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It’s now official! On June 16, 1987, The
Stelle Group’s Learning
Center was granted Full
Recognition by the Illinois State Board of Education. (See letter on opposite
page.)
The Stelle Group
Learning Center
has for many years provided a high quality educational experience that
includes a strong academic program as well as emphasis on the development of
character, cooperation, and sturdy self-esteem. Full Recognition by the State
Board of Education allows the school to issue high school diplomas that are
more readily accepted by colleges and also simplifies the process of
transferring a child to another school. Primarily, though, State Recognition
offers an authoritative second opinion that reinforces the judgment of
parents who decide to enroll their children in the school.
In order to become Fully Recognized, the
learning center had to first submit an application and then meet the criteria
established by the Illinois Board of Education. Nancy Roehm, administrator of
the Learning Center, submitted the initial
application for Recognition in late 1984. She had to submit a detailed
program statement in addition to a summary outline of the schools curriculum.
In the Spring of 1986, a review committee
from the State of Illinois
visited Stelle to observe the school in operation and to review the written
materials being used. The State’s review committee indicated satisfaction
with the quality of education being provided by the school, but, because of
the innovative approach being used, the committee expressed a concern which
they referred to as “assurance of continuity.” In other words, the committee
wanted some assurance that the curriculum and policies of the school would
remain relatively constant from year to year and that there would be a formal
procedure in place to adopt and document any changes of curriculum or policy.
With this encouraging feedback, Nancy assembled and
updated existing policy statements into a Policy Manual. In addition, she
created a detailed Curriculum Guide that included the objectives for each of
the many courses offered by the school. She then contacted the State to
arrange another review.
In May 1987, the review committee once
again visited the Learning
Center. Nancy answered the
committee’s questions and then the review committee met in private to make
their decision. When they emerged, the committee told Nancy that they had unanimously decided to
grant The Stelle Learning Center Full Recognition!
One of the committee representatives stated
that the Learning
Center was the smallest
school the State had ever Recognized. Small schools usually don’t have the
resources to meet the State’s curriculum and program criteria.
The State of Illinois has Recognized our school. This
seems a most appropriate time for The Stelle Group to recognize the
commitment to educational excellence demonstrated by the school staff,
parents, students, and the many financial supporters of The Stelle Group;
because of them, there is a Stelle school to recognize. ∆
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