A proposal for a computer science charter school

South Carolina´s Charter School Act of 1996 authorizes the formation of charter schools based on a charter detailing the school´s mission and plan of operation. South Carolina also has a critical needs program that allows certification of college graduates in areas suffering teacher shortages, including computer science, through a nontraditional apprenticeship process. The primary goal of the proposed charter school is to provide instruction in computer science by qualified teachers. To that end, the school would employ certified teachers as classroom mentors along with computer science graduates as apprentices in the critical needs program. In addition to teaching, the apprentices would be encouraged to develop and market educational software and similar resources for other schools in the district. This experience would be beneficial for those choosing not to continue in teaching, and would furnish an added incentive for computer science graduates to apply for teaching jobs in the charter school.