On the heels of a successful unanimous five-year charter renewal, Visions In Education hosted an open house for policymakers on January 22nd to continue the conversation about the role high-quality nonclassroom-based charter schools play in public education. Representatives and staffers from both the State Senate and State Assembly and educational partners from our community turned out to hear more about how charter schools can meet the diverse needs of California students while being accountable to families and taxpayers. This meeting builds on the legislative outreach and bill sponsorship Visions worked on last year as we continue into the next legislative session, which will likely focus on charter school quality and accountability. 

“I am grateful for the opportunity to have fruitful conversations about the realities of nonclassroom-based charters,” says Superintendent Olmos. “There are still a lot of misconceptions about what charter schools—specifically nonclassroom-based charter schools—are and how we serve our students. We strive to be an exemplary member of the public school community and are relentlessly focused on meeting the needs of our students and being accountable to taxpayers. As one of California’s largest and oldest charter schools, we are eager to be a resource for policymakers as they consider critical updates to charter school policies.” 

“This is a great opportunity for us to share all the great things we’re doing at Visions with the broader community,” said Chief Operations Officer Tafoya. “We’re growing and serving a more diverse community with challenging backgrounds; that is worth celebrating.” 

“Today’s visit provided a wonderful opportunity to highlight the hard work of our teachers and students, who made a positive impression on all of our visitors,” said Chief Academic Officer Micah Studer. “We sincerely appreciate everyone who contributed to the event, with special thanks to Betty Brady and Georgina Rios for their efforts in creating a welcoming environment for our guests. We’re grateful for the opportunity to demonstrate why it’s ‘Good to be Visions.’”

Guests were hosted by Superintendent Steve Olmos, Chief Academic Officer Micah Studer, Chief Operations Officer Tom Tafoya, Board Chairperson Mark Holman, and other Instructional Leaders at our Carmichael office. They enjoyed a brief presentation before getting the opportunity to sit in on a few virtual classrooms to see our teachers and students in action. A special thank you to Patrice Boyan, Sarah Short, Katie Kearns, Christina McKinnis, Julie Winalski, Monique Maher, Lesley Storz, and Nancy Ortner, who volunteered to represent Visions In Education.