Excerpts from the

Western Association of Schools and Colleges site visit report (2007)

that recommended accreditation.

The environment and atmosphere... is positive and up-beat “all the way.” The kids and staff are obviously happy and productive…. They not only do science and nature outside, they do art, physical education and even writing and other academic exercises.

Vision and Purpose Criterion

Everything is consistent with the vision and mission. The staff constantly reviews their progress by asking questions of themselves that relate to their core values, i.e. their mission and vision and purpose.

Qualified Staff

All are fully credentialed and teach to standards; the primary difference here is that the small sizes allow teachers to individually pace each student. They don’t find it necessary for everyone to be on the same material.

Resource Planning and Fiscal Health

By aligning themselves with Shasta County Office of Education they have solidified their foundation. The County Office is assisting them in some very valuable ways; in addition the school has a healthy reserve and very solid parental support…. With the involvement of the sponsoring districts and having an annual outside audit, the school has maintained a clear and exceptions free financial record. They have never had any financial problems, exceptions or even questions bout their accuracy and appropriateness. They have clear and readily used procedures for all fiscal maters; they have no credit cards, a healthy reserve and blemish free record over many years.

Standards-Based Curriculum

That learning is taking place for all students – at their individual pace – is obvious. Their test scores are excellent and the teachers report high levels of proficiency and success.

Student Access

Each student meets with their family and staff at enrollment to plan their program and then again at the beginning of each year. All students are accepted and placed in the optimum environment and programs. Every student is monitored continuously and parents are kept well informed all along.

Challenging Learning Experiences

Each student is really seen as and dealt with as an individual that the above goals are realistic and are, in fact, achieved in essentially all cases.

Assessment of Student Achievement

The school has received very high API scores and they have done well on other “outside” measures.

Parental and Community Involvement

We saw ample evidence of this – from parents in the classroom to monitoring recesses and leading activities during physical education and other instructional specialties.

Culture

[T] he culture is one of the school’s strongest points helping the school… Parents know their children are immersed in something very rare and deeply nurturing to the spirits of their beloved ones.

Student Academic Support

At Chrysalis every student does get more individual attention and support than in most schools.

Student Personal Support

Through their Shasta County Office of Education students have a wide range of support services available. The school has been diligent in making all students and families aware of these opportunities. The school has taken the lead in seeking out and securing many new services this year.

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