Liger Leadership Academy is on track to become a charter school, after founders of the academy, Trevor and Agnieszka Giles, signed an agreement to hand over their curriculum to Manawaroa Education, which specialises in developing charter schools.
With new legislation reinstating charter schools next year, having Manawaroa on board ensures the academy is a step closer to securing government funding to establish itself as the first charter school in the region.
Agnieszka says to gift their learning model towards the development of the charter school, so it’s affordable and available to all — regardless of economic background — "is the best possible outcome".
The government has promised $153million towards the development of charter schools, and Manawaroa Education director Katherine Allsopp-Smith says they have the resources to create one in Queenstown "at speed".
For now, continuing as the Liger Leadership Academy, the Giles have also committed to offer 11 scholarships for new students who register for next year.
Liger also wants to bump its roll up from its current 39 students to 250.
At present, Liger’s a private school that supports students in an entrepreneurial style of learning — the curriculum is split into two halves, ‘essentials’ and ‘explorers’.
Head of school Daniel Cooper explains the ‘essentials’ is standard curriculum-based learning, while ‘exploration’ is where students are divided into groups of 11 and cycle through an entrepreneurial style of learning with the help of Startup Queenstown Lakes. In term four, students take their knowledge and work on an individual project.
"We teach young people to teach themselves what they need to know, when they need to know it," Cooper says.
With growth comes the need for new school grounds.
Based in a building at Five Mile, Liger project manager Christian Belmont says a new site’s part of the proposed Coronet Village development, which has recently been listed under the new Fast-track Approvals Bill, which is still in draft form.
A petition to support the development of the school has been launched — it’s available to sign via tinyurl.com/2s476p6d
Last week, Mountain Scene revealed Wakatipu High has asked the Ministry of Education to extend the school’s capacity to 2000 students so it doesn’t run out of room in about three years’ time.
