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Thank you to everyone for following through on your pledges. Our dear school counts on your needed support. 8th Grade Graduation Class Pledged RK 95% SK 95% 1st 97% 2nd 90% 3rd 94% 4th 94% 5th 90% 6th 100% 7th 94% 8th 94% School 94% Olivia Allen Lorenzo Almond Sage Boland Morse Julian Booker Zenden Bowen Ayla Cimen Violet DuVal-Johnson Ulysses Fessenden- McMechen Kent Gamble Sophia Gast Emery Goerlich Jaden Gude Antonio Heath Kathleen Heller Isabella Hofland Fiona Jacobsen-Sarter Jezebel Juniper Stella Kampmann Bodhi Klein Caroline Langley Hunter Murnane Shasta Oru Kelsey Perlman Avery Reed Shayla Rose-Brown Thea Schwarcz Nathan Simmons Jessica Steyn Yasen Stoev Joshua Thierry Isabelle Tickle Dear Community, The end of the school year fast approaches. At this time, the teachers and students look forward to “graduating” to the next grade. Soon, the current kindergartners will join to form the new first grade class and the eighth graders will pass through a significant threshold on their way to high school. This transition is an important moment in the lives of every student, parent, and teacher here at Sebastopol Charter. As the Eighth grade takes its leave, I would like to express deep gratitude to a wonderful parent body and students for the journey we have shared these many years. The adults have grown together as a warm community enfolding these budding teenagers. For many families, this is the ending of a nine or ten year-long journey. It has been my joy and honor to witness the students’ joys and struggles, their growth and development, and the full-spectrum of their unfold- ing gifts. Please join us at Sebastopol Charter’s 20th Eighth Grade Commence- ment ceremony to wish the Eighth Graders farewell on Wednesday, June 8 at 4 PM. Warm wishes, Merry McIlroy SEBASTOPOL CHARTER NOTES Upcoming Events May 16-27: 5th Gr. CAASPP Testing May 17-27: 4th Gr. CAASPP Testing May 17: City Council Mtg, 6p @ SCC May 20: Financial State of the School Meeting, 6:30-8p Main Campus May 26-27: 8th Gr. Play, 7-9p May 30: Memorial Day, School Closed June 2: Use Permit Hearing, 2:30p June 3: Walk & Roll to School Day, Walk & Roll Parents Mtg. 8:45am June 6: Courtyard Concert Gr. 3-8 + alumni students, 12p June 8: Last Day of School, Early Dis- missal Gr. 1-8 June 8: Rose Ceremony, 8:30am June 8: Graduation, 4pm, Seventh Day Adventist Church May Issue Highlights Graduation Pg. 1 Dedication Under the Stars Pg. 2 May Faire Pg. 3 Spring Concert Pg. 4 Use Permit Hearing Pg. 5 Breaking Ground Pg. 6 8th Gr. Anatomy Pg. 6 Archetypes of Spring Pg. 7 Notes from the Office Pg. 8 City Council Hearing Pg. 9 May 2016 Monthly Edition
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SEBASTOPOL CHARTERNOTESJaden Gude Antonio Heath Kathleen Heller Isabella Hofland Fiona Jacobsen-Sarter Jezebel Juniper Stella Kampmann Bodhi Klein Caroline Langley Hunter Murnane Shasta

Jan 12, 2020

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Page 1: SEBASTOPOL CHARTERNOTESJaden Gude Antonio Heath Kathleen Heller Isabella Hofland Fiona Jacobsen-Sarter Jezebel Juniper Stella Kampmann Bodhi Klein Caroline Langley Hunter Murnane Shasta

Thank you to everyone for following through on your pledges. Our dear school

counts on your needed support.8th Grade GraduationClass Pledged RK 95% SK 95% 1st 97% 2nd 90% 3rd 94% 4th 94% 5th 90% 6th 100% 7th 94% 8th 94% School 94%

Olivia AllenLorenzo Almond

Sage Boland MorseJulian Booker

Zenden BowenAyla Cimen

Violet DuVal-JohnsonUlysses Fessenden-

McMechenKent GambleSophia Gast

Emery GoerlichJaden Gude

Antonio HeathKathleen HellerIsabella Hofland

Fiona Jacobsen-SarterJezebel Juniper

Stella KampmannBodhi Klein

Caroline LangleyHunter Murnane

Shasta OruKelsey Perlman

Avery ReedShayla Rose-Brown

Thea SchwarczNathan Simmons

Jessica SteynYasen Stoev

Joshua ThierryIsabelle Tickle

Dear Community,

The end of the school year fast approaches. At this time, the teachers and students look forward to “graduating” to the next grade. Soon, the current kindergartners will join to form the new first grade class and the eighth graders will pass through a significant threshold on their way to high school. This transition is an important moment in the lives of every student, parent, and teacher here at Sebastopol Charter.

