***Short answer (1 paragraph each)}

1. Description of project

2. Summary of Future Plans

3. Program Objectives (list)

***Program Proposal: Long answers (1-2 pages each):}

A. Program Description

B. Statement of Experience and Commitment

C. Action Plan and Budget



1. please type a one-paragraph description of your project:}

In June, 1997, I will establish the Hurricane Hill School in East
Randolph, VT.  Hurricane Hill School will have two integrated
functions: to provide a personalized curriculum for elementary school
students, and to provide internships to complement the studies of
undergraduate students in the liberal arts.  The school will be
organized into two sessions: summer and school-year. The two sessions
will share a common philosophy and structure, although the activities
and location will be different.  Hurricane Hill School will operate as
its own non-profit corporation in cooperation with several colleges.

\vspace{.2in}

{\bf 2. Summary of future plans: In the space below, please describe
what you see yourself doing 5 years from now? ten years from now?  we
realize nothing is definite, but where do you see yourself going?}

I think the concept I am working with has tremendous potential to
influence modern education, and I expect to be dedicated to the
application of this concept for at least five years.  During this
time, I will be reaching out to particular individuals who are capable
of starting similar schools elsewhere, and helping them to start those
schools.  I may also work to develop connections to high schools to
include high school students in these projects.  Two further
possibilities for future work are working with established networks of
colleges and elementary schools to apply this model more broadly, and
writing about the model.

%\newpage

\vspace{.2in}

{\bf 3. Program Objectives 2. please type a list of program objectives
you hope to achieve during the first year of your program's existence.
You should establish challenging yet achievable objectives in the
areas relevant to your program, such as fundraising, program
development, organizational development, and community outreach 1 page}

{\em Financial:}

---Raise at least half of the operating budget
through foundations and private donations; 

---Operate at a total
per-pupil cost for elementary school students not to exceed the
equivalent in the public schools;

---Raise enough funds to guarantee the expenses of the following
summer's program (more if possible)

{\em Program Establishment:}

---Develop a working model operating at a minimum
of 70\% capacity by midyear so that the school can be operating at
full capacity in midyear of the second year of operation;

 ---Develop a
relationship with several colleges which will regularly send 1-4
interns per year; 

---Develop a relationship with the public and the public schools so
that the Hurricane Hill School is understood to be an ally, whereby
the children whom we will best be able to help are referred to the
school.

***Program Proposal***

\begin{center}
{\em Program Rationale}
\end{center}

The Hurricane Hill School addresses several important problems in
education.  Most importantly among these are the inability of current
public schools to meet the developmental and intellectual needs of
individual students, and the emphasis of liberal arts colleges on
theory without a balance of meaningful practical experience.  There
are currently several approaches to solving each of these problems,
but the approach of the Hurricane Hill school provides a novel
approach by linking these problems in a complementary and
cost-effective solution.

\begin{center}
{\em Program Structure}
\end{center}

Hurricane Hill School will have a target population of 20 K-6 students
and 8 staff (fewer staff in the summer session).  This student
population is 2\% of the age bracket within driving distance of the
school site (and the Hurricane Hill School will be the only private
alternative school within driving distance).  The school will be
organized into two sessions: summer and school-year. The two sessions
will share a common philosophy and structure, although the activities
and location will be different.

Hurricane Hill School will operate as its own non-profit corporation
in cooperation with several colleges.  The summer session will be run
in a rent-free rural location in East Randolph, Vermont, and the
school-year session will be run in a rented building in nearby
Randolph, Vermont.

College students (including recent graduates) will be invited as
interns from several colleges to work as staff during the summer,
school-year, or both.  I already have a small group of students from
Hampshire who are committed to working during this summer and
school-year.  When possible, I will work with the future staff in the
term before their internships to help them organize visits to several
kinds of elementary schools, as well as to become familiar with the
literature on holistic education.

These interns (staff) will be working for part of the schooldays in
teams of two staff with five to seven children.  Staff members will
share responsibility for their group of children throughout the day,
and will also each be responsible for offering one learning activity
daily to all children.  These learning activities will include
writing, art, acting, sewing, music, field trips, computer graphics
and programs, caring for animals, gardening, math, science labs,
reading, cooking, or organizing the school's post office or community
governance. The amount of direction or freedom particular children
will have in organizing their schedule will depend on their needs and
abilities.  I will work with staff in regular meetings to research and
discuss what kinds of skills and knowledge are vital for us to share
with the children, and how we can help and understand particular
children.  Staff will also make several visits to other schools during
the summer and school year in order to develop new ideas and methods
as well as to gain a perspective on the differences between various
models of education.  Finally, we will also invite guest teachers in
to share their experiences with both staff and children.

