Naples Classical Academy announces Brunner as founding principal

Naples Classical Academy, a new tuition-free classical curriculum K-12 charter school, has selected John Brunner as the school’s founding principal. With more than 20 years of education experience, Brunner brings a broad range of experiences and insights to the position.

“I am pleased and honored to be a part of the launch of this classical school,” said John Brunner, Naples Classical Academy founding principal. “Naples Classical Academy is an excellent educational option for Southwest Florida and I can’t wait to see the halls filled with young scholars.”

As part of the hiring process, Brunner went through an extensive interview process with Hillsdale College’s Barney Charter School Initiative team and received their approval. Naples Classical Academy plans to use the Hillsdale College K-12 Curriculum.

Passionate about classical education, Brunner has previous experience launching and leading a classical school in a hybrid format, which integrated home education with an in-classroom classical education experience. He holds a master’s degree in education leadership from Florida Gulf Coast University and a bachelor’s degree from Western Kentucky University. A veteran, Brunner served in the U.S. Navy and Ohio National Guard.

“We are excited to have Mr. Brunner bring his tremendous classical education experience to Naples Classical Academy and lead the academic staff as we launch the school,” said Erika Donalds, president and founder of The Optima Foundation, the nonprofit charter management organization that is helping establish and manage NCA. “Prospective parents will have the opportunity to meet our new principal at an upcoming parent information meeting.”

The next available parent information meeting will be held Thursday, Oct. 22 from 6:30-7:30 p.m. at Veterans Community Park, 1895 Veterans Park Drive, Naples. Attendees will learn more from school representatives about the charter school concept, the classical curriculum, how to apply for the student selection lottery and more. Interested parents should RSVP online at NaplesClassical.org/RSVP.

After just two weeks of open enrollment for the 2021-22 school year, the school has already received over 300 student applications. The enrollment process for Florida charter schools starts with a random student selection lottery. Application for the NCA student selection lottery, K-10, is available at NaplesClassical.org/Apply. Eleventh grade will be added the subsequent year, and 12th grade will be added the year after. The first lottery application deadline is Dec. 31, 2020, and the first lottery will be held Jan. 5, 2021.

Naples Classical Academy’s curriculum utilizes explicit phonics and grammar, classic literature, and the Socratic method of instruction. Scholars study Spanish beginning in kindergarten and Latin starting in sixth grade. In addition to the four core academic areas, the school will also offer world languages, western civilization, music and visual arts. The high school curriculum incorporates government, economics and moral philosophy.

Currently under development, Naples Classical Academy will be located at 10270 Immokalee Road, just east of Collier Boulevard in North Naples. For more information, visit Naples Classical Academy at NaplesClassical.org.