As the Eighth grade takes its leave, I would like to express deep gratitude to a wonderful parent body and students for the journey we have shared these many years. The adults have grown together as a warm community enfolding these budding teenagers. For many families, this is the ending of a nine or ten year-long journey. It has been my joy and honor to witness the students’ joys and struggles, their growth and development, and the full-spectrum of their unfold-ing gifts.

Please join us at Sebastopol Charter’s 20th Eighth Grade Commence-ment ceremony to wish the Eighth Graders farewell on Wednesday, June 8 at 4 PM.

Warm wishes,Merry McIlroy

SEBASTOPOLCHARTERNOTES

Upcoming Events May 16-27: 5th Gr. CAASPP TestingMay 17-27: 4th Gr. CAASPP TestingMay 17: City Council Mtg, 6p @ SCCMay 20: Financial State of the School Meeting, 6:30-8p Main CampusMay 26-27: 8th Gr. Play, 7-9pMay 30: Memorial Day, School ClosedJune 2: Use Permit Hearing, 2:30pJune 3: Walk & Roll to School Day, Walk & Roll Parents Mtg. 8:45amJune 6: Courtyard Concert Gr. 3-8 + alumni students, 12pJune 8: Last Day of School, Early Dis-missal Gr. 1-8June 8: Rose Ceremony, 8:30amJune 8: Graduation, 4pm, Seventh Day Adventist Church

May Issue Highlights

Graduation Pg. 1

Dedication Under the Stars Pg. 2

May Faire Pg. 3

Spring Concert Pg. 4

Use Permit Hearing Pg. 5

Breaking Ground Pg. 6

8th Gr. Anatomy Pg. 6

Archetypes of Spring Pg. 7

Notes from the Office Pg. 8

City Council Hearing Pg. 9

May 2016Monthly Edition

Page 2: SEBASTOPOL CHARTERNOTESJaden Gude Antonio Heath Kathleen Heller Isabella Hofland Fiona Jacobsen-Sarter Jezebel Juniper Stella Kampmann Bodhi Klein Caroline Langley Hunter Murnane Shasta

2 CharterNotes May 2016

Notes from

the Editor by Carrie Heim, Administrative Coordinator

Four more weeks to go folks! This is my last full issue of the school year (we will have a condensed format for June), and it feels bittersweet. As I scroll through these pages, the photos tell their own story. They show a community, a strength, a commitment, friendships and per-severance. This was our twentieth birthday, and boy, did we celebrate well! Our festivals and activities just keep getting better year after year. Our fundraising just reached new heights with the latest online auc-tion bringing in more quality items

and amazing parent involvement. Our spring event, Dedication Under the Stars, was perfectly set, and it was so inspiring to be on our new campus.

In the light of another spring, our school keeps striving forward. If we push our will upwards, we will see the blossom of our fruit. This is the recurring theme of this issue. Our school needs the community more than ever. We have our upcoming city council meeting and use permit hearing where parents and commu-nity members need to speak out or write in why our school needs to be unified on the new property. Change can only come from action. Let us show why unification matters to us and our children.

Dedication Under the Starsby Kelly Kim and Anna O’Neil

Our new campus was full of celebration and gratitude last Saturday, May 7th, at our school’s annual fundraising event – Dedication Under the Stars.We gathered to celebrate the past 20 years, to initiate our new campus, and to raise much needed funds for Sebastopol Charter. Beautiful toasts given by Chris Topham, Alysson Baker, Nick Sanders and Bob Haroche brought light to the many special hands and hearts that are instrumental to our school’s success and to the bright vision of its future. The evening culminated with the singing of “Happy Birthday” and blowing out birthday cake candles.Special thanks to Kayse Hofland, Gillian Helquist, and Todd LaMothe for making the day lovely and full of heart.Thanks also to our wonderful volunteer core staff: Suzan Murnane, Leslie Gude, Maegan Miller, Marshall Vincent, Terry Keady and to the ever helpful tenants of the property, Joe Wisniewski and Julienne Buxton. Three cheers to the rest of the volunteers: the fun group of pourers and floaters, the talented musicians and to our generous donors: Sunshine Roasters, Revive, Moonlight Beer and Ale, Lagunitas Brewing Co., Sogni Di Dolce, McIlroy Cellars, Quivira Winery, Graft Wines, Gina Martinelli and Martinelli Winery, Claypool Cellars, Hawley Winery and Sturgeon’s Mill. Thank you Fork Catering for the delicious food and impeccable service.Many, many thanks to our fabulous guests! It was a pleasure to share the beautiful evening together, all in support of our dear children and wonderful school.