There will be several differences between the summer session and the
school-year.  First, the summer session is intended to develop a
clientele for the school year, giving students and parents an
opportunity to try out the Hurricane Hill School program without the
risk they perceive in taking the child out of public school.  The
summer session will also give children a chance to become familiar
with a more self-directed, individualized program than they are used
to, as well as provide the school and staff the opportunity to develop
our approach.  Finally, I expect that the the activities in the summer
will provide more personal development than academic skill learning.
Despite these differences, I intend for significant learning to
take place during the summer; much of this learning will be focused on
this year's theme ``The People, Land and History of Vermont.''

Throughout this spring, I will be recruiting students from the public
schools, those who are finishing preschool, as well as area
homeschoolers.  This recruitment will take the form of newspaper
articles, as well as meetings with individual public school teachers
and parents.  I have already made some contacts with potential parents
in the area, who have expressed an interest in the school. The school
is dedicated to including low-income students (ideally, at least half
of the student body).  The tuition rate will therefore be variable,
depending on financial need.

Parents will be encouraged to participate in the school in potlucks,
student presentations, discussions about the philosophy and structure
of the Hurricane Hill School, visiting during the day, and by offering
or helping with activities.  Staff members will maintain contact with
the parents of the children in their group.
   
The board of directors will include at least one public school teacher
from Randolph, myself, and one faculty member from Hampshire or
Goddard.



\newpage

\begin{center}
{\em Statement of Experience and Commitment}
\end{center}

As with most individuals, my motivation originates with my own
personal experience.  My parents were both teachers, and educational
theories and stories were part and parcel of growing up.  Since then,
I have been conscious how schools I have visited and attended, as well
as those in which I have worked, have and have not worked.  I am very
enthusiastic to work with college students to help them make the most
of their education and their life; also, however, I am interested in
starting at an earlier age to prevent the need for what I consider
remedial work (which I perceive as the primary need for for nearly
every college-age student).

Most elementary classrooms, for instance, are an inherently
problematic structure.  Twenty to thirty children with very diverse
developmental and intellectual needs can not be taught well by any one
individual, no matter how talented.  And this one, overworked
individual would be hard-pressed to find ways to integrate the parents
or community into their classroom, or even to make the classroom into
a community of its own.  In college, a major problem is that most
students are separated from meaningful practical experience.  Thus, as
graduates, they are at the mercy of the job market to dictate how they
can contribute to society, rather than having the intellectual and
practical skills, or even the vision, to adapt society to new models.

I have been involved with educational reform at Hampshire College
throughout my years as a student here.  The projects of my first few
years (primarily, networking projects) were more successful as
learning experiences than as new programs in their own right.
However, those projects also provided the learning so that I could be
more successful in later years.

My first successful project was the creation of the Alternative Higher
Education Network (AHEN) in 1995, dedicated to collaboratively meeting
the assessment, networking, program development, and recruitment needs
of the alternative colleges.  AHEN is off to a good start, having
already provided four collaborative assessment visits, held its
founding conference at Hampshire, and, by the time this application is
submitted, held its second conference, at the University of Redlands.
AHEN has student, faculty, and administrative representatives from
four alternative colleges who actively participate in conferences, and
many more who participate in email discussions.

My work with AHEN provided me with the experience and confidence to
undertake the development of a new program at Hampshire beginning in
the spring of 1996: The Experimental Program in Education and
Community (EPEC).  Founding EPEC required six months of individual and
group meetings with students, administration, faculty, and trustees;
additionally, it also required writing, submitting, and resumbitting
financial and programmatic proposals -- all before the semester even
began.  I am very familiar with the quantity of expected and
unexpected details which are required to make a program work.  EPEC's
first formal semester this fall has included ten student-sponsored
classes with a total of about 100 participants.  I myself sponsored
four of these (two of them jointly with other students). Future
developments which I have proposed for EPEC include formalized peer
advising, common living-learning spaces on campus, and more outreach
to include the greater community in these courses.  I have helped
several other students to learn the ropes of EPEC so that they can
continue the program after this semester (my last at Hampshire).

This semester, EPEC has been very successful in helping college
students to recognize and act on their possibilities for a college
education.  But, over the course of the semester, I have come to
recognize that any program which has to fit the structure of a college
course has significant limitations.  In particular, it alone cannot
provide the meaningful practical experience to help students develop a
vision for how they will contribute to, rather than simply analyze or
use, society. 

