Our New Home - Welcome Home!
We are excited to share that as of April 2024, our new building is open to students, staff, and families in Grades 3-8. This is a major milestone for our students and families. Welcome home, where we are literacy-driven and STEAM focused.
Our New Home - Follow Our Journey
The Board of Trustees, Students, Staff, and Families at Philip’s Academy Charter School of Paterson (PACS) are excited to Partner with Building Hope and Friends of Philip’s to construct Philip’s Academy’s permanent state-of-the-art school facility that will be home to 675 students in grades K-8. Read below for progress, FAQs, and much more. Donate now.
Virtual Tour!
Madison will include classrooms space for 675 students in grade K-8 and over 120 staff. The construction of Madison Avenue. is scheduled for completion in December 2023. The new building will transform a once vacant lot into a beautiful learning environment.
Images of Our New Home
Community Leaders’ Testimonials
“Our students are disproportionately impacted by poverty, crime, and poor health outcomes, among other challenges. Expanding the opportunities for education programs are the nuclei of our city and foundational in providing an opportunity for our students a pipeline to sustainable success.
The students of Paterson deserve safe, clean, and well-maintained classrooms and facilities. I’m confident this investment dually tackles the public health emergencies that we are experiencing. Expanding on an already established School system will inevitably create more opportunities for employment, increase community participation and mold learners into leaders.
I am confident once completed, these improvements will have a profoundly positive impact on the neighborhoods and the families that are enrolled.”
— Assemblyman, Benjie Wimberly
“This is an exciting new chapter for Philip's Academy Charter School of Paterson,” said New Jersey Public Charter School Association's President and CEO, Harry Lee. “All children deserve safe, secure, healthy, and modern school buildings in order to thrive and reach their highest potential. This new building is a game-changer and will provide Philip's Academy's students with incredible opportunities to learn and grow."
— New Jersey Public Charter School Association's President and CEO, Harry Lee
“The new facility is important to both students and families because students and the educational community at large benefit from positive surroundings. As parents, we rely on the school to provide a healthy learning environment for our children and proactive facilities management is integral to that. PACS families recognize that a quality facility ensures that students, teachers and staff perform at their best and generate positive attitudes. For our young people, a superior facility is most important to help build a strong foundation for life.”
— Board Chair, Altisha Gibson & Board Vice Chair, Alexis Gibson
Construction Timeline
Facility Construction News & Updates
“Philip’s Academy has set a September 2023 target date for the opening of the school, which will allow it to expand from 435 students in grades kindergarten through five by adding 675 students and extending through eighth grade, officials said.” Link
— January 2022
“NJCC Closes $37.9M in Capital to Fund the Expansion of Philip’s Academy Charter School in Paterson, New Jersey. Funds will support the creation of 63,000 square feet of educational space on a city block’s worth of currently vacant property.” Link
— February 2023
“Philip's Academy’s expansive 63,000+ square-foot facility represents a transformative leap, enabling them to extend their reach from serving 435 students in grades K-5 to accommodating an additional 675 students up to 8th grade. The completion and grand reveal coming soon.” Link
— January 2023
SY23-24 Facility Update & Plan
The space once constructed, will feature bright classrooms, full gymnasium, a performance stage, multiple play areas, a courtyard, and a rooftop garden. The new facility will be boast approximately 63,000 square internally and 100 parking spaces. The construction team is well underway to complete the project. Many students have taken and shared exciting pictures of the facility being built as they ride the bus to school. As stated by Frederick Douglass, “there is not progress without struggle”.
While there are anticipated changes, multiple moves, and adjustments needed as we wait for our new building to open and students to move in, we know learning will not be impacted. Our building is not our school and our school is not our building. Our students, staff, parents, and community members are our school. I have personally received encouraging messages over the months as we plan for the opening of our new building. I want to thank each and every person that remains understanding, optimistic, and ready for the next chapter of PACS Paterson’s journey. Onward!
Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Dowayne Davis
2023-2024 Facility Updates & Plan
Dear PACS Paterson Community,
We have reason to be hopeful. Our community is excited about the progress that we have made to secure a permanent modern facility that will provide necessary spaces for teaching and learning, staff productive, extracurricular activities, and community gatherings to service our school at full scale. Our future home will be located at 102-124 Madison Ave, Paterson, NJ 07524 in North Paterson. I am excited for our journey.
Our Partners
Frequently Asked Questions
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Answers: 102-124 Madison Ave, Paterson, NJ 07524 in North Paterson
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Answer: The space, once constructed, will feature bright classrooms, full gymnasium, a performance stage, multiple play areas, a courtyard, and a rooftop garden. The new facility will boast approximately 63,000 square feet internally and 100 parking spaces. Recently, the construction team laid the foundation and has begun to erect steel to frame our classrooms. Many students have taken and shared exciting pictures of the facility being built as they ride the bus to school.
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Answer: We are expecting our new building to be available at the December 2023. Please see the anticipated timelines to transition from our temporary facility to the new facility (based on construction completion in December 2023):
By January 31, 2024: Grade 6-7 students & staff, Administration, and Back Office Staff move to new building
By March 31, 2024: Grade 3-5 students & staff moves to new building
By July 1, 2024: Grade K-2 students & staff moves to new building
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Answer: The opening of the new facility is delayed, due to multiple factors, such as delayed closing on land purchase, supply chain disruption due to the pandemic and economy, and delays in permit approvals.
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Answer: Each grade-level’s location and timeline for using the temporary locations in the 2023-2024 school year are shown below:
Grade K-2 students will temporarily remain at 47 State St. Paterson NJ, 07601
Grade 3-5 students will temporarily relocate to 159 Madison St. Paterson NJ, 07501
Grades 6-7 students will temporarily relocate to 59 Spruce St. Paterson NJ, 07501
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Answer: The public busses and trains with routes to the Madison building are:
Bus #748, #746
Train: Main
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Answer: Please contact the Main Office for uniform details at 973-247-8920
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Answer: Each temporary building provides adequate classrooms, multiple-purpose space, and/or a gymnasium. We do anticipate reducing sections in grades 3-6 from 4 sections to three and grade 7 from 3 sections to 2. This will allow for more effective use of our temporary spaces while providing quality experiences. While classroom sizes will increase, our staffing model for the 2023-22024 school year will increase from 100 staff members to 112. This will ensure that the student-to-teacher and staff ratios in the upper-grades remain the same.
Get in touch with us. Ask Questions.
We want our students, families, and broader community to be informed. If you have any questions or concerns about the new facility, please come the form below and speak to Philip’s Academy’s CEO, Dr. Dowayne Davis.