A long-time dream to see a high school in Foster City came one step closer to becoming a reality last night - but proponents are not in the clear yet.
The San Mateo Union High School District granted a conditional charter for Foster City High School, but organizers must prove it has a place to call home by Jan. 20 or face a revocation. In a board meeting room jammed with about 100 supporters, parents vowed to make it happen and prove that a Foster City high school is not only possible, but very likely to succeed.
Parents have four months to negotiate a land deal with Foster City. Organizers already have preliminary agreement with a major banking institution for 100 percent financing and an agreement with a major nonprofit to fund 80 percent of the construction costs, said Peter Hayden, the man leading the fight for a new school.
Just short of inking the deal with those organizations, parents are now putting pressure on the city to provide a 13-acre lot near City Hall for the school.
"We were told by a million people this would not happen. Foster City has been trying to do this for a long tome. Now it's time for the city to get involved," Hayden said. "If the city aggressively adopts a spirit of cooperation, it'll all be possible."
Charter school organizers want to build the new science and math-oriented school on a 13-acre site next to the Peninsula Jewish Community Center and across from the new City Hall.
The city's founder, T. Jack Foster, envisioned a high school for the spot some 40 years ago.
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The original 40-acre plot Foster donated to the city was developed into an apartment complex, Foster's Landing, that borders Catamaran Street. In the last few years, the Jewish Community Center was built on Foster City Boulevard. Of the original 40 acres Foster donated to the city, 13 acres remain and is still earmarked for a high school.
Although Trustee Bill Prewett voted for the charter, he made clear he didn't agree with the idea and had no faith that it could succeed.
"I wish you well, but I don't think it'll work out," said Prewett. "These schools will be elitist whether you like it or not. I would still tell you not to send your kids there."
Prewett defended traditional public education and the school district, despite boos and hisses from the crowd that resented his comments.
The district is requiring the district to prove it has a home by January, so it knows whether or not the new school will be in its plans for the 2005-2006 school year. The charter school is expected to attract between 119 and 125 student when it opens next year.
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