Raymond Ankrum

Riverhead Charter School superintendent Raymond Ankrum dons a bright orange vest every morning and afternoon and walks into traffic on Middle Country Road in front of his school campus in Calverton. Ankrum starts and ends the school day at the K8 school working as a traffic control officer.

The proposed expansion is "an organic concept," the charter school principal said. It would provide the opportunity for existing charter school students to continue their education in the charter school.

Speakers praised the availability of a non-tuition-based alternative to the public schools in Riverhead. Others spoke of the positive experiences their children have had and the ways they've benefitted from the education environment offered at the charter school.

The charter school principal has publicly criticized the Riverhead school district for its "inability to properly educate" minority students.