Charter

schools

benefit

from grants

Hanska, Lafayette

pleased with news

By GUY PRIEL

Journal Staff Writer

HENDERSON -- Charter schools in Hanska and Lafayette will receive additional assistance as part of a $4.4 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The grant, which will be awarded to EdVisions officials today, will help create 15 new charter schools in Minnesota and Wisconsin, within the next five years. The schools will be modeled after the Minnesota New Country School in Henderson.

EdVisions is a teacher-owned cooperative that helps local charter schools with testing, accountability and training. Formed in 1993, the cooperative assists the member schools with staffing, payroll and other benefits.

"The grant was provided to EdVisions, because they liked the way the schools were formed and operated," Lafayette lead teacher Sheila Howk said. "Our methods set us apart from other schools."

Through EdVisions, Lafayette and Hanska will be able to get a little more support than in the past because of the additional funding.

"We are one of 67 charter schools waiting for help," she said. "The first year is always risky and you basically swim with a charter school. That is behind us now and we can get the help we need."

The actual dollar amount that Lafayette and Hanska will receive has not been decided. However, the funds will mainly be used to assist with grant writing, Howk said. Success in obtaining grants will produce operating revenue for the schools.

When Gates Foundation officials researched the program at New Country, which has received national recognition for its project-based, individualized curriculum, they looked for specifics that the school promotes.

"They promote the same things we do here," Howk said. "High tech with a twist; student- and family-centered program; small school; and community support. We have all those factors in place."

The funds will not be divided equally among the schools because the money is designated for creating new schools.

"This is ground-breaking news for us in Lafayette," she said."Being teacher-oriented and individual is the idea behind a charter school."

The funding will also help with staff development, Hanska lead teacher Karen Royer said. The money was provided because of the philosophy behind the New Country School. The local benefit will be indirect, she said.

"It is exciting to be a part of something this big," Royer said. "We are in small town America, yet we are once again on the cutting edge of something new. This is a major coup for Minnesota."

The funding is part of the Gates money that has been set aside for national education programs, such as providing Internet-ready computers to libraries and providing health care to poor children, Gates Foundation spokesperson Carol Rava of Seattle said.

"The money was awarded to schools that were innovative and small," Minnesota New Country School lead teacher Dee Thomas said. "Here at New Country we have developed individual learning plans for each student. There are no bells, no classes, no lectures. The students determine what they learn and how they learn it."

New Country School is located in Henderson. It serves approximately 125 students in grades seven through 12. It was formed in Le Sueur in 1994.

EdVisions was formed in 1998. Hanska and Lafayette charter schools, which are sponsored by District 88, were formed the same year.