MAURICE, La. (KLFY) -- Vermilion Charter Academy held a dedication ceremony to officially dedicate the new charter school.
Vermilion Charter Academy serves students in grades K-8. The school addresses overcrowding issues in the northern part of Vermilion parish and offers a full STEAMS curriculum (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math, and Spanish) which is currently unavailable in any other Vermilion Parish school.
“Four years ago, it was a vision from our board and as recently as October it was nearly a sugarcane field. But once the ground was broken through dedication and teamwork we transformed a field into a building. A building into a school and a school into a family,” said Assistant Principal Jacy Ashby.
Patricia Thibodeaux, the school's principal, said Thursday's dedication ceremony was, “a tremendous effort in thanking all of the community members and the key players in getting our school to this point. We can officially say that Vermilion Charter Academy is an official school and we are so proud.”
She said they brought in 900 students from the upper Vermilion Parish area and the southern Lafayette Parish area which is helping to alleviate the overcrowding in the districts. She said they already have a robust waitlist and many people interested in joining.
“We are proud to say that we are the recipient of a charter school program grant, and that will bring funding to help us fully implement that programming here in our school,” Thibodeaux said.
Bridget Winters, who is the Vermilion Charter Foundation Board President, said it was about four years ago when the community got together to discuss the severe overcrowding in the northern part of the parish.
"The schools in this parish are awesome schools, high-ranking schools, but there was a need for space. We started meeting and we started discussing the possibility of being able to offer a choice for parents. I need to say, though, it is just as important to have a beautiful building as what's going to happen inside that beautiful building," Winters said.
Jon Hage, the Founder and CEO of Charter Schools USA, said the school would not have happened without everyone who came together.
“We have a nonprofit board of volunteers who committed their time and effort. Charter Schools USA is the partner, came in and made the investment to make this as a true partnership and it's an amazing testament to Louisiana citizens who care about children and that's why I'm so excited today,” Hage said.
“We're just so proud to be a part of the team on the ground and all the families serving them and putting students first and knowing that through strong minds and good hearts, our students are going to have an amazing future here in Louisiana," Hage continued.
Winters said Vermilion Charter Academy is going to do awesome things for its students.
“I just want to thank the parents of this community and surrounding communities for entrusting us with their children. We plan to do the best job possible for every single student because it matters," Winters said.
Other elected officials in attendance at the ceremony were Kaplan Mayor Mike Kloesel, state representative of District 31 Troy Hebert, and Vermilion Parish Sheriff Eddie Langlinais.