Photos from Dedication Under the Stars are featured on Pg. 2

Notes from

the Directorby Chris Topham, Executive Director

The month of May among school administrators is known as the “90-days of May,” because it feels three times longer. There are usually triple the amount of events and activities. It is often an emotional time for students, teachers and parents. It’s a time for deep breaths. It is also good to

remember the Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz, which may be helpful at this time:1. Be impeccable with your word a. Speak with integrity b. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others2. Don’t take anything personally a. Nothing others do is because of you b. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream3. Don’t make assumptions a. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid mis-understandings, sadness and drama4. Always do your best a. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you’ll avoid self-judgement, self-abuse and regretWe obviously have an added situation around the new campus preparation. I’ll take this opportunity to make a plug for the im-portance to have parents show up and give support to our new campus plans at the Sebastopol City Council meeting on Tues-day, May 17 at 6pm, and at the Use Permit Hearing on Thursday, June 2 at 2:30pm at the Permit and Resource Management Department (PRMD) at 2550 Ventura Avenue in Santa Rosa.This May has been quite lovely. We had a great May Faire, a glorious 7th and 8th grade music concert at the Sebastopol Center for the Arts on May 5, a very nice morning chat about the new campus plans on May 6, an awesome spring celebra-tion, Dedication Under the Stars on May 7 and an informative board meeting on May 9. Upcoming events: meet the upcoming first grade teacher on May 18, financial state of the school on May 20 (6:30-8pm), meet the upcoming Sunflower kindergarten teacher on May 25, 8th grade play on May 26 & 27 (7-9pm) and countless field trips and parent evenings. See the triple effect?At the school board meeting on May 9, there was a board election, which was conducted according the school’s by-laws. At that time we welcomed two new board members, effective July1: Sarah Botz, who has been on the foundation board and the leader of the online auction, and Matthew Langley, who has been on various committees through the years, such as the new campus search committee. The board and I are very excited and thankful to have them join the board. Meanwhile we give much appreciation to two boardmembers exiting the board after years of volunteer service: Matthew Morgan and Nathan Knuth. The school is so lucky to have such generous and competent volunteers willing to serve on the school board and the foun-dation board, which comes with huge responsibilities and work. Thank you.

Page 3: SEBASTOPOL CHARTERNOTESJaden Gude Antonio Heath Kathleen Heller Isabella Hofland Fiona Jacobsen-Sarter Jezebel Juniper Stella Kampmann Bodhi Klein Caroline Langley Hunter Murnane Shasta

May 2016 CharterNotes 3

Mayfaire 2016What a beautiful May Faire celebration! This annual event

recognized that Spring has come. May Faire offers us a connection to the natural rhythms ancient people lived with. Often in these busy, modern times, our daily lives take us away from the simple connection to nature, the gentle change of seasons, and to the cycles of Mother Earth. The May Faire is one way to ground

ourselves and revel in the beauty we are lucky to be surrounded by in the our lovely area. As we weave together the ribbons of our community, it makes a beautiful display of comraderie

and cooperation. Many thanks to our many parent helpers who contributed flowers, music, skill and strength. And, thank you to our teachers and students for dedicating so many hours into

learning and performing the May Pole dances.

Photos from

Dedication Under the Starscourtesy of Barbara Philipp, Kayse Hofland

and Essie Bishop

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4 CharterNotes May 2016

7th & 8th Gr. Spring Ensemble ConcertOn Thursday, May 5th, our school community gathered to listen to the final concert of our 8th grade graduates. This, however, was also the last spring concert for our Music Director, Cynthia Albers. Photos featured here include student Antonio Heath displaying his 8th gr. project, a handmade violin, a farewell speech made by Laurie Tuchel, 7th gr. teacher, and 8th grade students announcing their high school choices. Thanks to everyone who attended. Special thanks to Amanda Lane and Rosalie Abbott for taking photos!

