New Proposal For MAST Expansion

MIAMI (CBSMiami) – A deal may have been worked out for the controversial expansion plan for Key Biscayne's MAST Academy.

Under the new proposition, brokered by Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, the prestigious magner school will retain its district wide lottery for students who meet their rigorous entrance requirements, according to CBS4 news partner The Miami Herald.

However the campus will add two new academies with 1,100 seats and give Key Biscayne residents priority to those.  The proposal also states that once the expansion is complete the school would be renamed MAST Academy @Virginia Key.

Under the original plan, the academy would have been tripled in size and Key Biscayne students would have been given priority for the 1,100 new middle and high school seats without having to go through a lottery selection. Critics of the original deal said it contradicted the magnet school's original mission to reach out to bright inner school students. They also said that it was nothing more than Key Biscayne residents buying seats to one of the best schools in the nation.

Key Biscayne, which has been in desperate need of a local high school, has pledged $18 million worth of financing, including a contribution of $9 million toward construction.

The Miami-Dade School Board is expected to review the new proposal at their meeting on July 11th.

CBS4 news partner The Miami Herald contributed to this report.