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When officials went looking for a group interested in taking over a troubled Harlem charter school, they got just one application, and it was 1,500 pages long. A sign, perhaps, of just how tough a job it would be.

"They have to make sure that they have an impact pretty quickly and that'll be a challenge," said Pedro Noguera of the SUNY Board of Trustees.

On Tuesday, that applicant, the charter organization Democracy Prep, got the go ahead. It's the first time a charter school in New York State has been handed off from one group to another. It's being described as an attempt to create a model for saving failing schools.

"Part of the purpose of the charter movement is to take risks. And we want to be at the forefront of that to show what's possible," said Democracy Prep Superintendent Seth Andrew.

"It should be an example to educators everywhere about what it really takes to engage in this very challenging work of turning around a school," Noguera said.

State law limits the number of charters that can open in the city. And when one school closes, its charter can't be re-used. So passing it off is a way of recycling.

Administrators, trustees and teachers all said they were supportive of handing the school over instead of shutting it down. Many of the teachers even said they hoped to work for the new school, although they acknowledged that they may not all have that option.

"It wasn't the kids that led to this low performance, it was really about what the adults were doing," Andrew said.

The name will change to Harlem Prep. There will be a new principal and mostly new teachers. The curriculum will change. Only the building and the students will remain. But parents are only cautiously optimistic.

"We don't know what to expect anymore," said Parent Daryl Miller.

Parents will start to learn about the transition at a meeting later this week. Students who went to Harlem Day's elementary school and now attend Democracy Prep's Middle School say there are a lot of differences.

"Democracy Prep has more of a structure, is more disciplined. Like we cannot get away with any of what we could at Harlem Day," said Student Taraun Frontis.

"Democracy Prep gives you harder work and prepares you for college," said Student Donte Humphrey.

But with only 20 percent of Harlem Day students reading on level and 25 percent in math, turning things around won't be easy.