School Music Program Historyby Cynthia Albers, Music Director

When I was hired to form the school music program, it was requested that an ensemble be created sometime in the future. It was thought that this would always be an after-school class - just one class - an outgrowth of the strings class once they grew into the middle school. At the time, Sebastopol Charter was a K-4. We chose Thursday, afterschool, because it was the short day, and students would need to participate on a voluntary basis. In 2001, ensemble was a distant goal; however, I realized that it would benefit our students to have this opportunity immediately following their introductory strings experience. To me, music ensem-ble is the reason why we learn to play instruments - so we can play along with others, and share what we’ve learned with our parents and friends. The afterschool ensemble, with an original enrollment of 12 players, was an instant success. By the second year, all students wanted to participate.

Our first ensemble was drawn from the newly formed 3rd and 4th grade strings classes. Their class teachers, Laurie Fry (Tuchel) and Craig Cook, helped to pro-mote the effort, and Theresa Melia allowed us the use of her classroom. The dedication of these students and their parents served to bring up the program we now hold as a centerpiece of our school programming.

> All from Laurie and Craig’s class. This was the original group of hearty souls who helped me to forge the after-school ensemble. A memorable time, that seems like eons ago.

< Molly, and backs to us, Matthew and Madison. Laurie’s (Sandy’s) class in 8th grade.

> Craig’s, Laurie’s and Aveah’s class. The first three graduating classes. Out first middle school group! Grades 6-8. Today this would be one class.

Page 5: SEBASTOPOL CHARTERNOTESJaden Gude Antonio Heath Kathleen Heller Isabella Hofland Fiona Jacobsen-Sarter Jezebel Juniper Stella Kampmann Bodhi Klein Caroline Langley Hunter Murnane Shasta

May 2016 CharterNotes 5

A HISTORIC DATE FOR OUR NEW CAMPUS: Use Permit Hearing June 2

After twenty months of County review of our project application, the use permit hearing for our new campus has been scheduled for June 2 at 2:30 pm. We are hoping that as many parents as pos-sible will attend this very important hearing to show the Board of Zoning Adjustments how much our school community supports the project and to encourage approval of our use permit.

The hearing before the BZA will be similar to the original use-per-mit hearing in 2001 that took place in Sebastopol for the school’s downtown location: the Board will decide whether to permit the school to move onto our new site. Over 200 parents were pres-ent at that earlier meeting, sending a strong message: “our com-munity is committed to this project!” We are hoping that we can show the same kind of support on June 2.

The project will be presented to the Board by the architects and by a small number of school and community representatives who have been asked to speak, and who will do so in careful coordi-nation so that our limited time is used effectively and efficiently. We don’t want to slow down the hearing (and potentially irritate the Board) by having too many speak in support of the project: it will be impressive and helpful for the BZA members simply to see a large presence in support of the project. We realize it may be hard to take time off to come to this hearing, but your presence will make a big difference in the realization of our new campus

We ask our entire parent community to attend this very important hearing on:

Thursday, June 2, 2:30pm Permit and Resource Managing Department (PRMD)

2550 Ventura Avenue, Santa Rosa

ABOUT THE PROJECT:

Assuming we receive a favorable vote for our project to move forward, what happens next? Right away, we will begin work on the Phase 1 project, starting with sitework and grading, which are currently going through the building permit process. Work on the faculty house, the permanent restroom, and other auxiliary structures will follow. We plan to start school on our new 20-acre campus in the fall of 2017.

Phase 1 of our new campus plan is to move onto the site with remodeled modular classrooms, permanent infrastructure, and the existing residence renovated to serve as the administration

building with space for meetings and teachers’ library. Beyond the regular classrooms for kindergarten through grade 8, there will be additional space for music, special education, Three-Streams student support, STEAM (Science, Technology, Engi-neering, Arts and Mathematics) and handwork. We also plan to provide an aftercare program.

What is the math behind the new campus plans? As with most construction projects, the financial circumstances change a lot and we expect them to continue changing. A recent favorable change for us was that we were able to buy 10 modular class-rooms for $100 from another charter school that was unable to find suitable land for its campus. Here’s a snapshot of the cur-rent financial picture:

Expenses (in millions): Assets (in millions):

Property $2.5 Sale of Burnett St. (net) $2.7

Phase 1 Construction $4.8 Savings $2.0

Construction Loan $2.2

Total: $7.3 Total: $6.9

As you can see, we’re $400,000 short for Phase 1, which is why we’ve launched our Breaking Ground capital campaign. After we have occupied the new campus for a few years, we hope to start a Phase 2 capital campaign to construct our permanent buildings.

