Carmen Schools of Science & Technology, part of a charter school network in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has begun construction of a $55 million high school campus.
WISN-TV reports that the new facility will mark the first time the charter school network will have a building independent of the Milwaukee school district.
"Finding a place that's close by, that has enough acreage to accommodate all we want to make happen for our kids, took about 10 years," said Aaron Lippman, CEO of Carmen Schools.
Expected to open in time for the 2026-27 school year, the new campus will unite students and staff from the existing Carmen South and Carmen Southeast high schools, which operate out of the Milwaukee district's ALBA School and Pulaski High School. The new school will have capacity for 1,000 to 1,100 students.
"At the schools that we have now, because we share them, because we rent those spaces, we don't have complete autonomy over them," Lippman said. "Having a soccer field, having a modern gymnasium, having a modern library and science and lab spaces, having a STEAM space, those are just things that we have never had before. So, we're super excited about that."
Administrators say the new high school will have new learning, arts, and athletic spaces -- along with career development opportunities and gathering places for the community.
The Carmen Charter Schools Network offers K-12 education and has six schools across Milwaukee that serve more than 2,000 students.
