State College’s Delta Program middle school off to busy start is the headline of an article about a middle school in Pennsylvania begun by a local district to reduce loss of students to charters.

Here’s an excerpt:

Delta Director Jon Downs said the alternative program for State College middle school students — the complement to the established secondary school — operates on a democratic model where students and their parents have as much of a voice in the curriculum and new hires as teachers and administrators.

“It gives students a greater choice of what they take and study,” Downs said. “They approve their schedule, suggest courses and help hire teachers. That’s a lot of involvement. Our goal is to empower students to make some decisions and to be responsible for their decisions.”