Pub. 2 2012-2013 Issue 1

16 I n the charter community we all clearly understand the lack of understanding the general public has about what we are, what we do, why we do it, how we are funded, and most importantly how we are accountable to the State of Utah. Specifically in Southern Utah the common misconception is that we, as a Charter School are a type of private education system aimed at the affluent. When the debate of funding comes up, the reaction is less than supportive, the typical response being that we are an elitist school wanting to take money away from the local hardworking, good for everyone, education system. This inaccuracy hurts the charter community for a number of reasons; the first being that as board members, one of our key concerns are the students in the classrooms and our continued enrollment of existing and new students. We are all aware of just how important students are to our viability. The public’s misunderstanding of who we are, what we are about, and what we can do for the students, prevents some from exploring charter schools as an option. This skepticism can lead to empty desks in the classroom, which results in less revenue for the charter school. A lack of understanding is detrimental to us at the local and state government, as well. Not only do these layers continue the misconceptions thereby lending them credence, they also work against us in funding and growth. Yes, issues for charter schools have gotten better over the years, however, there is still a fair amount of misunderstanding as to what we are. In an effort to combat the misconceptions, we have engaged our city and business leaders, elected local officials and elected state representatives at every opportunity. This includes attending events sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce, Republican and Democratic Caucuses, Economic Development Councils, events arranged by Chris Bleak and UAPCS, etc. This also includes us hosting several events at our facilities and inviting those we feel are important to our funding, our community, and those who have a direct impact on our school. Over the last several months we have extended our efforts in an attempt to highlight the similarities, as well as the differences, between charter schools and traditional school systems. As an example, at the completion of our recent expansion project we invited and hosted, several dignitaries who can either directly, or indirectly impact the school whether it is in public percep- tion, their own perception, or through funding. In addition we have recently hosted political caucuses allowing us to show- case our facilities and have a captive audience of hundreds to listen to our message. We have reached out to specialized pub- lications catering to families in an effort to have articles written and are taking advantage of the free weekly publicity offered through our local media outlets. These types of events provide us with an opportunity to have our message heard, and a chance to simply and directly clear-up many misconceptions. We also consistently contact our local newspaper taking great care to let them know what is taking place in our school’s community. We celebrate every accomplish- ment no matter how small and this has allowed for us to make front-page news and incite conversation. Additionally, our Administrator meets regularly with the local school district, himself having been in the school district for many years. This new avenue of communication has opened many doors and in some instances presented us with potential BY STEVE WATTLES ‘FREE, PUBLIC SCHOOL’ We have made strides towards enhanced understanding... However, we still have a number of individuals in elected positions with a clear misunderstanding about what we are. Community Relations CONTINUED ON PAGE 19