On Wednesday, October 11th, Mayor Bach spoke during the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Community Field at Atlas Preparatory School. The field was made possible due to the generous donation of the artificial turf from Washburn Field at Colorado College. The Mayor was joined onstage by Atlas Preparatory Founder and Executive Director Zach McComsey, scholar Maxine Verdugo, President of Colorado College Jill Tiefenthaler, and Altas Preparatory Board Chair Rick Mueller.
Atlas Preparatory was founded in 2008 to close the achievement gap between lower-income students and their more affluent peers. Their growth in four short years has been tremendous. Beginning in the 2012-2013 school year, thanks to generous donations from the El Pomar Foundation, the Joseph Henry Edmondson Foundation, the Chapman Foundation, the Anschutz Foundation, the Colorado Health Foundation, the Daniels Fund, the Walton Family Foundation, the Gates Family Foundation, and Colorado College, the school is adding new buildings to go along with the new turf field. This expansion is in anticipation of growth and the beginning of the Atlas Preparatory High School in the 2013-2014 school year.
During his remarks, Mayor Bach complimented the staff, teachers, students, and parents who have made the school the success that it is. He also thanked School District 2 for their strong working relationship with the Preparatory School. He encouraged the students to stay in school, stressing their importance to the future of Colorado Springs. He closed by saying, “Don’t ever let someone tell you you can’t do anything. If a Private in the Army can become the Mayor, any of you can become President one day!”
