On Jan. 12, the Falcon School District 49 Board of Education unanimously approved the charter school application for the Colorado Military Academy. The CMA will be the districtís seventh charter school.Andy Franko, D 49 iConnect zone leader, said the school is a good fit for the district primarily because so many students and their families are affiliated with the military. ìThe district promises to meet the needs of its students, and this school offers a specific education model not currently offered,î he said. ìThe school has promised a high-quality education for its students, but purposefully plans to serve a population of students that we are under-servicing at this point.îJohn Evans, executive director and commandant of CMA, said the schoolís vision is to have an opportunity to develop children for 21st century jobs and careers that do not exist yet. ìWe want to develop them as leaders, and the traditions and leadership aspects of the military provide that,î he said.The school will offer a science, technology, engineering, arts, mathematics and business curriculum through project-based learning, Evans said. All teachers are licensed but do not necessarily have a military background, he said. ìOur teachers are trained through the School Leaders of American Charter College Education program,î Evans said. Additionally, the school will offer physical education and athletic programs to the students, he said.Through the idea of ìesprit de corps,î students will understand the importance of teamwork emphasized through a chain of command similar to the militaryís, Franko said.When classes begin Aug. 14, the school will serve students in kindergarten through ninth grade, and add 10th, 11th, and 12th grades one year at a time, Franko said. Although students will be required to wear uniforms, CMA is not a military reform school, he said.Evans said the school is located outside the northern-most border of Peterson Air Force Base, and the first floor of the current 87,000-square-foot facility will be remodeled starting April 1. He said CMA anticipates that the first floor remodeling phase will be completed by July 27, and the upper floor remodeling phase will start in the fall. CMA has also proposed a 48,000-square-foot addition, adjacent to the existing facility and a 5-acre practice field and surrounding track, he said.Rather than burden D 49 with trying to bus students to the facility, Evans said CMA will employ a private shuttle service to help get kids to school and keep them safe.Funding for CMA comes from the state just as any other public schoolís funding does, Evans said. And all students are eligible to apply.ìThe Colorado Military Academy will provide a dynamic educational environment that can change as the world changes,î he said.
