Eagle Creek Academy Principal Sets New Goals for New School Year

At in Oakland Township, the start of the school year isn't just about new teachers, new school supplies, new clothes and new friends.

It's about new goals, too.

"This is our seventh year here," Principal Cathy Rondeau said. And this year, Rondeau, who has served as principal of Eagle Creek Academy since she helped open the school in 2005, said she has several new goals in mind for her students, staff and school.

Not all about enrollment

Eagle Creek Academy, which is nationally accredited and serves students from 3 years through eighth grade, has grown from 65 students when it opened in 2005 to 160 students this school year.

And while boosting enrollment is on Rondeau's list of things to do, it's not a primary concern for the veteran teacher, who has spent more than 20 years in education.

"The most important thing is to build (the students') self-confidence," she said.

The school accomplishes this by teaching the students based on their interests, abilities and needs, Rondeau said, and by offering electives and activities based on the students' interests.

"We want to add as much variety as possible and to add extra classes," Rondeau said.

Current and past electives and clubs include robotics, Legos, radio-controlled cars, scooter hockey, cooking, gymnastics and soccer.

"It's a continual goal to add variety to electives," she said.

Becoming an International Baccalaureate School

Rondeau's primary goal for this school year is to have all of her teachers become International Baccalaureate (IB) certified.

"The reason we're doing it is because we want to teach the kids the skills they need to be successful," Rondeau said. "We want them to have a wider understanding of why the world is the way it is. ... You want them to think with purpose."

Rondeau has already sent several teachers to seminars and plans to send more this November. She hopes to have all of her teachers certified by the end of this school year.

"I just want the teachers trained in the IB methodology," Rondeau said.

Teaching the teachers

In addition to IB certification, Rondeau hopes that all of her teachers will soon also possess graduate degrees.

Currently, Rondeau estimates about 75 percent of her teachers have a master's degree in education, though she hopes that number will soon be 100 percent.

Rondeau adds that her teachers are all seasoned educators with at least a decade or more of professional experience in the field of education.

"This group of teachers is very experienced," she said. "It's inspiring to work with people who've been in education for so long."

Rent-a-school

Rondeau's final goal for this school year is to rent out its facilities in order to generate more revenue for the school, Rondeau said.

The money the school makes from rentals is used for anything from purchasing new computers to funding a variety of activities and clubs for students. And since the school is nonprofit, any excess money left over at the end of the year is rolled over into the next year, Rondeau said.

Some of the money the school makes from rentals may also be added to the school's financial aid fund, which helps pay tuition for students whose families qualify for assistance.

"In the last seven years, we've focused on students and not on rentals," Rondeau said, adding that much of the building's 55,000 square feet are available for rental — including the gymnasium and its stage, the school's soccer fields, its commercial kitchen and much of the 20 acres on which the school sits.

"We feel lucky we have the ability to rent out our facilities," she added.

For more information on Eagle Creek Academy, visit www.eaglecreekacademy.com. For facility rental information, click here.