FRANKLIN
The Franklin City public school system started the “Open Campus — A Magic Johnson Bridgescape Academy” this school year. It is already being offered in Norfolk.

The program is for people ages 17 to 21 who have dropped out of FCPS within the last five years. As of right now, there are only 12 students enrolledn Franklin, but there have been 73 people within the city who meet the qualifications to participate.

The program is not part of the SOL curriculum, it is instead done in modules and students can work at their own pace.

The school day for the students involved in “Open Campus” is from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and there is a bus that will pick them and up and drop them back off.

“Open Campus” gives students a second chance and it is a zero tolerance program — meaning the students can get kicked out just as easy as they got in.

“We’re going to try and help everybody,” said faculty and staff for “Open Campus” on Tuesday. “Our goal is to make sure students are able to transition to whatever type of setting is next for them and to help them have a brighter future with the second chance we are offering them.”

Teachers also lined the entrance way to the “Open Campus” building with balloons on the first day of school. They wanted the students to know they’re rooting for them.

At Tuesday night’s called school board meeting, the board reviewed the proposed contract and said that it would like get 38 more students into the program.

The board also wants more of a partnership with EdisonLearning Inc., and agreed that Superintendent Dr. Willie Bell should have final say over the program and rules.

The board is also hoping to make this a trial year, if possible, and then to come back and review it to see if this is something they want to continue offering.

City Attorney Taylor Williams will be reviewing the contract in the coming weeks, and Dr. Bell will be meeting with EdisonLearning, Inc. in hopes of changing the program’s proposed contract in order to meet the board’s wishes and requests.