Hello district board members and Superintendent,
I am a resident of BVSD and have had children enrolled in the district for five years. I currently have three children at Fireside Elementary in Louisville. I am in district E, and Donna Miers is the board member that represents me.
As you may have heard, someone in the Oh Oh 27 facebook group (of which I am a member) posted an opinion that portrayed Ascent Classical school in a negative way. It is unclear what percentage of the handful of naysayers are parents, but as a resident within BVSD I have done extensive research on the classical curriculum, and the facebook thread was full of grossly misleading information. In all my reading on the classical model, I have not found anything that resembles religious indoctrination. It is not a religious school. **If it was a religious school, I would not enroll my children there.**
One concern voiced in the facebook thread was that Ascent Classical Academy would take valuable resources from existing BVSD schools. You and I recognize that enrollment is dwindling in our district. This is a big concern, and part of the solution to this may be right in front of us in the form of Ascent Classical Academy. There are many more than 625 intent to enrolls, and the number is increasing. Adding this school as an option will retain existing students whose families, like us, are beginning to consider options outside the district because we want a more rigorous, low tech, liberal arts education than is currently offered in BVSD.
Of the naysayers, how many of their children will the district lose if you approve the Ascent Classical Academy application? Not a single one. But our district certainly stands to lose students as those of us who are informed and assured that the classical model is best for our children go to where we CAN get this education. I hope it will be here.
My spouse and I have been greatly inspired by the classical model that this school will bring to students within BVSD. We intensely desire a classical education for our children. We want low tech. We want liberal arts, we want them to learn about philosophy, great works of literature, and be familiar with great thinkers and historical figures so they can see their place in history and what they can contribute to the world, and I see all of this offered in the classical education model.
Since the mission of BVSD is to create opportunities for ALL children to thrive, and since one of BVSD’s values is to respect the inherent value and incorporate the strengths of children and families, and since BVSD’s #1 goal is to partner with students and families to create meaningful and engaging opportunities for each child, I ask you to please vote to approve the Ascent Classical Charter application.
Thanks,
Marie