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Independence Charter School breaks ground for new building

PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 7 – State Rep. Babette Josephs, D-Phila., participated in a ground-breaking ceremony Nov. 2 for the new building of the Independence Charter School at 16th and Lombard streets.

Since the school's founding in 2000, ICS has leased space in another location, and Josephs said the purchase of the former Thomas Durham Public School for its permanent facility marked the beginning of a new chapter in the school's efforts to educate the city's children.

"When my children were of school age, they attended Durham in the neighborhood, so I am happy to see that the building once again will be housing school students -- and such an award-winning school as Independence Charter School at that," Josephs said.

"We would not have this terrible violence in our city if all our children could have the kind of education and mentoring that ICS children are getting at this wonderful school, where they are surrounded by loving parents, committed educational professionals, and a caring community."

The community supported ICS's purchase of the former school building, and Josephs helped at the state level with the acquisition of the building by targeting a significant amount of funds in the state capital budget for the project.

The Durham building, empty since 2001, has 50,000 square feet of space. ICS will add another 15,000 square feet to the building. When construction is completed, the building will house 36 classrooms and 10 specialty rooms including art, music, dance, science and a cafeteria.

The Independence Charter School was named a National Charter School of the Year in 2006 by The Center for Education Reform. It is recognized as a model for bilingual and international education.