“I am grateful knowing that my child is

growing up with such special ties within a

community. It really feels like a village.”

~ A Grateful Parent

Page 6: SEBASTOPOL CHARTERNOTESJaden Gude Antonio Heath Kathleen Heller Isabella Hofland Fiona Jacobsen-Sarter Jezebel Juniper Stella Kampmann Bodhi Klein Caroline Langley Hunter Murnane Shasta

6 CharterNotes May 2016

$100,000

$300,000

$400,000

$200,000

Your gift inspires others to give and helps our school grow!

53% of OUR GOAL

raised

John Azzizzi and Colleen WimmerBeyers Costin SimonSarah Botz and Ted CodyElla, Tosh, Crystal and Mike DohertyDebra and Kyle GambrellMaureen GraneyBob and Renee HarocheTara and Seth KellyKelly and Eric KimNathan and Rachel KnuthMarcia Brady Tucker Foundation

THANK YOU FOR HELPING US GROW

$211,000

$400,000OUR GOAL

as of May 2016

And a big Thank You to all of our beloved teachers for their generous support.

Sara and Josh Margulis, HoneyfundAurelia MuckinhauptRSF InnovationsKelly and Ocean RogoffNick and Erika SandersThe Savage Press FamilyThe Spangler Birnie FamilyChris and Heather TophamChristina Woodworth-Powell and Alan Powell, Marcia and Patrick Woodworth

12 Anonymous Donors

– IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER –

PHASE 1 CONSTRUCTION

CONSTRUCTION

LOAN

SAVINGS

SALE OF BURNETT

PROPERTYPURCHASE $4.8

$2.7$2.5

$2.0

$2.2

ASSETSEXPENSES

Why is our goal $400,000?

=– $400K$7.3M $6.9M

(in millions) (as of May 2016)

Faculty School Board

Thank You to our Donors!We appreciate your

support at every level

PARTICIPATION

100%

100%

BREAKING GROUND: Our New Campus Capital Campaign

15%

School Families

Page 7: SEBASTOPOL CHARTERNOTESJaden Gude Antonio Heath Kathleen Heller Isabella Hofland Fiona Jacobsen-Sarter Jezebel Juniper Stella Kampmann Bodhi Klein Caroline Langley Hunter Murnane Shasta

May 2016 CharterNotes 7

Congratulations to our 6th grade basketball teams! Special thanks to coaches Mary Schwall, Jeff Bo-evers, Marshall Vincent and Kayla Sison.

8th Gr. Anatomy Drawingsby Patricia Doyle, 7th & 8th Gr. Art Teacher

These drawings were completed in their Anatomy block early in the year. Grade 8 filled their main lesson books with many detailed drawings of the human form. Topics ranged from the pelvis and vertebrae, to the workings of the brain, and even each students “Skeleton in Action.”

Page 8: SEBASTOPOL CHARTERNOTESJaden Gude Antonio Heath Kathleen Heller Isabella Hofland Fiona Jacobsen-Sarter Jezebel Juniper Stella Kampmann Bodhi Klein Caroline Langley Hunter Murnane Shasta

8 CharterNotes May 2016

Notes From

the Office by Barbara Philipp, Office Administrator

The re-enroll-ment packets went out ear-lier this month. Please return them by Friday, May 20th. If we do not receive them by that date or have not heard from you, you will be considered forfeiting your space in our school. If you know you will not be re-turning next school year, please let us know so we begin planning for next year’s enrollment. Thank you.

The 2016-17 school year is live on our google calendar on the schools website. Teachers are already planning their fall parent meetings! Please use this calendar to track all of your important school dates, in-cluding field trips, parent meetings, holidays and more.

Coming back to the end of this school year, June 8th, our last day of school, has lots of reminders. The end of year Rose Ceremony will be on June 8th at 8:30am at the K-2 knoll. If you are not staying, please drop off your child(ren) there and grades 3-8 will walk back to the main campus afterwards.

June 8th is an early dismissal for Grades 1-8, with 1st & 2nd grade pick-up at 12:45p and 3-8 grade

pick-up at 12:50p. Please make arrangements to pick-up your chil-dren promptly! Teachers are very ready for their summer break :)

June 8th is also 8th grade gradu-ation at 4pm. Graduation is held at the Seventh Day Adventist Church, 1665 Gravenstein Hwy N, Sebastopol, CA 95472. Everyone is welcome to attend.

