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But this time, school officials say, the company that would run Buehrle Alternative School is well-suited to the task.
School board members Thursday reviewed a proposal by Camelot Schools LLC to take over Buehrle, which educates students who have been expelled or suspended for major disciplinary offenses.
Camelot would staff and run the school, which the district would continue to own and maintain, for an annual fee of $1.4 million — about $275,000 less than the district now spends, said Matt Przywara, SDL's chief financial officer.
The district is hoping Camelot can provide more structure for Buehrle students and improve their behavior, attendance rates and test scores, superintendent Pedro Rivera said.
In 2007, SDL considered outsourcing the school's operation to River Rock Academy, a York County company that runs two alternative schools in that county.
But the school board rejected the $2-million-a-year proposal because River Rock had only a two-year track record and had served relatively few minority students.
Camelot, on the other hand, has been in business for 40 years and has run three alternative schools in the School District of Philadelphia since 2004.
It also operates two schools in New Orleans for students with behavioral problems and runs more than a dozen therapeutic day schools and treatment centers for students with emotional and physical disabilities.
Rivera said the district chose Camelot after researching alternative-education providers in urban areas across the country beginning in October.
In April, SDL board members visited two of Camelot's Philadelphia schools, Shallcross Alternative School and Excel Academy, which serves students who have fallen behind academically.
Board members Linda Owens, Nenita Miller and Jackie McCain said they were impressed with what they saw.
"The mentality that the kids were there to succeed was built into that entire school," Owens said.
Camelot expects all students to live up to school norms rather than follow rules, said Angela Kerrick, principal of Shallcross and Excel.
"Rules are meant to be broken. Norms are a way to live," she said.
"We say, 'Around here, we tuck in our shirts, we keep our pants pulled up and wear a belt, we don't talk back to staff and we look people in the eye when we talk to them.' "
Students who adhere to such norms, don't skip school and meet academic and behavioral expectations are eligible to join the student government organization.
Student government members have more rights and freedoms than nonmembers — they can attend field trips and recommend program changes, for instance — and joining is the only way for students to earn the right to return to their home schools.
They also take a lead role in schoolwide Town House meetings, where all students and staff meet each morning to talk about how the school is functioning.
The 80 percent of students who abide by the norms end up canceling out the 20 percent who are inclined to cause problems, said Todd Bock, Camelot vice president.
"If you can zero in on those kids and get those students to have positive social behaviors and confront the negative behavior, it changes the whole culture of the school," he said.
Camelot students who arrive late for school must immediately complete a task that benefits the community, such as picking up trash around the school, under adult supervision.
Pupils walk between classes in single-file lines, their hands behind their backs.
They also are subject to searches and must pass through metal detectors every day.
McCain objected to the security measures, which may or may not to be used here if Camelot takes over the school.
The company would hire its own administrators and teachers, who would teach SDL's regular curriculum, but in smaller classes.
The takeover would not result in layoffs, Rivera said.
Five of the eight or nine SDL teachers who worked at Buehrle this past year have either left the district or taken positions at other Lancaster schools, he said.
The remaining teachers, as well as other Buehrle staff members, would be offered similar positions at district schools, he said.
Buehrle now enrolls about 70 students in grades six through nine; under Camelot's leadership, it could expand to enroll up to 100 students in grades six through 12, Rivera said.
That would free up space at SDL's other alternative school, Phoenix Academy, which serves students with less-serious disciplinary problems and those who are behind academically.
District administrators plan to visit the Philadelphia Camelot schools next week, when they will still be in session, before the board votes on the proposal June 30.
E-mail: bwallace@lnpnews.com
