By Omie Drawhorn
Hannah Lambert was shocked when her son Eli was placed on a wait list for Community Roots Montessori Charter School.
The Silverton resident’s son had spent over two years at Bluebird Montessori in Silverton and Lambert was extremely satisfied with the education he was receiving. Montessori education involves children learning at their own, individual pace and learning for the sake of learning.
Eli was one of six kindergarten graduates at Bluebird, which is a private preschool and kindergarten. Community Roots is for children grades 1 through 5 and in the 2012-2013 school year, will expand to include sixth grade. There were 13 applicants for 12 slots in the grades 1-3 classroom at Community Roots, which created a lottery. Miranda Traeger, administrator for the school said there is currently a wait list of 24 students for both classrooms, with 58 students enrolled in the school.
Lambert is one of many parents and children across the state of Oregon and in the Silver Falls School District turning to independent schools and charter schools as education options.
Oregon currently has 108 charter schools, with an average of 10 new schools opening a year. Two of these, Community Roots and Bethany, are within the Silver Falls School District. Additional options are available in private schools like Bluebird and Silverton Christian, if parents are willing and able to pay tuition.
Andy Bellando, superintendent of the Silver Falls School District, said charter schools bring choice for parents and students without additional cost to parents, which is an asset to the educational system.
A charter school in Oregon is a public school operated by a group of parents, teachers and/or community members as a semi-autonomous school of choice within a district. It operates under a charter between the members of the charter school community and the local board of education, which sponsors the school.
Margaret Bates, charter school education specialist for the Oregon Department of Education said the individual charter school determines the salary schedule for staff, and enrollment criteria for the students that come into the school. Each school has its own focus or mission; Bethany has a focus on science and technology and Community Roots offers a Montessori education.
Bates said parents and students look to charter schools for smaller classes, more hands-on learning, online options, and a variety of other reasons.
Neither of the local charter schools can promise smaller class sizes, due to the fact that they have small staffs and combined-grade classrooms, but parents are drawn to other aspects of their offerings.
Kathy Frank, administrator of Bethany Charter School, said some parents contact Bethany looking for smaller class sizes, but they won’t necessarily find that there. Grade levels 1 and 2, 3 and 4, 5 and 6, 7 and 8 are combined. Montessori education also focuses on combined classrooms, so Community Roots combines grades 1-3 and 4-5.
“We are a small school with larger than average class sizes, making it difficult to meet the needs of students who thrive better in a small classroom environment,” Frank said.
But many students come for other reasons. She said out of 130 students at Bethany, fewer than 10 will not be returning with the start of the new school year. The fact that all enrollment is voluntary, and no student is assigned to attend Bethany (because it is a charter school) can be a stressful thing, Frank said.
“You could wake up and not have any students at your school,” she said.
Kim Merklin, Bethany parent and instructional assistant at the school said she was attracted to the “smaller environment where you can communicate with staff and know what’s going on and be more connected that way.”
“They offered enough curriculum-wise to offer a wide range of education,” she said.
Large classes haven’t proved a problem, Merklin said, because most classes have a teacher and an instructional aide in the classroom, making sure to provide one-on-one time where needed. She said last year in the class she was assisting in there were 30 students with 5 levels of math being taught.
Lambert sought out options for her child because her experience with public schools had not been positive.
She likened public schools to a “factory pushing out a product.”
“They have federal regulations they have to meet; they are so focused on test scores that they’ve forgotten about the kids,” she said. “The Montessori education (at Bluebird and Community Roots) is more child driven, a more natural way of learning; the child loves to learn and learns for the sake of learning.”
Jennifer Traeger, one of the founders of Bluebird Montessori, is also a public school teacher in the Woodburn School District, where she currently words as TAG coordinator for grades 9-12 and as teaching and learning facilitator for Woodburn Arts Academy.
Traeger said her experience as a teacher in the public school system propelled her towards seeking education for her children in nontraditional settings.
“As a high school history teacher, I was coming up with some pretty cool stuff but all students wanted to know was ‘What do I need to do to get an A?’” she said. “This was frustrating to me.”
With the testing requirements that go along with No Child Left Behind that have a test-heavy focus there is no room for respecting individual interests, she said.
“It’s a one-size-fits-most model,” she said.
Her daughter Grace, 6, just graduated from Bluebird and will start at Community Roots in the fall. Traeger said she is seeing the benefits of a Montessori education.
“Grace is showing her creativity; she comes up with all sorts of things all by herself. She’s very in tune with her classroom community.”
She is unsure where Grace will go after she graduates from Community Roots but she will continue her Montessori education whether through home schooling or commuting to a Montessori school.
The Silver Falls School District sponsors Community Roots and Bethany Charter Schools. Superintendent
Bethany Charter Schools, said charter schools are subject to the same standards as traditional schools, which means meeting benchmark requirements and taking tests.
According to the Oregon Department of Education state report card for 2009-2010, Bethany Charter School was slightly behind the rest of the district and state with reading scores, with 68 percent meeting standards. Math scores were on par with the district and state at 81 percent, and science scores were below the state and district average at 57 percent meeting standards.
Statewide, 49 percent of rated charter schools statewide were rated outstanding in meeting standards, 32 percent of charter schools were rated satisfactory, and 19 percent needed improvement. Community Roots Charter School was not rated for annual yearly progress in 2009-2010. Miranda Traeger said it was due in part to the newness of the school, which opened in 2009. Schools are given a grace period before having to meet standards
As public schools, charter schools receive the same federal funding as traditional public schools, although 20 percent of funds go to their sponsoring district for administrative costs. Miranda Traeger said during tough economic times, it can be hard to run a school with reduced funding, but the school is making the best of it.
The fact that charter schools and private schools set their own teacher salaries can mean lower salaries for teachers, but Bellando and Bates say that doesn’t necessarily mean the turnover is higher.
“Some teachers are drawn to charter schools, they are more independent and flexible, and take a thematic approach,” Bellando said. “If they agree with the mission, or value, for example, a Montessori education. They are looking for that kind of challenge and opportunity and aren’t too concerned about pay.”
Bellando said charter schools and traditional schools both have their place in the education system.
“Both provide educational opportunities at the best level possible for students; it seems like a great variable or alternative to pursue. Many see that as a benefit to their child; it’s also similar to other opportunities we offer, like open enrollment. They do a complementary job in offering school choice to students and parents and our schools.”
Miranda Traeger said the educational independence is the charter school’s biggest asset.
“We have the same accountability standards, but there is more flexibility in how we bring knowledge to the kids,” she said. “We have the flexibility to create a unique setting surrounded by the Montessori educational principals. It is very exciting.”
Lambert said that the waiting list shows that there is obviously a need for additional education options in the Silverton area. She hopes that Community Roots will allow itself to grow.
“Community Roots should focus on its future; they are in danger of capping themselves into tiny school no one in the community can get into.”
