Tekoa Charter School, Inc. was a divine inspiration given to our Founder/CEO Dr. Paula Richardson on October of 1997. The name comes from the Holy Bible in the Old Testament Book of Amos. Dr. Richardson was embraced and supported by the Port Arthur community to open the charter school. Tekoa Charter School, Inc. dba Tekoa Academy of Accelerated Studies STEM School became a certified open enrollment public charter school on May 1, 1999. The Texas Education Agency deemed the approval of the Academy to give parents and students in the South County Community in Southeast Texas an opportunity to have a choice in public education. The Academy opened on August 16, 1999 with grades K – 6th.
In 2001, the Texas Education Agency approved the Academy to expand grade levels to Pre-K 3 and 4 year olds through the 12th grade. In 2003, the Academy received status of academically accepted and was approved a 10 year recertification. The Academy curriculum has aligned grades K-10th differentiating the curriculum using an Interdisciplinary Thematic Approach.