Tuesday evening, The Clermont City Council Chamber was filled with red-shirted, high-spirited spectators. Brian Bulthuis, the new City Manager, proudly attributed the “wearing of the red” to a celebration: The Georgia Bull Dogs won the College Football National Championship after a 41-year hiatus. The Dawgs defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide, 33-18!
This was a realistic assumption considering Brian comes to Clermont via Georgia and hasn’t yet changed his colors to Knights Black and Gold or Gator Blue and Orange.
The red-shirted Pinecrest Lakes Middle-High School students, parents, teachers, and fans attended the meeting in support of the building of their new high school, a charter school, located on the campus of the Lake Sumter State College, South Lake Campus.
The Council considered approval of the school’s request which comes in phases.
Phase 1: The Charter School’s building is anticipated to be opened and operational in 2022. It will include the construction of a new three-story building consisting of approximately 36,000 square feet that will serve 650 students. The first phase will use the existing access point from Oakley Seaver and students will be dropped off and picked up through the existing parking lot that serves the college campus and Cooper Memorial Library.
There is presently no school busing and all students will be transported via private vehicles. In the subsequent phases of development, the charter school will be accessed via access driveways/connections from Legends Way with additional parking provided to meet the needs of the school. The start times of each school will be staggered by approximately one hour. The high school hours will be from 7:20 am to 2:20 pm and the middle school hours from 8:30 am to 3:30 pm.
Phase 2: Several internal roadway improvements will be made to provide access from Legends Way. This phase includes the upgrading of the existing access point serving the five ballfields adjacent to Legends Way, which would connect to the charter school building, and a new access point on Legends Way. Upon completion of this phase, the Oakley Seaver access point would be discontinued and the queuing of vehicles will occur from these areas. This phase would also include the construction of additional parking spaces and a parking lot that would primarily serve the charter school. No additional students would be generated during this phase.
The Pinecrest Lakes Middle / High School Academy (PLMH) project at Lake Sumter State College’s South Lake Campus (LSSC) brings together the mutual interests of both educational institutions as a public-private partnership to expand the education pipeline, particularly in STEM-focused careers, with a unique K-16 model. This project helps foster the academic growth of middle and high school students in a college prep environment while sharing in the dynamic environment of college life.
PLMH is a tuition-free, public charter school. PLMH’s college preparatory academic curriculum is ideally suited for preparing students for the rigors of college. Further, the charter school’s setting within the LSSC campus also offers Pinecrest’s students the unique opportunity to continue their academic careers as part of the LSSC collegiate family.
This unique partnership creates an opportunity for students to have an immersive secondary education experience that focuses on postsecondary and career success.
PLMH students, who already benefit from a college and career-focused education environment, will also have the opportunity to earn college credit through dual enrollment at Lake Sumter State College. These students will graduate high school prepared for college and a career with vital communications and critical thinking skills as well as real-world training and experiences that LSSC will provide through the partnership.
The goal with the LSSC/PLMH partnership is to expand opportunities for students to receive a robust STEM-focused education in K-12 that offers a seamless pipeline to enrollment and degree completion at Lake-Sumter State College.
This project is a great example of the spirit of cooperation, the strength of a shared and common vision, and the devotion to the mutual objectives of each institution and the greater community.
The Council unanimously approved the request of LSSC/PLMH in a touchdown score of 5-0. Victory for the PLMH Eagles.
