St. Augustine Public Montessori School back in the black after financial struggles. (SAR)

Good work.  Good news.

Three cheers for the St. Augustine Montessori School and its students, teachers, parents and St. Johns County School Board.  I hope the Montessori School will thrive.

If only other charter schools had curricula that encouraged creativity and critical thinking skills.

From St. Augustine Record:


St. Augustine Public Montessori School back in the black after financial struggles
By Travis Gibson tgibson@staugustine.com
St. Augustine Record
Posted at 7:23 PM


After a school year marked by financial struggles, deAnne DeLeon had a tall task in front of her when she took over as director at St. Augustine Public Montessori School before the start of the current school year.

“The trust issues were my biggest challenge,” DeLeon told The Record over the phone on Saturday. “A lot of families didn’t know me. I had to prove who I was and was I invested.”

DeLeon, who took over for interim director Danielle Billingsley at the public charter school, said there was hesitation by some at first, but after a meeting with parents of more than 140 students she feels welcomed at the school.

“We had a lot of hesitation in the beginning because I kind of phased a lot of things out, but it has been great,” she said. “I have been well received, and the community has been very strong and ready to embrace a lot of change.”

DeLeon, who served on the school’s board three years ago and has a background as a private Montessori school teacher at The Discovery School in Jacksonville, said she feels like she was hired in part for her financial acumen following the issues at the school last year. She holds an accounting degree and MBA, she said.

In December 2018, the school was predicting to be $150,000 in the hole by the end of the fiscal year, according to district Chief Financial Officer Michael Degutis. Then, the St. Johns County School District stepped in and helped come up with a path out of debt.

The school retooled, brought in new employees, consolidated jobs and cut back on expenses — and it worked.

When the fiscal year closed on June 30, the school came out $40,000 ahead, Degutis said.

“The last half of the year they really shored things up quite a bit,” he added. “They still took a hit of about $38,000 during the year, but they are in a good place now.”

DeLeon said the school has also added a treasurer who has an accounting degree and hired an accounting firm that specialized in charter schools.

One reason the school is in a good place is due to the enrollment numbers being higher than expected. The school projected 140 students would attend for the 2019-2020 school year, but after the first 10 days of school, the school has 144 students. Last year, lower-than-expected enrollment numbers contributed to the financial woes.

“It is very encouraging,” DeLeon said. “We are excited to meet the need that St. Augustine has for Montesorri.”

Part of meeting that need, according to DeLeon, is a focus on teachers. After a lot of teacher turnover last year, DeLeon said the school hired “a lot of strong Montessori teachers” and all teachers either have a FL teacher certification or are in the process of getting one.

Degutis said the district will continue to keep an eye on the schools finances, as it does for all schools, and make sure everything runs smoothly through the year.

As for DeLeon, she is focusing on getting processes in order and building community.

“The school has gone through a lot,” she said. “Having a nice even year would be a great to build community.”