ARTS TEACHER SEES CHARTER OPPORTUNITY LIKE AN INDIE FILM.

Byline: - Naush Boghossian

Brad Koepenick taught drama and animation at 40 schools in Los Angeles Unified and even worked with Lucasfilm to introduce digital training at several campuses.

But the professional actor was disenchanted by a massive district, which made him feel like ``a cog in a wheel'' as he rotated among a seemingly endless string of campuses.

Frustrated because he wanted to make a difference in his students' lives, he left in 1999 to join the budding charter school movement.

For him, the small campuses - where teachers know all the students' names - provided the perfect mix of a private-school learning environment and the multicultural student body.

``I feel the spirit every morning I walk into this place,'' Koepenick said about his new assignment at Lakeview Charter Academy in San Fernando.

``My whole life was going school to school to school, four to five schools per day. But there was something walking into this little campus - some sort of challenge, some sort of indescribable spirit - with little to work with but so much support and vision.

``It's almost like an independent film. The less money you have to work with, the more it fosters creativity.''

He's now able to develop close relationships with students he teaches over several years, from middle to high school, allowing him to track their growth and fill in the gaps.

``That's what spoke to me,'' said Koepenick, 44, of Van Nuys. ``It's the support, the intimacy, the incredible professional development, the support from the administration to teach the way I want to teach, which is something I butted my head up against for a long time.''

Given free rein, Koepenick crafted a drama/filmmaking program at Lakeview, Community Charter Middle School and Community Charter Early College High School in Van Nuys.

He used his own camera equipment to develop a media literacy and production class - something LAUSD officials scoffed at creating, he said.

His students have developed cartoon public-service announcements, including a project on violence in the media.

``It's not breaking the rules, but I'm not tied to all that bureaucracy so I can explore and take chances with the curriculum,'' he said.

While he said he's scared to death of going back to college, Koepenick plans to get his teaching credential and a master's degree to maximize his skills.

He always promised his students that if they worked hard, he would share their work with the world, and he was able to keep his word. They won the 2005 California Media Award for their efforts.

``For me, the benefit has been to be able to bridge the gap between the kids and the outside world,'' he said. ``Not only was I not shunned but I was welcomed and I helped develop that.''

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Photo:

Brad Koepenick demonstrates a computer video animation program to his students.

David Sprague/Staff Photographer