Superintendent’s Update 3/11/09
Posted March 11th, 2009 in High School, Superintendent's Update Comments Off
Thank you parents for all the positive calls, emails, and personally stopping by, not only to my office, but the other administrator’s offices this past week to thank us for the open communication, the answers to questions, and the overall positive progress of programs and facilities in our school.
I had several parents stop by to share how important it is for our parents to support Western. They have made comments such as, “We love Western so much.” “It is a great environment with a Christian education for our kids.” “It is such a great place. Western is our family.” “It is important as our Western family that we value each other, through our words and actions, including our faculty, administration, students, and our parents.” What great words of encouragement, since an important part of the commitment each family makes when they become a Western parent is to fully support your child’s school. We recognize the reputation of Western is an extended reflection of all of our faculty, our students, and our families. We are grateful for your support.
A great verse that we can reinforce at Western for our faculty, students, and families is Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
In a continued effort to provide you the most accurate weekly information, we will continue to send home weekly bulletins (Preschool through High School and a weekly Superintendent’s Update). On behalf of our faculty, administration, and our students, if you have any questions, or concerns that we have not addressed, please come to us directly to resolve your issues. Please do not go to the blogs or the mass emails, but rather come to us, so that together we can make Western the best place for your kids. Please feel free to call, email us, or stop by to share a praise, or give a suggestion. We appreciate and value your input as parents. In fact, I receive some of my greatest input and ideas on a regular basis, from our parents! Thanks for your positive communication!
Enrollment: Enrollment is going very positively with scores of applications received in the last few days. In fact, our overall re-enrollment is up 5% compared to last year, and elementary enrollment is up 10% since last year! Upland Christian School’s enrollment for the Upland campus continues to grow as well, with new applications for all levels coming in to the school and church offices daily. Just a reminder, registration fees go to $300.00 on March 16, 2009. Thanks for your confidence in choosing Western’s education for your child(ren).
Questions and Answers from the Superintendent and District:
** If you missed my last three question and answer letters, you can review them at: www.westernchristian.org/wcs/ucstrans/
Or check out the “News” tab at www.westernchristian.org
Business Office/COO:
Is it true that we are not able to get financing for the Upland property, so we are working to get a lease at Upland?
No, our financing is moving along quite well. Keep in mind we were not able to begin this process officially till the end of January, after the arbitration hearing ended. Bond loans take longer than regular loans, especially in the current complicated banking market. Also, as explained in the various parent meetings since last fall, we began due diligence for the property last fall, including review of over 2,500 official documents as we considered the property and negotiations and many details for the purchase, cost analysis and transition plans. The entire banking industry was practically shut down across the nation last fall, and no funds were being given for bonds, due to the banking crisis across the country.
We are not going to lease the property, which I stated in a previous letter. We hope to have more official news in the very near future.
Clarification regarding tuition between Western and Upland: The current tuition rates and fees for K-8 are closely aligned, with the exception of high school. UCS High School families are grandfathered in at the tuition rates for 2009-2010 through May 2009. In addition, all new students attending UCS will pay the WCS 2009-2010 tuition rates. Upland Christian’s tuition rates for the fall were increased 8% while Western Christian’s tuition rates were increased 3%, in an effort to align the tuition rates from both schools. To clarify more specifically – any one attending Western Christian’s programs Preschool through 8th grade is subject to our Western campus tuition rates, including an Upland parent. In the same way, if a Western parent wants to transfer to the Upland campus, they can do so and the Upland rates would apply (from Preschool through 8th grade). The 7th grade rate at UCS is actually $62.00 more than Western’s (including all fees). It is a common practice in business to “grandfather” in existing prices for a period of time after an acquisition. WCS administration considers this action reasonable as it will allow the UCS families the opportunity to plan in advance for tuition increases. Western parents are still paying their agreed tuition, with the lowest tuition increase in over 12 years.
In addition, Western’s tuition discount for a 2nd child is 10% and Upland’s is only 5% (Ex: if there are two Jr. High students, then the difference is $79 more on the Upland campus than what a parent on Claremont’s campus would pay, because of the lower 2nd child tuition discount granted at Upland).
All of our Western parents have a choice of the school environment they choose for their child. They can choose either the Western or Upland campus (both Western campuses) and each campus comes with a separate, but very similar price. The programs are comparable financially overall and are not in any way a disadvantage to Western parents.
Financial Aid: In an effort to partner with our families during these economic times, we have increased the amount of funding for financial aid the last couple of years. In order to clarify the financial aid process and the assessment of financial aid awarded, we have developed some key steps to help you with the process:
- Students must be registered with WCS or UCS for the 2009-10 school year before completing a financial aid application.
- Obtain the FACTS Grant & Aid Applications from the WCS Business Office on your campus or UCS Main Office and mail to FACTS by June 1, 2009 or you may complete the application on-line for a $20 fee. The on-line option is much more convenient and speeds up the processing time. Copies of tax return for the previous year must be mailed or faxed (1-866-315-9264) to FACTS to verify the assessment. Missing data will result in a delay in processing your application.
- Applications that are mailed to FACTS are processed by FACTS within 2 weeks
- On-line applications are processed by FACTS within 24 hours
If you need assistance, a FACTS Customer Care Representative is available at 1-866-315-9262.
- Provide a letter explaining your need, as this will help us understand your situation much more fully than the financial aid assessment provided by FACTS. Mail or drop off your letter to WCS Business Office attention Janet Walton – Covina campus, Georgia Carpenter – Claremont campus, or Irene Villabolos – UCS Main Office.
FACTS will provide WCS and UCS with a financial aid assessment based on financial need. However, the Financial Aid Committee reviews the entire family situation based on additional information you provide so that we can determine the amount of financial need. In addition, we take into consideration the number of financial aid applicants and the amount of funds we have designated for financial aid.
From the Director of Facilities:
These are the reasons for the parking lot renovations and a list of the new items to be repaired and installed. This project is due to be completed Sunday, March 15, 2009.
Safety Hazards
• Handicap ramp and walkway damaged by tree roots.
• Concrete curb in handicap parking stall damaged by tree roots.
• Main entrance curb and blacktop lifted from tree roots.
• Trees removed that were planted and growing directly into parking lot lights.
• North section plants / weeds were removed for the visibility of children walking across parking lot.
Renovation List
• 25 ft. of walkway repaired (handicap area).
• 10 ft. section of concrete curb and blacktop repaired in handicap parking stall.
• 10 ft section of concrete curb and blacktop repaired in main entrance to the parking lot.
• North and south section of the parking median irrigation removed and repaired due to being damaged beyond repair for over three years.
• 7- 15 gallon Crape Myrtle trees. These replace trees that were removed.
• 85- 5 gallon Phontina center row hedge.
• 340- 1 gallon Clara hedge to run on both sides of center hedge.
• 30 flats of Gazania yellow ground cover to border entire planter.
• 10 flats of annual flowers bordering the two walkways.
This median hedge arrangement is common in the Claremont, Upland and Rancho Cucamonga areas.
Partners together in Christ,
Karen Winter, Superintendent
kwinter@westernchristian.org
909-624-8291 x225
