Should the number of enrollees exceed the number of available spaces, a lottery must be held to ensure a fair selection process. There are currently more than 100 PSAs in the state of Michigan, with more than 30 of them in Wayne County. A PSA is a public institution, eligible to receive public funds once authorized by an authorizing body. Sankore Marine Immersion High School Academy opened in 1998-99 with approximately 160 ninth graders. This year the school will add eleventh grade students to their program.
Marine science is the focal point of the curriculum, supported by the core curriculum.
Students participate in the Sea Cadet program, learn marine science, marine biology and terminology. The students also participate in various hands-on learning activities on the Detroit River, a few blocks from their site. Sankore also opened an alternative education program last year for students with behavior management problems. The school has had so many requests for admissions, it plans to enroll 350 students in the 2000-2001 school year, increasing enrollment to 560 when 12 th grade is added next year. The floating classroom is scheduled to begin operation in fall 2000 with a special boat launching and christening.