Nap Ford Community School (“NFCS”) is a K-5 charter school, with a particular focus on health & wellness, located in the Parramore neighborhood of Downtown Orlando. Nap Ford Community School (“NFCS”) is a PK-5th grade charter school, with a particular focus on health & wellness, located in the Parramore neighborhood of Downtown Orlando. Charter schools can be characterized by the following: (1) th
ey are a laboratory of innovative practices serving children who have historically underperformed; (2) they are held to the same state accountability standards as all public schools; and (3) they operate independently from their Sponsor School District. NFCS is modeled after the Harlem Children’s Zone, one of the nation’s most successful urban charter schools. High-performing charter schools have shown dramatic student academic growth and increase in graduation rates and college matriculation, particularly for low-income and minority students. HISTORY
During the desegregation movement of the 1970s many inner city public schools, most often in African American neighborhoods closed. In Orlando, a 1.3 square mile community known as 'Parramore' was a victim to this movement. The two neighborhood elementary schools located in this community closed in 1970. In 2001, 866 elementary aged children that lived in this community were bused to 8 different elementary schools. However, the community kept alive the dream for a neighborhood school. Then after 30 years without a community school, Nap Ford Community School, opened its doors in Parramore. We are now in our ninth year of operation, serving children in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. We are one of a handful of health and wellness charter schools in the nation. More than 93% of our students qualify for free or reduced lunch and 99% are minority. EXPANSION
Nap Ford currently has a waiting list for children and enrollment cannot be increased due to organizational confinement and building capacity. Nap Ford Community School will design, develop and finance a new prekindergarten through eighth grade school to serve the needs of the children living in the Parramore community and surrounding areas. Capacity is projected to increase fourfold to 500 students.