If you have any address changes, please email Carrie or Barbara. End of year reports are mailed out and we want to be sure you receive them!

State testing (CAASPP) is still in progress with our 4th and 5th grades finishing up by the end of next week. Thank you to all of our parents for supporting your chil-dren during this time with nourish-ing breakfasts, adequate sleep, and regular attendance. We appreciate you helping us during this time.

Don’t miss the 8th Grade Play of William Shakespeare’s “A Midsum-mers Nights Dream” on the eve-nings of May 26 and 27th at the Main St. Campus at 7pm.

Summer office hours will be 9-1p throughout June, closed during July, and will re-open with 9-1p hours during August until school begins. If you need anything from us during the summer, please keep these hours in mind. Have a lovely summer break!

Archetypes of Spring in NatureEditorial by Debra Gambrell, D.O., SCS parent

What archetypes is nature feeding us at this time of year? What gifts are we to digest with our senses? We see all types of beautiful, vibrant colors in the flowers, we smell the sweet nectar, and too much of it makes us sneeze. Our body seems to know how much we are able to take in, and some of us can digest more than others. The flower is the soul portion of the plant that blossoms in the Spring. All the forces that have been saved up through the dark winter are pulled out of the ground by the sun and burst through the very ends of the plant. The bees and butterflies in their flight from flower to flower show us how the very life of spirit touches our soul.

In west Sonoma County, I am out with my children collecting flowers from our property to bring to school on Monday. The first thing we notice is the purple-tipped milk thistle is in full bloom. It seems these hearty plants shot up over night. Many a landowner with their tidy yards get frustrated by these “invasive” plants. If not caught early, before flowering, the entire area is overtaken by a purple, spiny sea of thistle. The milk thistle is known medicinally as a liver-process, immune-supportive plant. There is a poke to the immune system, a waking up of sorts, to enable the highest consciousness of a person to recognize self versus non-self. This liver process is seen also in the gardener who needs to exert great will to keep the milk thistle in check.

We also have fragrant, soothing lavender, which seems to be an assembly hall for the bees. You can hear the chatter and excitement of the bees as they weave in, out, and around this flower, which itself looks like a strong, soft, purple bee. This plant is hearty and will spread wildly with great force when it is left connected to the earth. When harvested and left out of water for even a few minutes we begin to see the “bees”

fall back towards the earth.

The stunningly bright orange aster flower invites us in to experience the soul quality of warmth, like that of the sun. We can experience the feelings of patience, and forgiveness that come with facing a challenging situation with the utmost discernment. Greek mythology teaches us about the god Jupiter’s decision to flood the Earth in response to the ongoing fighting. The heartbroken goddess Astraea asked to stay behind as a star. When the flood waters receded, she appeared as thousands of orange and red asters representing the tears she shed for the loss of lives. In this way, Astraea gave us back the warmth that was needed for healing the hurt.

So, get outside and enjoy the bountiful archetypes that natural freely gives to us this time of year. Although it is fun to explore what these archetypes are saying to us, nature will give these gifts whether we are aware of their significance or not. Make sure to bring your children as they are particularly sensitive to the gestures of these plants. No words are needed, just sit back and behold their beauty with awe and reverence. Oh, and don’t forget to check for ticks upon returning home!

Hopmonk Fundraiser Success!Thank you to everyone who joined us on Thursday evening after the Spring Ensemble concert at the Hopmonk Tavern. The evening brought in $600 towards the music program! It was wonderful to see current parents, alumni parents, alumni students, staff and faculty all enjoying the music of Mads

Tolling and Dave MacNab, SCS parent. It was definitely a special evening to say farewell to Cynthia Albers, our long-time, much loved, Music DirectorSpecial thanks to Stuart Mitchell for capturing this photo.

4th Gr. students practing handstands before school.

Page 9: SEBASTOPOL CHARTERNOTESJaden Gude Antonio Heath Kathleen Heller Isabella Hofland Fiona Jacobsen-Sarter Jezebel Juniper Stella Kampmann Bodhi Klein Caroline Langley Hunter Murnane Shasta

May 2016 CharterNotes 9

MAKE YOUR SUPPORT OF THE NEW CAMPUS HEARD LOUD AND CLEAR!

It’s time to write a letter -

- and to attend the City Council meeting May 17 at 6 pm.Read all the way through to find out about getting your FREE Sebastopol Charter T-shirt

to wear with pride at the meeting.

OUR NEW CAMPUS: ROOM TO GROW – seeded in the past; sprouting now; blossoming in the future.

