Overview:
In a few short years, the Blue School has emerged as one of the most exciting options for early childhood education in New York.  Yet, we also know that building the best possible environment to prepare students for the challenges of the 21st century is an ongoing process and we still have a long way to go to achieve several of our goals.  To these ends, we are seeking the help from donors of all levels who will fund the next stage of our development as well as achieve our underlying objective:  to educate creative, joyful, compassionate, and deeply adaptable children who can become the leaders of their generation.

Four Key Initiatives

1) Program Enhancement
The Blue School is fortunate to attract and retain exceptional teachers who have a genuine passion for working with young children.  These educators engage students in many subject areas and in a variety of pedagogies.  But to cultivate inquirers who not only have a strong foundation in the core subjects but can also adapt to all of the challenges they will face in their lifetime, it is best to have teams of teachers working together in every class.  To these ends, we are seeking funding for specialists in visual and performing arts, science, and foreign language to play active part in each classroom and with every student.

2) Creation, Documentation and Dissemination of Blue School Curriculum
The Blue School actively engages teachers, early childhood specialists, and world-renown scholars in the field of education to implement the latest theories in pedagogy and curriculum.  Our methods focus on providing children with the tools they need to succeed with a special emphasis on social and emotional learning. With thorough research, documentation, and curriculum implementation, we believe our innovative approach to learning can provide a spark that helps to change the way children learn around the world.  Funding in this area will help us ensure that we are achieving the best possible learning objectives and that we can share our results with children, teachers and parents in both public and private schools.

3) Tuition Assistance Fund
Great education is expensive.  Hiring the best teachers, providing beautiful facilities and a variety of supplies, and doing all of the little things that set the Blue School apart all cost money.  These are some of the reasons we are able to attract hundreds of applications from new families each year.  But we also want our school to reflect the communities around us.  To this end, we hope to expand our tuition assistance program so that families of every cultural and socio-economic background can consider a Blue School education for their children regardless of financial circumstances.  Funds go directly to the families with exceptionally bright and motivated children who need it most.

4)  Facility Renovation and Expansion
The Blue School is fortunate to have two great locations that can accommodate up to five classes of children.  But our immediate goal is to continue to expand our facilities to offer as many as nine classes, serving children from the age of two until the 5th grade.  To do this, we need to renovate existing spaces and rent or purchase a new facility by 2011.  This goal not only ensures the School’s organic growth of one grade level per year, it also allows us to build all aspects of our program in both a responsible and sustainable way while serving greater numbers of children from the local communities in programs throughout the week.