First Of Its Kind Charter School for Albany

With chants, cheers and dancing, several hundred charter school girls gathered in the gym at the Brighter Choice School for Girls to welcome the news that a new charter high school for girls had been approved by the state university system. 

The Albany Leadership High School For Girls will be built on land along Hackett Boulevard and will eventually accommodate an enrollment of 300 girls. It brings to ten the number of charter schools in Albany, nine of which are run by the Brighter Choice Foundation. 

Executive Director Chris Bender said Thursday that opening the high school for girls is a "big deal" because it gives families an option for boys and girls that didn't exist until this school was approved. 

Last fall, the Green Tech Charter High School for Boys opened next to the soon-to-be shuttered Livingston Middle School. 

Female students who attend the Kipp Charter Middle school in Albany said they are anxious to attend the girls high school believing this kind of school will help them focus and become more successful.