On Monday, October 1, Mrs. Bach and Donna Nelson, Economic Vitality Specialist, visited James Irwin Charter Schools. Welcomed by Debbie Swanson, Development Director and Jonathan Berg, CEO, the two toured the elementary, middle and high schools to see the great things that are happening at James Irwin. After an introductory meeting, Mrs. Bach and Donna had the chance to observe Ms. Fisher’s 5th grade class and see the school’s Direct Instruction and Core Knowledge principles at work. Mrs. Bach said, “I was very impressed.” She also spoke to the students for a few minutes about character and ways to help the community, especially after incidents like the Waldo Canyon Fire. Many of the students were familiar with helping out, as the school participated in the Care and Share food drive following the fire. “Even something as simple as a smile can brighten someone’s day,” she said.
James Irwin is a college preparatory school that challenges students to develop character and achieve their academic potential. Currently they serve about 1400 students and want to expand throughout the community. Plans include building a new three story library, ball fields and community gardens to support the surrounding community and teach new life skills to students. They are also planning to open a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) Academy as well as a Trade School to prepare students that are interested in becoming highly skilled manufacturers – a need that was illustrated in a Wall Street Journal article stating that there are 600,000 skilled manufacturing jobs open in the U.S. today. By beginning training as early as middle school, James Irwin Charter Schools hope to lead the way to develop more engineers and skilled laborers.
James Irwin welcomes guests to tour and observe their schools anytime. Call 719-302-9006 to arrange a visit and for more information.
