Great Day!

Two students earned credits today! YEAH! Another student had a job interview yesterday and another one tomorrow! I am very proud of these students!

Where has the time gone?

I can't believe it's been so long since we've posted on this blog. The Edge opened to students on October 15, 2007. We are currently meeting in the board room. This limits the number of students at this time. We are small but mighty. I am so proud of our kiddos. Each one that started in October has earned at least one credit. The others will be completing one soon. The students are volunteering each Thursday. I find it interesting that each one has chosen to work at Edgewood Primary School. Elementary school must have been a positive experience for each of them. The students are all doing a great job. Most are working directly with students. A couple of them are working in the office areas. It is interesting to hear the comments on the bus as we travel back to our school.

Approval!

Monday, October 1, 2007, we heard from the Indiana Department of Education. We were told that we have received provisional approval for The Edge. This means that we can start the program! We are so excited about starting. October 15, 2007 will be the official beginning of The Edge. We will be housed in the board room until our building is complete.

We have also received a sign permit. While I never thought I would be excited about a permit or a sign, this is one step closer to making the school a reality. We continue to wait on other permits to be approved. Patience is a virtue!

Yesterday we visited Clark Pleasant Academy. We are modeling our program after this one. It was great to see their school in action. We really enjoyed talking to the students. They are so honest and forthright. They have great respect for the staff. It was an enjoyable visit. While we have been busy getting ready, this visit energized and renewed our commitment to the students of Richland Bean Blossom Community Schools.

Good News!

On Tuesday, I received a call from Geoff out of the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs. He was calling to let us know that we received The Rural Capacity Grant that Alli wrote and submitted in June. This grant is for $150,000. How awesome! This grant will provide us with two work coaches, as well as money for the curriculum. Everyone associated with our school is excited.

DEMOLITION DAY! Today has been a day to remember. Walls have come down, cabinets, sinks and trim removed. It looks like a different place. Jerry, Earl, Tim and Will worked very hard today.

We had to resubmit the building permit today. After we dropped it off at the court house, Bill called us back and said that they needed the plans from the architect. That was little disappointing. Once again we are learning that everything is a process.

We have had some phone calls from parents today asking about the school. We are telling them that we will begin October 1 with students in the board room in the board room at the central office.

Enjoy the pictures!!

Possession!

We gained possession this week and the architect has been down. We have a few more requirements to fulfill before we can get the building permit. Next week demolition will begin. We have some wonderful maintenance men who are very excited about this project! They especially are fond of keys and windows. Today we also picked up our shirts with our new logo. Our computer technology director will be meeting us at the property today to discuss outlets, computer equipment, etc. We visited the mezzaine of the primary school today to locate the tables we will be using. We also checked out the computers that will become ours. We continue to work on learning the curriculum. I talked to a person from another corporation that uses this curriculum yesterday. She gave me some good insight. We are moving forward!

Curriculum News

Wow! Today we were trained in the curriculum. My brain is on overload. I think once we are more familiar with it we will really like it. It is just a matter of navigating through the system and learning the ins and outs. This makes it one step closer to being able to serve students. On Thursday we are going to walk through the building with the architect - this is exciting. I continue to learn from the process and everything is a process!

Progress!

Today was a great day! Things are starting to come together for The Edge. We (Dana and I) applied for the building permit today. That should be back to us within a week. After taking the application downtown, we returned to a phone call telling us that we are going to get possession of the building sooner than expected! Yea! We were told the key was in the mailbox so we (Carol, Dana, Amy and I) quickly piled into the car and headed down the hill to the home of The Edge. I unlocked the barbershop door, walked in and looked around and then walked to the apartment side of the building. After trying the key and finding it didn't work, we looked for a second key in the second mailbox. There was none to be found. We then realized that the tenant is still occupying the space. We had been told he had vacated the premises. While this was a little disappointing, my spirits lifted after talking to him and finding out he does have some place to move and will be doing so soon. After returning from this short adventure, I found in my e-mail inbox a sign design. After printing it out and talking it through with Dana, we made some tweaks and sent our suggestions back to the designer. I am looking forward to seeing the revised version. While I am anxious to get the school open, I am enjoying the journey.