New charter school in Fruitland enrolls a few Weiser students

A dozen students in grades kindergarten through the sixth grade who reside in the Weiser School District have enrolled at the new Treasure Valley Classic Academy in Fruitland for the fall term.
 Based on his discussions with local principals, Weiser School District superintendent Wade Wilson said 10-12 students is an accurate number. Local school administrators won’t know for sure until classes start this week.
 In June, TVCA principal Steve Lambert also said that 12 students in grades K-6 from Weiser had been accepted. Some of those students in the Weiser district who plan to attend the charter school have been home-schooled.
 Asked for an updated enrollment number last week, Lambert said he knew some students residing in the Weiser School District were planning to attend but he didn’t have an exact number.
 “I know there are some, but it’s not a whole lot,” he said.
 Treasure Valley Classical Academy is an open enrollment, tuition-free public charter school that is not associated with the Fruitland School District. TVCA received a charter from the state to operate as a public charter school and is opening its doors for the first time on Aug. 22.
 TVCA will open for students in grades K-6 and will expand by adding one grade each year until the school reaches K-12 status. All Treasure Valley students are eligible to attend the charter school, with seats filled through a lottery system.
 The charter school anticipates the enrollment to come primarily from Fruitland, Payette, and New Plymouth, although it’s open to any student. TVCA does not have a transportation plan, so parents would have to transport their children to Fruitland to attend.
 Former Weiser superintendent Wil Overgaard said in June that anytime students enroll in a school outside of the home district there is an impact. It will be even more apparent when the state moves to an enrollment-based funding formula in the future.
 Offsetting the loss of the 10-12 Weiser students to the charter school are the 25 open enrollment applications the Weiser School District has accepted from students living outside the district boundaries. Weiser has always had requests, but this spring the number went up, primarily from Payette, Overgaard said.
 Additionally, Weiser enrolls most if not all of the Annex high school students. The state of Oregon pays tuition for the nearly 18 Annex High School students that will attend Weiser High School next year.
 TVCA will offer a classical education devoted to teaching the classical liberal arts and sciences, according to a school news release, as well as instruction in principles of moral character and virtue. The charter school is a member of the Hillsdale College-Barney Charter School Initiative, according to the school’s website.
 Hillsdale College will assist TVCA in creating and implementing a challenging and engaging academic program, and providing the curriculum design and teacher training that will serve as the foundation for a liberal and civic education.
 The emphasis of the curriculum developed by Hillsdale College is on the core disciplines of math, science, history and language arts, followed by attention to music, art and foreign languages. Each of these disciplines is taught with an emphasis on the history and traditions of American citizens as the inheritors of Western Civilization, school officials said.
 The charter school will be located in the historic Old School building at 500 SW 3rd St. in Fruitland. The building has undergone an extensive renovation over the past year.  It was preserved over the years through community support and a local nonprofit foundation.