About

Our small staff of Administrators know the primary focus at Collegiate Academy is the students. Administrators work together with teachers, staff members, the Board of Directors, and parents to provide strong leadership for our school community. Our Administrators report directly to the Board and are responsible for the operation and management of the school. In addition to providing strategic planning, the Administrators oversee communication, school finances and building management.

Our goal is to inspire students to become successful, caring, self-motivated learners and leaders. As a charter school, Collegiate Academy hires passionate, innovative teachers who are trained in academic and classroom strategies to enhance each student’s education. Because we keep class sizes small, teachers get to know students as individuals. Strengths and weaknesses. Hopes and dreams. Sports and extracurricular interests. College and career goals. Our teachers work together with parents to develop success strategies and ensure that each student receives the highest quality education possible.

As you walk through the halls at Collegiate Academy, you’ll see that faculty and students all know and support each other. We keep class sizes small so that students don’t get lost in the crowd. Our elementary school (K-6) typically has an average class size of 20 students. Our middle school (grades 7-8) has an average class size of 20 students. Our high school (grades 9-12) has an average class size of 15 students. In total, Collegiate Academy has approximately 315 students in grades K-12.

Our vision

Empower. Innovate. Lead.

Our mission

To encourage lifelong learners by providing a challenging curriculum through applied learning, leadership development, and civic engagement.

Values

Based on Ralph Waldo Emerson’s philosophy of self-reliance, Collegiate has developed four "Core Values" which guide our community on the path of self-reliance. Students at Collegiate are encouraged to embody these values everyday while in school, but are also expected to live these values outside the walls of the school to become true community leaders.

Our Core Values

Integrity: Collegiate students do the right thing regardless of whether anybody sees them. This value goes beyond honesty to require sincerity in communicating and living.

Perseverance: Our students see their problems as challenges, hurdles to overcome. They see their problems as weights to build strong character. By shifting the way they think about problems, Collegiate students change their thought patterns to improve their attitude and perception of a given situation.

Ownership: Collegiate students are held accountable and responsible for present and future actions. They take pride in the work they do and are honest with adults, peers and community members. When their work is strong, they showcase it, and when their work lags, they improve it by owning the notion that we can always do just a little better.

Quality: Our students follow the rule that no matter how great or small, one always puts his or her best effort forward. The notion of doing quality work is a confidence builder that improves our reputation with ourselves, our teachers, and our peers.

What is a charter school?

The first charter schools opened in Colorado nearly 20 years ago after Gov. Roy Romer signed the Colorado Charter Schools Act into law in 1993. Charter schools request and the state Department of Education approves waivers from state education law in certain areas; for example, textbooks, curriculum and sequence, school calendars, and many aspects of teacher contracts and unionization are waived for charter schools in Colorado. This allows for an entrepreneurial approach to education which results in innovation, competition and choice for parents and students.

What's different about charter schools? 

Charter schools are different from traditional neighborhood public schools in many ways. First, most charter schools limit their enrollment in order to create strong teacher to student ratios which promote a positive learning environment. Class sizes in neighborhood schools are often determined by formulas at the district level, resulting in ratios that despite teachers' best efforts, are not conducive to learning. Because charter school teachers are generally not unionized, public charters have been pioneers in extending the school calendar, both by offering longer school days and longer school years, which are research-proven approaches to improving student achievement which are blocked by teacher unions and contracts in traditional public schools. Charter schools can also offer an alternative to the extraneous and non-academic curricula of standardized public education. One example is the back-to-basics approach of the Core Knowledge sequence, which eliminates the fluff and provides a focused sequence of foundational principles in math, language arts, science and social studies which is expanded upon at each increasing grade level. These are just a few of the unique advantages of charter schools which allow us to challenge the status quo and offer an alternative to what a state or district approves as mainstream education.

What's the same about charter schools? 

Charter schools are tuition-free public schools which do not require ability testing for enrollment. Charter schools are subject to the same state content standards as all other public schools, to the Every Student Succeeds Act accountability guidelines, and to the state-mandated testing, currently called CMAS (Colorado Measures of Academic Success). Colorado charter schools are demographically similar to their communities and to the neighborhood schools in their areas, although many charter schools attract students from a large geographic area. Charter schools provide Special Education, English as a Second Language, Gifted & Talented, and other programs similar to neighborhood schools.

Where does charter school funding come from? 

Charter schools are publicly funded by state and federal education dollars. Charters receive a percentage of what the state Department of Education proposed and the state legislature approves as "Per Pupil Revenue," or PPR. Different school districts distribute these funds according to different models; however, most charter schools do not receive an equitable share of funds compared to traditional district schools. Charter schools are also usually responsible for purchasing or leasing and maintaining their own facilities, and must purchase many services, including special education services and resources, nursing and student health services, and access to assessment tools which are provided without fee to traditional district schools. Charter schools also pay administrative fees to their district or authorizer. As a result, charter schools have become experts at efficient operation and budget management, and rely on strong parent support and community engagement to raise additional funds for special projects not covered by PPR. 

Want more information?

The Colorado League of Charter Schools is a non-profit organization which has produced some great infographics to help readers understand charter schools in Colorado. Visit the Colorado League of Charter Schools website here.