A BRIEF BACKGROUND:

Although the new campus project is outside Sebastopol city limits, the City Council as a matter of course was formally notified about the project by the County Permit and Resource Management Department (PRMD) in late 2014. The school itself had also been in conversation with the City about the project. The City Council, without giving the school the opportunity to respond to their concerns, submitted a comment letter to PRMD to communicate their “issues with the planned location.”

The school responded thorougly to all of the City’s expressed concerns in a detailed letter provided to the City, to PRMD, and to our Fifth District supervisor Efren Carrillo, whom several City councilmembers had also contacted.

The school’s letter is found here, and while it will take a few minutes to read, it offers the clearest picture of the City’s concerns and our response to them: http://goo.gl/he8FWO

HOW DOES THE CITY COUNCIL VIEW THE PROJECT NOW?

The short answer is that we don’t know, and won’t know, how the Council will respond until after discussion of our new campus at their May 17 meeting. During a recent meeting with Mayor Gurney, she reiterated a number of concerns, specifically fears about traffic impacts, decreased retail revenue downtown, and safety of the West County Trail crossing. From our thorough analy-sis and design of the project over the past two and and half years, we believe these concerns are without merit.

The school’s response to Mayor Gurney, also sent to each of the City Council members, can be found here: http://goo.gl/5eUtiS

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10 CharterNotes May 2016

We also provided Mayor Gurney with a voluntary study of local traffic impacts that the school commissioned, showing that the new campus location will result in decreased traffic in the downtown core, and in the neighborhoods between our Main Street and Brookhaven campuses: http://goo.gl/ylZbuw

While we have heard that the City Council might remain unsupportive of the project, and that one or more members of the Council may even plan to speak against the project at our upcoming use permit hearing on June 2, it is important to remember that we do not know how the Council will weigh in on the project. The desired outcome of our school community’s letters to the Council and public comment at the City Council meeting is that the City Council decides to support, or at a minimum not oppose, the school’s new campus.

IN A NUTSHELL, WHAT ARE THE CITY’S OBJECTIONS AND HOW HAS THE SCHOOL ADDRESSED THEM?

Objection: The school’s new campus is a form of “urban sprawl.”

Response: Over 10 acres of the school’s 20 acre site will remain as open space or agriculture. Of the remaining almost 10-acre “developed” portion of the site, total building square footage is less than 1 acre. In fact, if our new campus weren’t built, the property could be developed as currently zoned for 10 residences, each with a second unit – a more intensive use than our new campus, providing no open space.

Objection: The school’s new campus has “less than desirable” access.

Response: The school has car access directly off of Highway 116. Further, the West County Trail is located immediately adjacent to the site, and surveys of our school community show that more families intend to walk or bike to our new campus than do so currently.

Objection: The School’s new campus requires “creative interpretation” of the County’s General Plan criteria for schools.

Response: There are nine relevant criteria described in the General Plan Land Use Element, and the school’s new cam-pus squarely satisfies each and every one of them. The County itself recognizes the project as fully compliant with those criteria.

Objection: The school’s new campus “is an affront” to the users of the West County Trail, and raises a “pedestrian/bicy-cle safety issue.”

Response: Rather than constituting an “affront” to such users, the school will be complementary to the Trail, the adja-cency of which will support our students walking and biking to school. The school has worked closely with Regional Parks to design one of the safest and most protected crossings along the bike trail. Unlike many other, higher-volume crossings such as at Andy’s Market, car traffic to the school will stop at the trail to allow bicyclists and walkers the right-of-way. Signage, bollards, and pavement markings will further protect the crossing. Regional Parks, County planning staff, and other County agencies are all satisfied with the safety and convenience of the crossing.

Objection: Regarding sewer and water, “our City has limited infrastructure capacity and has not planned to serve sub-stantial developments in the unincorporated territory.”

Response: The school’s new campus does not rely on City of Sebastopol infrastructure for either water or sewer. The septic capacity of the site is more than adequate to serve the school, as is the new domestic well. Projected ground-water use by the school is expected to be less than if the site were developed as zoned for residential use. The school’s design fully complies with water conservation measures, including low-water-use landscape and low-water-use fixtures.

Objection: The school’s new campus will increase traffic congestion in town.

Response: The school’s new campus location will shift, but not increase, the flow of traffic through the downtown. Moreover, once our school is united on our new campus, residential neighborhoods will be spared the almost 80 trips per day between our current Main Street and Brookhaven sites.

