APS BOE Approves Vista PEAK Innovation Status

NEWS RELEASE # 83
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 25, 2011

APS BOE Approves Vista PEAK Innovation Status

On May 24, the APS Board of Education voted to approve Innovation Status for the Vista PEAK P-20 campus.

Rich Patterson, Director of P-20 Campus Development, explained to the BOE the reason for applying for Innovation Status. “First and foremost, our belief in innovation comes from our commitment to enhancing P-20 learning opportunities for our students. This has been an exciting year for Vista PEAK. However, within the first months of opening, our staff and district leadership soon realized that certain policies and requirements that work for traditional schools pose significant challenges for a truly aligned P-20 Educational Campus system.”

Vista PEAK staff explored the ways in which SB 130, the Innovations School Act, could enhance student learning in a P-20 context.  They identified specific Board of Education policies, parts of the AEA Master Agreement and district procedures that were impeding true innovation and P-20 alignment. In February 2011, Vista PEAK staff developed the Innovation Application and Annual Work Agreement.

"The autonomies and freedoms outlined in the Vista PEAK Innovation application allow the school more control of the master schedule, the school day and school year, curriculum, professional learning, budgeting, hiring and personnel," said Patterson.

Achieving Innovation Status also allows Vista PEAK staff to fullfill the promises to Aurora voters when they passed the APS Bond and Mill Levy in 2008:

• To offer an exciting, innovative educational venture that meets the goals of the VISTA 2010 and VISTA 2015 strategic plans, SB 212-CAP4K and the Colorado Department of Education's Forward Thinking plan
• To create the Vista Peak P-20 campus as a cutting-edge model of innovation in public education

"Vista PEAK’s application for Innovation Status has met or exceeded all SB -130 requirements, including showing a strong level of support from licensed staff, classified staff, parents, students, administrators, the Vista PEAK PTA and Accountability Committee, and numerous community partners," added Patterson. "Compared to the other Colorado Innovative School applications, the Vista PEAK proposal has three times as much support from stakeholders."

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