crucial impediment to expanding charter school access. 

In Washington, the State Supreme Court declined to reconsider its Charter School Ruling, which prohibits charter schools from receiving state funding, though a bill recently passed the State Senate to revise the funding source to allow the schools to stay open.