What we use our donations for*
Supporting existing academic programs
Some of our notable programs and attributes are:
In all subjects: we maintain small class sizes (maximum 15, median 10, average 9), enabling all students to have individual attention
Classes in Mandarin Chinese and Spanish: our teacher is a Nanjing-born native speaker and the recipient of awards from the Chinese government for teaching Chinese to non-native speakers
Middle school: we created a wide and deep curriculum with advanced science and technology classes and special classes in social studies, computer programming, special topics (recently, Chinese history and geography, biogeography)
Special facilities and equipment: we have high-tech laboratory equipment and supplies, both from new purchases made with donated funds and from the long scientific careers of our science teachers. We have a networked weather station with extra sensors for solar radiation and sky radiative temperature
Student projects: a notable one is construction of a light-up periodic table of the chemical elements controlled by a Raspberry Pi computer and our own custom-designed and custom–made logic board
Singapore math: we use it throughout the grades
Expert teachers: We keep up our competitive salary rates, which are also equal across all teachers as a principle of ours. We get donations of teaching equipment and supplies, supplementing the purchases we make from donated funds.
Supporting the students’ physical, emotional, and social growth:
Playground and sports equipment: many items, such as play houses and a tennis ball-return net, are from direct donations of goods, while others, such as tennis racquets, tumbling mats for playground safety, a climbing dome, and a teeter-totter, are from donated funds. We are looking at upgrades in the play area surfacing.
We have supported teacher training in sex education and in phonics / dyslexia remediation.
* Did you notice the dangling preposition? Grammarians are OK with them; they’re a natural part of speech