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Nov. 29, 2006
Yesterday I was at the Continuum Center for a meeting about a new charter school which hopes to open in 2008. I realized what a huge undertaking it is to open and maintain a charter school. Each charter school in its essence is its own school district and in addition to teaching students, they have to run the school which includes paying the bills and staying in the black. Many charter schools have folded due to financial problems.
Our daughter Ayla has been in Waldorf schools since preschool and I am so grateful that there has been and continues to be a Waldorf methods charter school available to her and all twin cities high school students. If it were still a private school, our daughter and probably many of your children wouldn’t be here. To have a small school (112 students) , with small class sizes (15-18 students per class compared to 34 in the Mpls. Public High schools),  with a dedicated staff who know each student by name and who strive on a daily basis to to encourage each student to grow by expanding their thinking , opening their hearts to their fellow students and the world around them, encouraging them to ask questions and cultivating their gifts and talents, This is a school that gives kids a chance, where they feel heard and cared about. This school (WHS) is truly a gift to the Twin Cities.
When I hear that the school is in a financial crises: that the teachers had to take a cut in pay, that bills are being paid one at a time as dollars come in , and there is not enough for some of the programs they would like to be offering , I feel saddened and concerned because I not only want this school to continue to be here for our daughter and our son who starts here tomorrow and for students in years to come, I want to see it flourish. I wan5t to see it deluged with dollars so that the teachers can focus on teaching not worrying about the financial stability of their school, so the staff can be paid a salary comparable to any other place they might choose to teach, so the school can hire more teachers and offer more programs if they choose, so there is always plenty of money in their bank account, so they can create their new space the way they envision it. I want to see fundraising as a choice, not a necessity. . Most of us enjoy the silent auction and the medieval feast even though they are a lot of work they help build a strong community which is an important aspect of this school.
Watershed, it’s where your kids and my kids go to school. What we want for this school we can all help to create both by giving dollars ourselves and encouraging others to give and by using whatever abundance tools each of us fells comfortable using. (If you haven’t seen the movie “The Secret”, I would encourage you to see it.) We live in an abundant universe. We can make this happen.
Thank you,
Linda Weber