Through my experience with college students, and in particular, my
experience sponsoring several courses in EPEC this fall, I feel that
the plan I propose for the college internship aspect of the Hurricane
Hill School is within my capabilities.  Together with several staff
members, I have developed a flexible structure so that this internship
program inherently meets the challenging, personalized goals we have
for educating both the interns and the children with whom they will be
working.  I have recently done research on the laws of non-profit
corporations, public building codes and zoning, laws of education, and
I think the challenges these provide are well within what I can
accomplish this spring.  Finally, this January I am enrolled in a
business course offered by the Lemelson Program at Hampshire College
to ensure that I have a solid conception of the business side of the
school.  My initial research into foundations has noted that money is
available if my concept and commitment are solid.  I am optimistic,
because I think they are, though foundation and private support are
the factors over which I have the least control and experience.

Through the work I have done at Hampshire, I have consistently been
able to bring other individuals into the administrative and
philosophical aspects of my reform. I have discovered the importance
of planning and action. I have developed my ability to work with other
organizations. I have done research on alternative elementary schools
and colleges and am now in contact with an extensive network of
experienced individuals who are eager to help me with the challenges I
will inevitably face in the coming year.  I am excited and prepared to
meet these challenges. 

\newpage

\begin{center}
{\em Action Plan}
\end{center}


At the very least, I plan to have a working model of both the summer
program and the school-year program in place this year.  I am aiming
for running at a minimum of seventy per cent capacity for the first
year, and at full capacity the following year.

\begin{verbatim}
Timeline

December 1996   -- Initial research with parents, teachers, potential
                   staff, potential directors, non-profit and other laws

January 1997    -- Hampshire College "Fast Trac II" Business Development
                   Course

February 1997   -- Research visiting alternative elementary schools,
                   fundraising and private fundraising; starting a 
                   class at Hampshire to prepare several staff for 
                   working in the school in spring

March-May 1997  -- Publicity for summer program; further fundraising;
                   Incorporation as a non-profit and application to
                   IRS; Recruiting of staff; Build relationship with
                   public school

June-August 1997-- Staff training; Summer program -- maturation of this
                   methodology for providing personalized education

September 1997- -- School-year program (including fundraising, staff
May 1998           recruitment, student recruitment)
\end{verbatim}                





\newpage

\begin{center}
Proposed Budget for year ending June 1, 1998
\end{center}

The Hurricane Hill School will operate its summer and school-year
session with six to eight staff and twenty students.  The staff will
be provided room and board as well as a small stipend.  The tuition of
the students will be variable based on need. 

\begin{verbatim}
Initial Expenses:

Startup Expenses:
  February - May Director's salary
                 and expenses         $5,000
  Computer Equipment                  $10,000 (donation offerred)
  Copy Machine                        $1,000

Summer Program Expenses:
  Director's Salary                   $5,000
  Experienced Staff Salary            $3,000 (1@$3,000)
  Staff Salary                        $5,000 (5@$1,000)
  Staff Board                         $2,000 (5@$5/day/80 days)
  Materials                           $1,000 (20@$50)
  Mileage                             $800   (5 trips/wk@$20/trip)
  Liability Insurance                 $1,500
  Publicity Expenses                  $500
  
School-year Expenses:
  Director's Salary and Benefits      $20,000
  Assistant's Salary (part-time)      $6,000  (20 hours/wk@$10/hr)
  Rent, Utilities of School           $15,000
  Liability Insurance                 $3,000
  Staff (college student internships) $14,000 (7@$1000 per semester)
  Staff Board                         $7,500 (5@$5/day/300 days)
  Materials                           $5,000 (20@$250)
  Mileage                             $4,000 (5 trips/wk@$20/trip)
  Publicity Expenses                  $500

Initial Capital Expenses:             $16,000
Summer Program Total:                 $18,800
School-year Total:                    $75,000
Rent for housing staff:               $10,000 (donation secured)
Total Anticipated Expenses:           $119,800
Total per-pupil cost (school-year):   $4,250 (town schools are over $5000)
\end{verbatim}

\newpage

\begin{verbatim}
Revenues:

echoing green fellowship            $15,000
Summer program rates ($10-$200/wk/child for 8 weeks)
                        maximum     $16,000 (20 children @average of
                                             $100/week for 8 weeks)
                        minimum     $12,000 (15 children @average of
                                             $100/week for 8 weeks)
School-year tuition  ($50-$500/month/child for 9 months)
                        maximum     $36,000 (20 children @average of
                                             $200/month)
                        minimum     $13,500 (10 children @average of
                                             $150/month)
Foundation grants                   $40,000
Private fundraising                 $30,000
Computer Equipment                  $10,000 in-kind donation (offerred)
Rent for housing staff              $10,000 in-kind donation (already
                                                              secured)
Total revenues:                     $157,000 (projected maximum)
                                    $130,500 (projected minimum)
\end{verbatim}