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SITE VISIT: Download the entire report here.
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A team of educators representing the Colorado
League of Charter Schools Accountability Program were pleased
to spend several days with the members of the North Routt Community
Charter School from February 29 to March 2, 2004. The team was
welcomed to all portions of the school community, which allowed
us to see the positive areas and understand the realities of
needed growth. Team members found a dedicated staff and engaged
students in an environment that has provided the basis for educating
the young people of the rural community with a methodology of
place-based and project-based instruction.
The team offers the following commendations and recommendations: |
The school has created a warm, friendly
and academically challenging environment where students feel
secure and nurtured by caring and compassionate staff and community
members.
The school’s facility is an inviting and welcoming environment for
teaching and learning and bringing together a sense of community for the
children.
The school represents the hard work and passion of numerous individuals
who are dedicated to creating a unique educational environment in a beautiful,
rural community.
The school utilizes a wide variety of community resources to enhance the
facility, curriculum, financial situation and relationship with the school
district.
There is a conscious effort to link the Ends Policies to school goals,
curriculum outcomes, and Head of School evaluation. |
The school community needs to recognize
and acknowledge that it is at a critical juncture and immediately
make an informed choice between a K-5 or K-8 configuration, based
on the short-term and long-term implications of creating a quality
educational program. Numerous decisions need to be made in considering
the financial viability of the future enrollment plan and the
feasibility of implementing a high achieving and comprehensive
elementary and/or middle school curriculum.
The school needs to revisit, in a collaborative fashion, the school mission
and agree on the definition and key components of a place-based, project-based,
individualized educational program.
The school leadership needs to provide a forum, perhaps with the help of
outside consultants, through which to arrive at a common understanding
of the elements needed to successfully implement a high quality educational
program for this unique community.
The school board needs to provide strong leadership to clarify the roles,
relationships, and responsibilities of the various committees, organizations,
and job titles involved in the operation of the school.
The school board needs to obtain a comprehensive commitment from all members
of the school community to improve communication, through multiple means
of distribution and diverse strategies, to improve the flow of information
throughout the organization to build bridges between teachers, parents,
students, new families, and the school district. Strong, fulltime leadership
within the school is essential at this time to provide clear instructional
guidance, financial direction, and organizational clarity, with the assistance
of community members, educational organizations, facilitators, and/or consultants,
and the school district to support essential development in terms of the
design of curriculum, instruction, and assessment, financial planning,
and organizational improvements necessary to create a school with a stable
future. |
| Download the entire report here. |
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