A new public charter school, New Village Academy, is being built in a former department store inside the Annapolis Mall.

The tuition-free public charter high school will be unlike any in the region, with students as the focus, school officials say. The school is scheduled to open at the former Lord & Taylor space on the upper level of the mall in the fall of 2026.

"They need to feel like the place where they're doing this work accepts them and they feel connected in that space," said founding principal Romey Pittman.

Students will learn through community projects, apprenticeships, and real-world problem solving, which is why school leaders chose the mall as the location.

Applications are open now through January 15. More than 40 students are already enrolled, with 168 to enroll for the

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