June 28, 2004 --- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CHARTWELL SCHOOL RECEIVES $500,000 GRANT FROM THE PACKARD FOUNDATION FOR NEW CAMPUS AND EXPANDED OUTREACH
Seaside, CA – Chartwell School received a $500,000 grant from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation of Los Altos, California. The grant will provide $450,000 for Chartwell’s new campus project and $50,000 to expand educational outreach programs offered by the school.
This grant marks one of the largest contributions the school has received in support of their project to build a new campus on the former Ft Ord. It is especially exciting because it will be matched by a $4 million challenge grant the school received from the Catherine L. and Robert O. McMahan Foundation. “We are very pleased with the Packard Foundation’s support for our new campus, which is designed to enhance learning and be healthy for children and our environment. We thank them for believing so strongly in Chartwell’s future and in the potential of every student in our community,” states Chartwell’s Executive Director Douglas Atkins.
Since 1983, Chartwell School has educated students with dyslexia and related language disabilities through instruction that is research based and emphasizes an explicit, systematic, phonetically based multisensory approach. Students spend an average of 2-4 years at the school and then return to the mainstream school of their choice. The only school if its kind on the Central Coast, students commute from the three communities of the Salinas Valley, Monterey Peninsula, and Santa Cruz County. Chartwell currently enrolls 95 students, ages 6-14.
Educators at Chartwell School have always been committed to sharing their knowledge and expertise about best practices in teaching students who struggle to learn. Recent research suggests that 99% of all students CAN learn to read when they receive quality instruction by a highly-trained teacher, yet NAEP statistics report that nearly 40% of fourth grade students can not read at grade level. Three years ago the Packard Foundation granted Chartwell funding to implement and oversee an early intervention project for elementary students in the Pacific Grove Unified School District. Students were tested three times per year for three years on key pre-reading and reading skills and received instruction based on their scores. “Our results mirror those of national studies in helping children read and learn successfully by identifying potential learning challenges and offering extra instruction before the student ever falls behind their peers,” commented Atkins.
Chartwell School’s growing outreach programs also include workshops on various aspects of learning for parents, professionals, and community members in Seaside, Salinas, and Santa Cruz. Chartwell participates in a learning partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Monterey County, a teacher training partnership with California State University Monterey Bay, and Learning Assistance Advisor services. Atkins commented, “We are grateful for this opportunity to share our knowledge with other local schools and youth organizations and will begin accepting inquiries from organizations interested in forming partnerships later this summer.”
The project to build a new campus began when the school acquired 29 acres of land overlooking Monterey Bay at the former Ft. Ord in Dec 2000. The Board of Trustees formed a capital fundraising committee to raise the funds necessary to build a new campus that would expand enrollment to 160 students and offer space for expanded outreach and education. Nationally recognized architect and USGBC Board member John Boecker worked with faculty, parents, students, and the Chartwell board of Trustees to develop a comprehensive Programming Report. San Francisco based architectural firm EHDD designed a school that would house Chartwell’s model educational program.
Chartwell School has also taken a leadership role by understanding that a variety of factors can enhance learning. The school has taken great care to design systems and select building materials that will be especially beneficial for children. The school will feature natural day lighting in all classrooms, excellent indoor air quality, and high quality acoustics. It will also model environmentally friendly features including net zero energy use, water conservation, and sustainable building materials, and could be the first K-12 campus in the nation to meet the highest standards of the US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design protocol.
Significant financial support for the new campus has also been received from AT&T Pebble Beach Charities, The Kresge Foundation, Newman's Own Organics, and many generous individuals. With this grant a total of $7.3 million has been donated/pledged towards the total first phase new campus costs of $10.5 million.
For more information about Chartwell School, please contact Douglas Atkins at 831-394-3468. Websites relevant to this story include www.chartwell.org, www.packard.org, and www.ehdd.com. For more on high performance schools see the Collaborative for High Performance Schools at www.chps.net and for more on sustainable design and green buildings, see www.usgbc.org.
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