Salt Lake School District is considering the creation of a new charter school in hopes of cultivating students' interest in science.

The Salt Lake Center for Science Education would serve grades 6-9 and could be located at the old Northwest Middle School in Rose Park. It would focus on the real-life application of science and serve as a resource for science teachers throughout the district.

If approved, the school would open its doors in fall 2008. It would be a lab school and would target diverse populations, serving about 240 students.

The school would operate in partnership with the University of Utah; students would be provided with mentors who are scientists, educators and community leaders.

"The school would be intended for every student in the district and would have a strong science focus," said Larry Madden, science specialist for the district. "It would be a school for kids with some interest in science.

"We wanted it to be in those grades so we can get a hold of kids a little earlier because we tend to lose kids in those middle school years."

District leaders say the goal of the school would be to help students develop good critical-thinking abilities and problem-solving skills through involvement in authentic science experiences.

Madden said students would engage in a number of projects and present them to teachers, scientists and community members. Students also would maintain an online portfolio accessible to parents and people within the school.

The school would serve as a professional development center for science instruction.

Madden said the idea would be to outfit teachers with resources to meet their specific needs and help connect educators with expertise in the community.

The proposal is preliminary, but district leaders wanted to ensure state charter funding would be available by submitting their request early enough to be included under the charter enrollment cap. State charter school enrollment growth numbers are capped at 5,000 additional seats in both old and new schools.

Alama Uluave, a member of the Salt Lake City Board of Education, said the charter school is needed and should be welcomed on Salt Lake's west side, where it would also help alleviate crowding in the southwest quadrant of the district.

As a charter school — a free and public school open to all students — enrollment would be determined by a lottery and all district students could apply.

Salt Lake superintendent McKell Withers said the idea of the school has been in the works for a few years, but the district had been waiting on possible new funding sources. This spring, the Legislature allocated additional local replacement money for charter schools and Salt Lake leaders determined those additional monies should make the new school feasible.

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