Mountain Middle School

“A draft pdf of the form 990 is provided to the board of directors for review and approval. Upon approval of the form 990 the return is released to the irs.”

“Board members shall report any actual or potential conflicts of interest in writing to the board prior to the time set for voting on any such transaction, shall recuse themselves from discussion and voting on the matter(s), and shall not attempt to influence the decision(s) of other board members in voting on the matter. The written disclosures will be attached to the minutes of the meeting in which board action occurred relating to the matter disclosed.”

“The compensation for the head of school is reviewed and approved by the board of directors. The board treasurer and president use composite data to inform the compensation decision that includes compensation schedules of other schools within districts surrounding mountain middle school as well as across the state of colorado, particularly in state and institute charter schools, considering variables such as budgets and school size and head of school duties similar to those at mountian middle school. The president and treasurer will discuss conpensation negotiations with the head of school and take those negotiations to the entire board for approval. Compensation in years after the first year of employment will also be determined by performance of the school as a whole as well as the head of school, in particular, the achievement of goals that were mutually set by the head of school and board of directors.”

“The compensation for key employees is reviewed and approved by the heado of school. The head of school uses compensation schedules of other schools within districts surrounding mountain middle school as well as across the state of colorado, particularly in state and institute charter schools, considering variables such as budgets and school size and the key employee's responsibilites similar to those at mountian middle school. The head of school handles the conpensation negotiations.”

“The organization's form 990 is available upon request and at www.guidestar.org.”

“The organization makes its governing documents, conflict of interest policy and financial statements available to the public upon request.”

“Mountain middle school (mms or the school), a colorado non-profit corporation, was created in 2009 pursuant to the colorado charter schools act to form and operate a charter school located in durango, colorado. In 2011 the school entered into a contract with the colorado charter school institute (the institute) to authorize the school for an initial term of three years, to june 30, 2014. The school began operations in august, 2011. In 2016, the school received csi approval for a five year charter contract that goes through july 1, 2021.”

“2020-2021 accomplishments: mountain middle school, a project-based learning charter school, served 240 students in grades 4-8 in durango, colorado. The school year 2020/21 was the tenth year of operation for mms. The school has earned an accreditation ration of distinction in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020. The 4th and 5th grades completed their third year of operation reaching an accreditation rating of distinction. Mountain middle school's design sprung from community concern about the lack of growth seen in high performing middle school students in the durango area, as well as concerns regarding school culture and student - teacher interaction. As a result, mms adopted five core beliefs in middle level education as the founding principles for effective middle level education. Each student deserves: an individualized curriculum that is designed on the needs, strengths, abilities, and learning style of each student to maximize student achievement; an environment reinforcing the belief that every individual has a unique potential that can be developed, while understanding that not every student can be successful all of the time; an open and receptive atmosphere that respects and encourages the individual ideas and intellectual pursuits of every student and faculty member; an environment where faculty, staff, and administrators lead by example for student attainment of honesty, respect for others, truth, and therefore selflessness; fostering meaningful student-faculty interaction; and instructors that receive continuing education on the cognitive, academic and emotional benefits of project- based learning and teaching methodologies relevant for 4th - 8th graders. These beliefs are expected to guide programming, as well as sound decision-making in supporting academic excellence for all mms students. These core values were a result of community input and the analysis of data from the existing middle schools in the durango community as part of its development. The uip was created from input provided by staff, school board, and our sac committee. Our sac committee is composed of board members, parents, teachers, and community members. Together we analyzed all data and formulated targeted goals to improve our student's academic performance and close achievement gaps. 2021-2022 goals: school conditions goal: student-teacher interaction & school culture i can actively participate in developing a student-centered, resilient ecosystem focused on the joy of learning, trust, high expectations and accountability; a culture where students are taught to be the leaders of their own behavior and learning so they can be prepared to reach their social and academic potential and own their future. (student success team -sst led by our dean of students) - i can overtly and directly articulate and teach behaviors and aspects of the habits of heart and mind/agency outcomes necessary for success. - i can help students become organized and self-directed in order to own their learning and behavior by writing goals and reflections aligned with the performance outcome language. - i can incorporate sources of strength into my advisory lessons. - i can contribute to a culture and climate conducive to excellent behavior and performance for all students and staff. - i can be accountable for my responsibilities as a student and staff member. (inclusion, co-teaching, etc.) - i can manage my energy to be my best self. - i can help students contribute to the school community and culture by following our school's mission and vision. - i can help students prepare for success in high school as citizen scholars in order to be successful in college and beyond. Student achievement goal: academic growth and achievement i can enhance my project-based learning instructional methods by participating in ongoing feedback and instructional coaching to foster and build a student centered culture that consistently produces strong academic growth, achievement, engagement, and stud”