Building and Learning Together Campaign
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Building and Learning Together Campaign
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It's overwhelming the number of CCS families who have asked this question.
So many of you are looking to do whatever you can to ensure not just a CCS high school for your children, but an amazing high school for your children.
And the question doesn't just come from parents. It comes from grandparents, aunts, uncles, friends, and neighbors who want to contribute to make a CCS high school a reality.
The reason? Because a CCS family can't imagine their child going to school anywhere else -- and that's especially true for high school. Click HERE for the latest CCS Update.
In order to make it easy for you to give, we have set up a special account for this drive through PayPal. You can use any credit card, and even an electronic check in some cases. A PayPal account IS NOT required, but if you have one, you can donate using your account.
When registering or logging in to PayPal, they verify that your internet browser is running the most up-to-date security protocols. Information is protected by the highest level commercially available encryption and they do not directly connect their firewall-protected servers to the internet.
As you all know, this was an important year for us at CCS. Thanks to amazing parents, staff and students, we were able to take the next step in our journey when we opened our spectacular middle school. The hard work and contributions of time and money given by staff and families have allowed us to further the educational endeavor for our students all the way through eighth grade. It has been a challenging experience to add this next step for our students but it has truly been worth the effort. I am enthusiastic about the tremendous outpouring of fundraising support this past school year. By exceeding our goal of $300,000, parents have shown that they would like to continue on our path to open a high school by the year 2010. I believe it is the destiny of this school to achieve this dream.
I know that these donations from parents, extended family, and local businesses involve a lot of personal sacrifice. I am reminded of those sacrifices every time I step into our school of miracles. I see our newly refurbished elementary school, middle school, playground, CCS school bus, two gyms, black box theatre, excellent science lab equipment, . . . the list goes on and on. We have had many “experts” in the field of middle and high school education express a desire to follow the journey of our school. They are impressed with our implementation of sound, research-based pedagogical practices that make learning more meaningful and effective for our students. Virtually every facet of our school is made possible because of the leadership, hard work and generosity of our students’ moms and dads. Parents who contribute to their child’s education lead the way by making education a top priority in their children’s lives forever
In sixth grade, students around the state of North Carolina study the tragic events surrounding the Holocaust. It is truly a powerful learning experience for all of our students and staff. After spending the last two months observing the learning in middle school about this time in history, I have been continuously reminded of the deep honor and integrity of our students, staff and parents. Many times I have heard children discussing the “how’s” and “why’s” behind the Holocaust. I have seen the shock and sadness as they realized the number of people willing to step aside and ignore and even worse, to participate in the deadly annihilation of millions of precious human lives. Our students have reminded me of the one thing that really drove me to open CCS in the first place…….a desire to “Be the Change I want to See in the World” (Ghandi). This same thought is what prompted us to pursue our growth into middle school and it is the very same thought that is nudging us towards growing into the high school years.
We have spent the last year exploring high school curriculum, format, and philosophies. Believe me when I say that we have read MANY books and articles on the subject. We have visited high schools and have talked with countless upper grade experts. We have met with architects and builders regarding the challenges of high school facilities. We have explored the costly programs involved in high schools such as sports, gymnasiums ($1.5 million), well stocked media centers ($300,000), technology ($250,000), lights and sounds for a theater ($100,000) and the equipment necessary to conduct state of the art science labs ($75,000 to initially stock science labs). We have met with college admissions personnel to discuss how to ensure that our students are competitive in the college admissions process. We have discovered the complexity of high school curriculum and we have explored some important issues surrounding the challenge of not only preparing our students for college but also preparing our students to be successful in college as well as life. We have identified and made contact with several college experts who are willing to guide us with curriculum and college admissions processes. We are excited about the possibilities for our students as we discuss the opportunities for our high school students to conduct professional internships and scientific research which is both real and meaningful. It is excited to think about the possibility of our high school students publishing real scientific reports! You will not be surprised to learn that the price for a high school (one that will meet the expectations that we all have for our children) is going to be an even more expensive venture than we first imagined. Our research has given us a better picture of the challenges that lie ahead. We have created a viable vision of high school this year based on this research and we have the coming two years to fine tune the vision into a reality.
As we discussed last year, parent participation in fundraising is critical. As a charter school, CCS receives public funds for the administrative costs of school operations such as teacher salaries, learning materials for students, utilities and lease payments (we receive the same amount as local public schools for these operating expenses). However, we do not receive public funds for capital expenses, which is a significant part of our annual budget. This includes capital start-up expenses associated with our school such as land, buildings, renovations, classroom furniture and equipment. Public charter schools ONLY get the operating expenses portion of public school funding. If we received the same capital funds that other public schools receive, our funding would be significantly higher and we would have less need for fundraising.
If we all work together and each family takes on some of the burden, we can truly “Be the Change we Want to See in the World,” by building a high school to complete the educational experience that will enable our children to move forward in this world and perpetuate change, growth and improvement.
Lead the Way
Please review the attached return form regarding the Lead the Way Campaign and help participate in achieving our $350,000 fundraising goal.
Our school fundraisers for the year will be:
1. Annual Fund Campaign
2. BBQ Social & Auction Nov. 8
3. Golf Tournament in May
As you consider your yearly contribution, keep in mind that CCS is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. Please consult your tax advisor about the tax benefits association with your contribution. We will continue to post updates to our Annual Fund Campaign on our website at www.ccsch.org so that you can see the progress toward our $350,000 goal.
Thank you for your continued support to help us lead the way to a bright CCS future!
With much love and appreciation,
Joy K. Warner
~ Joy Warner, Director, Children's Community School
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