Camden, N.J., middle school campus will undergo $10 million renovation and reopen as a charter school

The former Cooper B. Hatch Middle School in Camden, N.J., will undergo a $10 million renovation and reopen as a charter school.

The renovations are expected to be completed in fall 2022 and the facility will open as a charter middle school for 460 students, reports Tap Into Camden. 

The Camden City (N.J.) district sold the building earlier this year for $1.6 million to KIPP Cooper Norcross Academy, a charter network that educates 2,000 students in the city.

The Hatch building will be KIPP’s fourth school building in Camden. It currently operates KIPP Lanning Square Primary and Middle; KIPP Whittier Middle; and KIPP High School at Sumner.   

Since 2017, Hatch has been used as a temporary home for Camden High School as work was being completed on a new high school. The new high school, opening this fall, will leave Hatch vacant. 

According to the district, the Hatch building was no longer needed because of the district's continued enrollment to decline. In the 2016-17 school year, the district enrolled 9,519 students, but in 2020-21, had only about 6,800 students.