St. James' Episcopal School Annual Report: January 2012

Board of Trustees 2011-2012

The Rev. Reggie Payne-Wiens, Chair, ex oficio

St. James’ Episcopal Church

Kent Burress, President

St. James’ Episcopal Church

Judith Rhedin, Vice President

St. James’ Episcopal Church

Jane Pfeiffer Michael, Secretary

St. Michael’s Episcopal Church

Jack Nokes, Treasurer

St. James’ Episcopal Church

Sharon Barnett

Marc Bove

St. David’s Episcopal Church

Jim Crosby

St. James’ Episcopal Church

Nell Dale

St. Michael’s Episcopal Church

Simone Talma Flowers

St. James’ Episcopal Church

Cyrus Helm

First United Methodist Church (Houston)

Jane Ferguson Hill

St. James’ Episcopal Church

Kelvin King

Kimberly Mitchell, Parent Representative

Liz Fleming Powell

St. James’ Episcopal Church

Nicolas Shumway

Christ Church Cathedral (Houston)

Kimberly Wilson Vincent

St. James’ Episcopal Church

Ellen Jockusch, ex oficio

St. David’s Episcopal Church

Administration

Ellen Jockusch, Head of School

Tanya Baston, Director of School Programs and Operations

Sarah Kapostasy, Enrollment and Communications Coordinator

Teaching Staff

Kathie Clark, Assistant Teacher

Juliet Coppinger, Assistant Teacher

Jessica Dorsey, Assistant Teacher

Ashley Fay, Lead Teacher

Anna Kago, Master Teacher

Claire Meade, Lead Teacher

Anita Miranda, Montessori Assistant

Lara Morgan, Lead Teacher

Dianna Morris, Assistant Teacher

Veronica Rodriguez, Montessori Guide (Lead)

Asiya Shereen, Assistant Teacher

LaToyia Sterns, Assistant Teacher

Cook and Kitchen Manager

Angela Morris

The year of 2011 has been one of extraordinary change and growth for St. James’ Episcopal School.  After trying for years without success to meet our enrollment goals offering an exclusively Montessori-based program for children ages 3 to 6, we decided to listen closely to what prospective parents were requesting and to review closely a needs-assessment that was completed in 2009.  Consequently, in April 2011 the Board unanimously approved a proposal to expand our program to accommodate children as young as 18 months and to offer a developmental preschool curriculum with planned learning centers in addition to our Montessori-based curriculum.  In addition, we added two- and three-day options for the new programs (an option which met the needs of parents who either did not need or could not afford a five-day program).  The expansion involved a re-allocation of space to create the three new programs / age groups:  Active Learning (18 to 24 months); Discovery-A (24 to 36 months); and Discovery-B (36 to 48 months); and Discovery-C (4 to 6 years).  Our wonderful Montessori program moved to a new home in the Orange Building.

As a result of this program expansion and the efforts of our Enrollment Coordinator to develop an effective recruiting and retention strategy (very long on being welcoming, following through, and flexible!), our enrollment has increased in the last year beyond our wildest hopes:  in January of 2011, we had 70 children enrolled.  By December 2011, we had 105.  At the time of writing this report, we have three openings in Discovery for 4-6 year olds; all the other programs are full to capacity!  I spoke with Rick Kellogg, the treasurer of our accrediting institution, the Southwestern Association of Episcopal Schools not long ago.  He was pleasantly astonished at our unprecedented enrollment growth, and said that such dramatic growth is rare in the world of Episcopal schools.

We continue to attract a school community that is ethnically, economically, and culturally diverse and to provide scholarship support and / or tuition discounts to approximately 50 percent of our families.  One encouraging trend in the last year is that we are enrolling a higher percentage of Latino/a students.   In January 2011, just over 9 percent of our children were Latino/a; today that figure is 14.4 percent.

SJES forged several significant community partnerships in 2011. In particular, our Discovery Program was selected for a Texas School Ready grant, a kindergarten readiness initiative developed at the Children’s Learning Institute at UT Health Science Center in Houston for which AISD is the lead local partner. By virtue of being selected for this program, we received a $2500 kindergarten-readiness curriculum, an online assessment program that allows parents to see how their children are progressing, and ongoing training for Anna Kago, the Master Teacher for Discovery.  We were also invited to be a partner of ACE (A Community for Education), a program at the prestigious Charles A. Dana Center at UT, through which we have two UT student volunteers who assist in our programs a total of 30 hours every week.  The early childhood experts at ACE also furnished us a supplemental curriculum with materials, as well as providing training and supervision of the interns.  Having this program at SJES has greatly enriched the children’s learning and overall experience.  In addition, through the ACE program, three of our teachers are receiving ongoing professional development at UT, as well as the opportunity to receive a $2700 stipend to continue their education once they complete the professional development. 

In the year 2011 we also strengthened our enrichment program.  Through a grant from the Arts and Fitness Program for Young Children (AFPYC), a non-profit that funds enrichment programs in underserved preschools and early childhood centers, on a weekly basis we are able to offer our children music, creative drama, fitness, and art.  These classes are taught by professionals, such as teachers from Gym Magic and Abrakadoodle, who specialize in arts and fitness for young children.  In addition, we offer age-appropriate Spanish instruction twice weekly to our children age three and above.  All of these enrichment activities are included in the cost of child’s tuition (i.e., they are not an additional expense to parents).

In August 2011, in response to parent requests, we launched a USDA Food Program which enables us to provide a nutritionally balanced breakfast, lunch, and snack every day to every child, at no additional cost to their parents.  This is a great service to our parents.  The USDA reimburses SJES for grocery expenses.  Children and staff eat family-style at tables in the Purple Building, and parents have an open invitation to join them. In addition to providing nutritious meals, the Food Program promotes parents’ awareness of healthy eating and encourages conversation and interaction among children and staff. 

As most of you know, in order to provide tuition assistance through our scholarship program and to fund operating expenses that are not covered by tuition revenue, we must raise funds yearly in our Annual Giving Campaign.  Our overall fundraising goal for fiscal year 2010-2011 (August 1-July 31) was $300,000; we raised $356,000, substantially exceeding the $300K goal.  In addition to numerous generous individual supporters, we received grants from the Burdine Johnson Foundation, Catto Charitable Foundation, Dodge Jones Foundation, Helm Foundation, Houstoun Foundation, and Lowe Foundation.

Last but definitely not least, I am very heartened by the positive interactions and sense of community among our parents and between school staff and parents.  Parents actively volunteer at the school, and an average of 16 parents—from all walks of life—regularly attend our Parent Advisory Council (aka PTA) meetings.  Their experience at St. James’ is a training ground for parents to practice and learn how to be constructively involved in their child’s education and schooling—a practice that will benefit their child in elementary school and beyond.  Whether their child attends SJES with a subsidy from Salvation Army or WorkForce, or whether they are able to pay full tuition, parents feel welcomed and valued at St. James’ Episcopal School as people beloved of God, just as their children are.  We hear this in different ways, again and again. from parents. 

In closing, I want to express my gratitude for the many ways the parish supports the school—referrals (of prospective families), allowing us to use the sanctuary and Founders Hall, the helpfulness of your parish administrators, and the great service rendered to the school by parishioners who serve on our Board of Trustees and ad hoc committees.  I’m also very grateful to the generous and faithful financial support we receive from individual parishioners.  Your school—St. James’ Episcopal School—is  having a significant positive impact on the lives of children and families in East Austin, and I ask for your continued prayers and support. 

Ellen Jockusch

Head of School

January 10, 2012