Cheyenne Mountain Charter Academy
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The Vanguard School (TVS) is a public
charter school A charter school is a school that receives government funding but operates independently of the established state school system in which it is located. It is independent in the sense that it operates according to the basic principle of auto ...
in
Colorado Springs, Colorado Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...
, United States. Founded as the Cheyenne Mountain Charter Academy (CMCA) in 1995, it is chartered with the
Harrison School District 2 Harrison School District 2 is the southern school district of Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States. it had about 11,000 students. List of schools ElementaryBricker Elementary School *Centennial Elementary School *Giberson Elementary Sc ...
. Originally founded as a K–6 charter school, the school expanded to a K–12 school by 2006, and it graduated its first class of seniors in 2010.


History

The Vanguard School was founded in the fall of 1995 as the Cheyenne Mountain Charter Academy. The school was originally created as a K–6 school chartered with the Cheyenne Mountain School District 12. The high school program was approved in 2006. In 2021, the school's charter changed to the
Harrison School District 2 Harrison School District 2 is the southern school district of Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States. it had about 11,000 students. List of schools ElementaryBricker Elementary School *Centennial Elementary School *Giberson Elementary Sc ...
.


Disability discrimination lawsuit

In 2014, the school denied an autistic six-year-old student re-enrollment because of its inability to hire staff to care for the student during the day. The mother of the student sued the school district in response, citing the
Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a piece of American legislation that ensures students with a disability are provided with a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) that is tailored to their individual needs. IDEA wa ...
and claiming that not allowing her student re-enrollment would cause him "irreparable harm." The family was able to keep their son enrolled in the school, but they sued the school district again in 2019 because the school did not provide the student with appropriate accommodations. They ultimately lost the case.


Academics


Enrollment

Students at the Vanguard School are enrolled by a lottery system. Incoming students for the first through eleventh grades require a placement test. In the lottery, students are ranked by priority group, with the children of staff having the highest priority, followed by students in
District 2 District 2 may refer to: Places by country *II District, Turku, in Finland * District 2, Düsseldorf, Germany *District 2, Grand Bassa County, a district in Liberia *District 2, an electoral district of Malta *District 2, a police district of Mal ...
, followed by other students. The school does not accept new twelfth grade students.


Curriculum

The Vanguard School follows the E. D. Hirsh Core Knowledge curriculum. The schools offers its students thirteen
Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board which offers college-level curricula and examinations to high school students. American colleges and universities may grant placement and course ...
courses, and about four-fifths of high school students participate


Extracurriculars


Athletics

The Vanguard School competes at the 3A level in the Tri-Peaks League of the
Colorado High School Activities Association The Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) is the governing body for all high school activities throughout the state of Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United Sta ...
. The school offers eleven sports for high school students, including volleyball, soccer, tennis, cross country, basketball, cheer-leading and track and field. The school also operates a boys' club volleyball team, created in 2013, eight years before CHSAA will officially introduce the sport. This team has won the Colorado 3A championship for three years, from 2016 to 2018.


Team America Rocketry Challenge

The Vanguard School has participated in
Team America Rocketry Challenge The American Rocketry Challenge is an annual American model rocketry competition for students in grades six to 12 sponsored by the Aerospace Industries Association and the National Association of Rocketry. Co-sponsors include NASA, United States ...
since 2002. The team made it to the national final competition several times in its history, in 2006, 2008, 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2019, with its best performance being its fifth-place in the 2008 contest.


Campuses

The Vanguard School operates two campuses near downtown
Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...
.


Wahsatch campus

The Wahsatch campus is located at 1832 South Wahsatch Avenue. It is the location of the building that serves grades K–3 and is the campus where the school originally operated at.


Corona campus

The Corona campus is located at 1605 South Corona Avenue. It is the campus where grades 4–12 are held. The campus has four buildings that are used for classes, as well as a separate building for a gymnasium, weight room and storage rooms. There is also a collection of buildings that consists of a weight room and some extra classrooms and storage rooms. The school's campus is in the middle of a neighborhood known for crime. The Executive Director has raised concerns with City Council, and there are occasional incidents. In 2018, a woman was arrested for carrying knives and samurai swords onto the campus.


Notable people


Staff

*
Bob Gardner Robert S. Gardner (born c. 1954) is a legislator in the U.S. state of Colorado. A United States Air Force veteran and attorney, Gardner was elected to the Colorado House of Representatives as a Republican in 2006. From 2006 to 2012, he represen ...
, politician *
Keith King Keith King (born March 12, 1948, in Tekoa, Washington) is Republican politician from Colorado. A former small businessman, he served in both the Colorado House of Representatives and the Colorado Senate. Later, he served on the Colorado Spri ...
, politician *
Peggy Littleton Peggy Littleton (Propst) is a candidate for Colorado State Board of Education, Congressional District 8. She was the county commissioner for El Paso County, Colorado. Her Commissioner District 5 jurisdiction is over El Paso County, Colorado, ...
, politician


References


External links

* {{authority control Public high schools in Colorado Charter schools in Colorado High schools in Colorado Springs, Colorado Educational institutions established in 1995 1995 establishments in Colorado