MVSD is excited to announce that Sara Mounsey, Independent Learning Center (ILC) Advisor, has been selected to be part of the first cohort of School Foundry, a new innovative leadership incubator being launched by Big Picture Learning (BPL) in partnership with Gonzaga University.
Many of you have followed the transformation of the ILC over the past few years, led by Sara and her colleague Kim Odell. Other districts also have taken notice, with several expressing interest in learning from this work. Funded by the ECMC Foundation, School Foundry will support Sara and four other fellows from around the state to develop new school designs to be launched the following year. Because we already have the ILC, Sara’s project work next year will involve strengthening the ILC while working with other rural districts to replicate this approach and launch their own new programs the following school year.
The partnership with Gonzaga will allow Sara to earn a Washington state principal credential through her year in the fellowship. She will also continue to work closely with BPL and receive additional mentoring from nationally recognized school founders and equity leaders.
Jeff Petty, BPL’s regional director and the developer of School Foundry, says, “We are really excited to bring Sara’s energy and insights into this first cohort and also to help other districts benefit from Methow Valley’s leadership in developing such an engaging and successful small school.”
Please join us as we congratulate Sara Mounsey!