The beauty of an art-centered school, said Miller, is that it breaks down social barriers. That unity is especially important in a city as large and diverse as Antioch.
"I love the idea of working together," said Miller. "School is all about community … and with the arts, you have kids working with other kids they normally wouldn't interact with."
But before he can bring all those students together, Miller is trying to raise enough money to make his dream a reality. Miller and members of the nonprofit Delta Education Group are busy organizing an Aug. 26 fundraising gala at Antioch's El Campanil Theatre in which youth dance teams, singers and actors will showcase their talent. It starts at 5 p.m.
Miller plans to present his proposal to the Antioch Unified School District board next month. Board President Gary Agopian said he thinks "it's a good idea," but added that an arts school would be a better fit if it's built into an existing high school rather than as a separate, chartered academy.
While the idea of an arts school may conjure images of teens basically goofing off all day as they seek their inner muse, the organizers say that it will adhere to academic standards.
"What this is not is a place for students to gather with modeling clay," clarified Liane Zimny, one of the Delta Education Group's board members. "This is a rigorous college preparatory academic curriculum with arts education sprinkled throughout.
"I have tremendous respect for Jason and his ability to lead the development of this school. Typically what's difficult for a charter school is finding a facility, getting through the start-up phase and finding families (who are) interested."
But she's confident Miller's on the right track. Currently, he's looking at renting a church or using a few storefronts in downtown Antioch. Eventually, he'd like to build a permanent site in the Rivertown district.
The state pays the same per-student grants for charter attendees, but doesn't set aside bonds for building new schools. That's left in the realm of private fundraising and charity, said Miller.
"I think that it's not easy to start a charter school," said Zimny. "I would be very surprised if there weren't occasional bumps in the road. But what smoothes that road is a lot of advanced planning."
Miller said his time at the Oakland charter exposed him to a fair share of hardships, from which he hopes to learn.
"There will be growing pains," he said. "But I've learned that it's better to take it slowly. Sometimes it hurts you to grow too fast."
Since California first approved charter schools in 1992, the movement has grown at a steady pace, culminating in 800 statewide as of this year. The state and municipal school boards supervise charter schools less rigorously than their conventional public counterparts, but hold them to a higher standard for testing - a benchmark Miller is prepared to surpass.
The Delta Education Group also plans to establish other charter schools with special emphases such as architecture and language throughout the East Bay in coming years.
For more information or tickets to the gala, call 219-8736, e-mail
Info@DeltaEducationGroup.org, or visit deltameanschange.org.
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