The WHAT and WHY of FIELDWORK CONTRIBUTIONS at REALMS

6th and 7th Grade Fieldwork Contribution: $125
8th Grade Fieldwork Contribution: $200

What your fieldwork contribution “covers”...
2 night Confluence Overnight - Suttle Lake Camp
2 to 3 night Winter Trip - destination varies based on curriculum
2 to 3 night Spring Trip - this year’s 6th and 7th grade trip will be to Portland
Travel Study for 8th grade
Ropes Course and other “adventure based” learning experiences
Friday afternoon elective programs
Multiple service learning activities and other curriculum based day trips

WHY? The Financial Realities of Charter Schools

Due to the realities and complexities of charter school funding legislation, we operate on approximately 65% to 75% of the per student expenditures of the Bend LaPine School District. It is our goal to "do more with less"!

The combined budget for fieldwork, elective, and service learning experiences for the 2011-12 fiscal year is expected to be approximately $60,000 including food, staffing, logistics planning, transportation, fees etc.

If EVERY REALMS family pays the full fieldwork contribution amount we generate $16,000, under one third of the cost of running a strong fieldwork program at REALMS for all grades. The remaining dollars comes out of our operating budget and fundraising efforts throughout the year.




Powerful learning experiences...
happen when we go beyond the classroom walls and immerse students in real world contexts, where adventure, and experts drive students to achieve more than they thought themselves capable of.

They happen often at REALMS...
because we believe strongly in the power of real experiences as drivers of learning for students. Active learning, service learning, and environmental stewardship are all core components of the REALMS mission.
 
And, they require additional funding...
this kind of learning requires careful planning, small staff-student ratios, extra equipment, transportation, and, of course, money. Your fieldwork fees help make this possible.