Greetings everyone! I thought it was time I get another post up here. Although sometimes at this point it can be a challenge to find something to write about, I do want to keep you informed about what is going on. It was much easier when there were big construction projects and a lot of visible progress, but that has slowed down quite a lot.
There is a smaller renovation project that needs to be done very soon, but the way the weather has been the last few days, it makes you wonder! During that very cold snap we had a couple weeks ago, a couple of teachers had to contend with classroom temps of 50 degrees or so! It seems that a perfect storm of cold and wind direction let air come in around the window frames. Even our new window glass can’t stop air that is coming in around the frames! They are planning to build “storm windows” for the inside to seal the air out. I have not heard if this is a permanent fix or if we will do more later.
Speaking of projects, the playground is still in a pile, but I am certainly not faulting anyone for not getting it set up. Everyone worked so hard to get school up and running, and we picked it up after it was cold, that the energy just wasn’t there any longer! Looks like we will graduate one class that never got to use it. But what would all the guys do if there wasn’t a project for this spring? Hopefully, the kids will let the dads be the first ones to use it.
Graduation is much closer than we think. As of last week, there were only 50 days of school left. Can you believe it? It seems like just a month or so ago we were scrambling to get the doors open, and now we almost have a year gone by. If you drive past the school, you will notice that we have the enrollment sign back up for next year already! It’s not too early to start learning about our school, if you know anyone who is interested in attending.
We finally were able to get our school dedication scheduled and held. Part of the scheduling issue was that our board president was headed for Florida when we originally wanted to have it, but we really needed him to be there. He couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about, but he found out when we honored all his hard work over the project and presented him with a plaque! We also gave his wife a gift certificate, so he could take her out to eat a few times to make up for all the late suppers I’m sure they had.
Work has been proceeding on the downstairs restrooms, getting them more usable by the church that meets there. There were two smaller ones inside other rooms that just needed minor repairs, and the larger ones that I think I have shown here before, that need major work. The paint is nearly all removed from the tiles in the boys restroom, and ceiling and lights have been updated in both.
The school library continues to grow steadily. We have had donations from a church that closed, and we purchased a couple hundred more from the bookstore in New Paris when they moved to their new location uptown. You wouldn’t believe how long it takes to go through books and decide what you want. I had to make my own supper one evening!
Along with all the other work, school is progressing smoothly, for a first year. It has been interesting to see what little bumps and twists and turns we have had to get past. The students certainly aren’t the only ones getting an education. A lot of adults who had no idea a couple years ago that they would ever be making decisions about running a school, are now in the thick of it and doing well. Hopefully they are enjoying it. We are learning every day and fine tuning our goals and procedures. It helps that everyone is very open to adjusting how we do things in order for it to work best for the children. They are the whole reason we are here, and if they don’t learn how to get along in the world, we have not done our job. So far, all the evidence we have seen tells us that the children consider this a safe, happy place that helps them learn to their best potential.
On a recent tour, I discovered that we have a very privileged group of high school students. If you take a look at the photos with this post, you will see that the teacher has set up his classroom so that they all have a teachers desk! It only works because there are only a few students, but it will surely make for a very memorable year when they look back on it. Meanwhile, check out what the teacher is using. If the whole thing wasn’t his idea, you might be tempted to feel bad for him. He sure has more energy that I do, and much younger knees and back.
That’s about all I have for now. I’m sure there are lots of little things going on on a daily basis that I could write about, but I just don’t get to the school that much right now. The best way for me to get more blog material would be to become a teacher, and that is NOT going to happen, so I guess you are stuck with whatever I can come up with!
As you finish up your paperwork from last year and start dreaming of what to do with your tax refund, don’t forget the school. We are continuing to work towards getting the south hall improved for next year. And of course, the roof still needs to be replaced over the south part of the building. If you want to help with a financial donation, you can go on our website, www.uccs.school, there is a Donate button there, or you can contact us for more information. If you would like to make a totally anonymous donation, there is a button on our website to go through the Anabaptist Financial group. You can direct them to send your donation to us, and your identity remains private. Thanks in advance for your support!
