Twin Falls charter school will shut down

An alternative charter middle school in Twin Falls will close its doors in May.

Wings Charter Middle School trustees voted to close the school on April 10, and announced the decision Wednesday, the Times-News reported Thursday.

“The high cost of a facilities lease, reduction in student enrollment, and state budget cuts over the past several years have eroded the financial stability of the school,” the school said in a Wednesday statement.

Wings’ enrollment has dropped precipitously. About 80 students now attend the school, The Times-News reported. According to state enrollment statistics, fall enrollment peaked at 172 in 2011-12 and dropped to 123 in 2012-13.

Wings has struggled in the state’s school rankings. For the past two years, the school received one star in Idaho’s five-star rating system. In 2012-13, 64 percent of Wings’ students received proficient reading scores on the Idaho Standards Achievement Test; in math, the proficiency rate was 36 percent. (For more statistics on Wings, and other public and charter schools, go to our Idaho Ed Trends site.)

Kevin Richert

Kevin Richert

Senior reporter and blogger Kevin Richert specializes in education politics and education policy. He has more than 30 years of experience in Idaho journalism. He is a frequent guest on "Idaho Reports" on Idaho Public Television and "Idaho Matters" on Boise State Public Radio. Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KevinRichert. He can be reached at [email protected]

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