Weekly Update Week Ending 12/10

Azalea Mountain will open  kindergarten, first-second grade and a third-fourth grade classes in the fall of 2010.  The school will be located within 15 minutes of downtown Asheville.  Trained Waldorf teachers will be hired.  Now the details as of today:

Location:

We are actively looking for our location for opening the classes for fall 2011.  We realize we may need to initially get a smaller location and then build toward a permanent school home. Our goal is to select a location by the first of the year.

Teachers:

We have written our job descriptions for three teachers for the first classes, kindergarten, first-second grade combination and third-fourth combination.  We will start posting these openings next week and have interviews in January and make a decision in February.  Whereas there are trained Waldorf teachers in Asheville, we will be doing a national search to make sure we have the most qualified teachers for theses classes.

Tuition:

Yes, we are working daily on the tuition amount and structure so that as soon as we have a location, we can plug in that number.  We are also looking at the fairest possible structure for tuition.  We are considering the possibility of slightly lower tuition for multiple children enrolled from one family but have not made that final decision yet.  We are working from Rudolph Steiner’s understanding that tuition is not the purchase of a commodity, but a contribution to provide a stable environment in which true learning can take place.  Out of this principle, Azalea Mountain considering the best way to structure a sliding scale tuition where as many children as possible can attend, and all families are encouraged to offer the best contribution they are able to afford.

At the same time we are filing our 501C3 so that donations to Azalea Mountain are tax deductible.  As soon as this is in place, by year end, we will begin fundraising efforts, as our guidance from Emerson Waldorf and other Waldorf schools tells us that each school community actively raises money to support the educational program beyond tuition.

We understand your need for these answers as the direction of your family depends on them.  There are others in the same position.  As you know, the creation of a school is like the birth of a new baby, inviting all the attention and support possible.  I say this so that all who read this post will feel invited to participate in the many details of planning.  It is possible to help create the tuition and budget, interview the teacher candidates, evaluate property locations, help with fundraising.  We are all volunteers.  Board meetings are open to any interested person.  The next meeting is Tues. Dec. 14 at 3:30 at Groce Methodist Church, on Tunnel Rd, in the classrooms behind the church on the lower level in Todd Crowe’s classroom.

Please know that as these decisions are made, all will be notified.

Again, with appreciation for your writing.  There are many people contacting Azalea Mountain each week about the school.  The more people can be involved in the planning, the quicker things will move along.  The community meetings this fall clarified the need for the three classrooms, for instance.