The 29 students enrolled at Starke County’s newest school are thriving in the non-traditional learning environment. The Crossing alternative school opened recently and offers a second chance to students who have been expelled from or dropped out of public schools. Principal Quentin Bishop says the school is an extension of the students’ sending schools.
“This is like a classroom just down the road from their sending school. We have that type of relationship, that type of partnership to say we’re not only just The Crossing Education Center working as an independent school. We’re actually in partnership with our public schools,” Bishop said.
Students from Knox, North Judson-San Pierre and Oregon-Davis are enrolled at The Crossing. Eastern Pulaski and West Central School Corporations can send students there as well.
Leaders at The Crossing hosted a spotlight breakfast for community members yesterday at the campus. It’s located in the former Sears store south of Knox next to Save a Lot. Bishop told the attendees the leaders at The Crossing want to give students another chance to earn their high school diplomas.
“We will go to every city. We will go to every county. We will go to every school corporation that has a dropout and we will try to get the dropout enrolled back into school. That’s our mission, empowering struggling students,” Bishop added.
“We’re a state-accredited school. We’re an alternative school. So when a student earns a credit here, it’s like they earned a credit in any public school they went to. When they graduate after earning their credits, they get an Indiana Department of Education verified, certified diploma. A Core 40 Diploma, that’s what we’re aiming for.”
Students who attend classes at The Crossing work at their own pace. Bishop says the goal is to complete two credit hours each nine weeks, but students can do more if they choose. Find more information online at http://crossingeducation.com/.
