Bridges Prep Sales Tax Project List

Bridges Preparatory Public Charter School

BEAUFORT COUNTY REQUEST

BRIDGES PREPARATORY SCHOOL

“BPS”

•Bridges Preparatory Public Charter School (BPS)

•BPS has selected a site location, purchasing Boys and Girls

Club on Boundary Street in Downtown Beaufort

•Opened in 2013-2014 with Kindergarten through 6th grade

•BPS will add a grade level each year thereafter and

ultimately serve grades Kindergarten through 12th

•Teacher to student ratio 14:1 ~ Class size: 20 students


SUCCESSES

•96% of 358 students signed intents to re-enroll

•All classes FULL for next year with 142 on waiting list

(grades K-7)

•100% of teachers returned signed contracts for next year

•Students from Beaufort, Bluffton, St. Helena, Whale

Branch, Port Royal, Okatie, Yemassee, Jasper and

Hampton Counties


FACTS

•Funding ~ New Money into Beaufort County

•Funded by the State of South Carolina

•BPS educates with $5,300 per child versus BCSD’s $10,600

•We educate 358 children grades K-6 (this school year)

•2013-14 budget ~ $2.7 Million

•Projected Fund Balance ~ $500,000+

•Purchasing permanent facility, adding 4 classes per year, up

to 780 students by 2018

•Need to expand and redevelop the site due to demand


INNOVATION

•PAIDEIA instructional method

•STEM-infused curriculum

•Paideia National Organization school partnership will:

•Highlight the belief that each child is unique

•Successfully educate the whole child

•Character-based education

•Small class size

•Curriculum aligned with State and National Standards


GOVERNANCE

•South Carolina Public Charter

School District

•BPS Charter School Board of

Directors

•BPS Head of School

•BPS Faculty

•BPS Parents

•Professional Fiscal

Management:

Accounting firm McKay,

Kiddy & Associates

Audit firm Elliott-Davis

BPS functions as an organization through the order of the following entities:

•No state funding for charter school buildings other than

private sources

•Start-up charter schools need 3-5 years of funding to obtain

external capital (need 3-5 years of financial statements to get

a loan)

•Private equity ~ increases the interest rate and is still a

lease; BPS would not own its facilities

1. Are there other sources of funds? Restricted

BRIDGES PREPARATORY SCHOOL 6 COUNTY QUESTIONS

•BPS is a state-funded public charter school

•Our funding is from the State of SC, not from the local county

school district

•Projections show $40 million in revenue over the life of our initial

10-year charter

2. Will the project create revenue? Yes


5-year BPS Revenue Projections:

• Year 2014-15 - $3,205,988

• Year 2015-16 - $3,548,787

• Year 2016-17 - $4,075,888

• Year 2017-18 - $4,602,989

2. Will the project create revenue? Yes


3. What are the maintenance and personnel costs?

$144,000 $75,000

$26,000 $15,000

$18,000 0 Operations

Rent Utilities Insurance Maintenance Custodial

Rent $144,000

Utilities $75,000

Insurance $26,000

Maintenance $15,000

Custodial $18,000

Maintenance costs are

1% of revenue and 11%

of total expenses.

$1,285,222 $24,350

$160,976

$6,556 $95,941

$89,009 0 Personnel Cost

Salaries Retirement

Group Health & Life Insurance Workers Comp Tax

Social Security Other

Salaries $1,285,222

Health & Life Ins. $160,976

Social Security $95,941

Retirement $24,350

WC Tax $6,556

Other $89,009

Personnel Costs are 6% of

revenue and 65% of total

expenses.


FISCAL YEAR TOTAL JOBS ESTIMATED PAYROLL

•Year 2014-15 37 $1,989,481

•Year 2015-16 45 $2,435,935

•Year 2016-17 53 $2,670,564

•Year 2017-18 62 $3,064,325

•Year 2018 -19 72 $3,111,274

4. Will this create jobs? Yes


•BPS does not take money from the local district, leaving

BCSD more money to educate fewer children

•BPS has no attendance zones inside the state, therefore,

children from all over South Carolina can attend

•Encourages new residents to move to Beaufort County

•Reduces the migration of Beaufort students to overcrowded

Bluffton schools

5. Will this help Beaufort County as a whole? Yes


If the project was privately funded, the interest cost would be

close to $3 million over 5 years. If funded, all of the saved interest

will be available to improve instruction.

6. Has a cost benefit study been done on the project?



WHAT WE NEED

•BPS invests $1.4 million

•This investment buys the Boys and Girls Club building on

Boundary Street and initial renovation (2013)

•Paid for with cash flow from a successful year

•County Request: $6.8 million builds a full K-8 facility

•Bridges uses local contractors to redevelop the old Boys

and Girls Club building and site


BEAUFORT FACILITY

•Redevelopment of a blighted area, increasing property

values

•Reduces pressure on Bluffton schools as the migration of

students to Bluffton from Beaufort slows down

•Beaufort County will be known for its school choice

leadership - an incentive for industry and resident relocation

•Open attendance zone allows residents more choice on

where to live and home investment


“BPS”

• BPS’s proposal is an economic stimulus and redevelopment opportunity

leveraging public/private investment

• $40 million projected NEW revenue over 10 years

• The proposed school site leverages existing underutilized public assets

already supported by tax dollars:

Downtown Beaufort Co. Library, Charles Lind Brown Center, county

athletic fields and city parks

BPS reduces cost to tax payers by providing revenue and/or cost-share

to Beaufort County and The City of Beaufort when utilizing their facilities

Bridges Prep Sales Tax Project List

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