HARPSWELL

Proponents of a marinethemed charter school in Harpswell will hold two informational meetings on the project this week, with the first taking place Wednesday night.

The effort to start the school, dubbed the Harpswell Coastal Academy, began earlier this year. Organizers hope to open the academy in the fall of 2013 with a class of 20 to 40 sixth-graders and a class of 20 to 40 ninth-graders, according to a press release.

The school plans to use a project-based curriculum focused on Harpswell’s marine and natural resources alongside instruction in math, science, the humanities and the arts.

Supporters plan to seek approval for the charter school during the second year after the Maine Legislature voted to allow charter schools to form in the state. Ahead, the group aims to forge a fiscal partnership with a local nonprofit organization and begin to raise an anticipated $100,000 in startup costs that will be used to open the school.

The leaders of the project also will need to prove that the school fills an unmet need and present a five-year financial plan that demonstrates a capacity for supporting the school.

School proponents also have begun negotiations with the Harpswell Board of Selectmen in attempts to secure a one- to three-year lease on the former West Harpswell School, which the board of School Administrative District 75 voted to close last year.

The informational meetings on the project will be held Wednesday at the former West Harpswell School and Thursday at the Orr’s Island Schoolhouse. Both meetings start at 7 p.m.

For more information, visit harpswellcharterschool.wordpress.com.