“Sometimes it feels like we’ve been doing this forever, and sometimes it feels like we’ve just started.” So said Amy Henrikson, business manager, ex-officio board member, and parent of two students at Great Expectations School (GES). The school recently held its 10th annual meeting and reflected on the original vision for the school and how it is lived out on a daily basis. For charter schools, the annual meeting is the chance for parents and school staff to meet with the school board and one another to elect new board members and officers, as well as provide input to the school’s direction.
Highlights from GES Director Peter James of this year’s meeting include the following:
. GES is in its 10th year of operation, and many of the elements that were part of the initial charter school application remain guiding principles today, including an emphasis on social/emotional development of children, multi-age classrooms, integrated curriculum, a focus on the needs of individual students, empowered educators, involved parents, connections to community resources, and opportunities for relevant, hands-on learning.
. The school’s enrollment picture continues to look positive, with just a few openings available for this year or next. Still, there are no plans to expand beyond the current levels of classrooms or students. The school’s focus will be on getting better, not bigger.
. Full enrollment creates a number of tradeoffs between the advantages and challenges of more students, so much of the board’s planning is about making the difficult choices necessary to best serve the students, families, and community. Parent and educator input is critical to this process.
. Priorities currently identified include efforts to improve student achievement by meeting the needs of individual learners, communications with parents and the broader community, implementation of a more fully-developed curriculum, financial stability, and systems for ongoing staff development. The school also announced an initiative to help manage the cash flow challenges created by the State of Minnesota holdbacks through the creation of private loans. This plan will provide investment returns for short-term loans from individuals who would like to support the school in this manner. Details are available through the school office. Elections were held and the GES board now consists of four parents, two educators, and three community members. Board members are Sara Hingos, chair; Amanda Hand, vicechair; Allison Lowe, treasurer; Susan Miller, secretary; and Members-at-Large Jeff Kern, Jeanne Smith, Mary Haussner, Tom Jack, and Jon Hedstrom.
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