Objection: School families won’t spend as much money shopping in Sebastopol.

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May 2016 CharterNotes 11

Response: A survey of our parent body indicates that the vast majority (about 90%) of school families expect to con-tinue to shop in downtown Sebastopol as much as, or more than, they currently do. Additionally, it’s likely that families will patronize stores at the north end of town to a greater extent than they do now.

WHAT SHOULD I SAY OR WRITE?

You should say or write about whatever you feel is most important to you about the new campus, or to address any of the City’s concerns. If you want to write a long, detailed letter, please do so.

Here’s an example: http://goo.gl/onCGuu

If short and sweet is to your liking, that’s just fine! Even a simple one-sentence expression - “I am a parent at Sebastopol Char-ter and I urge you to support our school’s new campus.” - will make a big impact.

Please email all of the Councilmembers:

Mayor Sarah Gurney at [email protected]

Vice Mayor Una Glass at [email protected]

Councilmember John Eder at [email protected]

Councilmember Robert Jacob at [email protected]

Councilmember Patrick Slayter at [email protected]

Letters can be mailed to the Councilmembers c/o:

Sebastopol City Hall

7120 Bodega Ave.

Sebastopol CA 95472

It’s fine to express yourself with enthusiasm and passion, while at the same time remaining respectful of the Councilmembers in their roles as public servants.

YUP, THAT’S RIGHT: A FREE T-SHIRT!

We want to have a strong showing of parents at both the City Council meeting on May 17 at 6 pm and the use permit hearing on June 2 at 2:30 pm. If you already own a Sebastopol Charter T-shirt, please wear it prominently and proudly at both meetings. If you don’t have one, come by the office and get a FREE shirt if you’re planning on attending one or both meetings. We’ll also bring a box of shirts to the entrance at each meeting to give to parents showing their support of the school’s new campus.

Please: write to the City Council, attend the meeting, express your support of our beautiful new campus!

Thank you,

Chris Topham

Executive Director

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12 CharterNotes May 2016

READ ON FOR MORE ON THE IMPORTANCE OF OWNING OUR SITE, AND A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE SITE SEARCH:

Since its inception 20 years ago, the Sebastopol Charter has sought a school site that it can securely own and where all our students can finally be united. As you know, charter schools don’t receive state funding for facilities, which are often temporary and rented. According to the California Charter Schools Association and the Charter Schools Development Center, it should be a top priority for a charter school to own its campus to ensure long-term viability. Thanks to the dedicated support of school families past and present, we are one of the few charter schools that enjoys the security of owning most of its facilities.

The purchase of the new campus property was the result of a decades-long and exhaustive search. As noted in our response to City Council:

There Are No Suitable and Available In-City Locations:

While we appreciate the City’s willingness to work with us on finding an in-city location, those possibilities have been exhausted. In-City sites that meet the minimum requirement of five acres in size are scarce; and California Department of Education guidelines confirm that a school of our capacity is best served by a cam-pus with a minimum of almost nine acres.

Over the past ten years, the school has undertaken a comprehensive search for all properties that could be suitable for a unified campus and that lie within the boundaries of its chartering Sebastopol Union School District. We made offers and generated preliminary design and cost studies on the following properties: the Dei farm on High School Road; the Earth in Upheaval property on South High Street; a parcel behind Andy’s Market; and the old cement plant on Morris Street (a site that we viewed as having real potential until it met with strong disfavor by a City Councilmember).

We also made contact with owners of the Sebastopol Cemetery at the corner of Bodega Highway and Pleas-ant Hill Road, the West County Towing building behind Frizelle Enos, and the Taqueria parcel adjacent to our existing Burnett Street campus. We have discussed the possible purchase of the City parking lot on South High Street and obtained an appraisal of that property. In addition, we reached out to various other owners of large in-City parcels, such as the St. Sebastian Church with its lot on Valentine, the Marlow family with a parcel behind Palm Drive Hospital, and Schellinger Brothers, developers of the Laguna Vista subdivision. Each of the above properties was met with insurmountable obstacles as potential campus sites.

Further, we have made repeated offers to Sebastopol Union School District, the school’s charter authorizer, to purchase or lease a surplus district campus. Despite prolonged, good faith negotiations, SUSD ultimately decided to lease its 11-acre Pine Crest campus to another out-of- district charter school, thus eliminating the only remaining viable in-town solution for our campus needs.

That long search drew to a close in late 2013 with the purchase of our 20- acre property that will become the permanent and unified home for Sebastopol Charter School.