PCSD/WCSD March 2022 Newsletter
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MARCH 2022
In this Issue
SCHOOL HIGHLIGHT: NAVIGATOR SCHOOLS
FEATURED VIDEO: OTHELLO SQUARE in SEATTLE
NEW FUND: WA FUND LAUNCHED
BOARD AND STAFF UPDATES
Greetings friends and colleagues,
We are thrilled to be joining CCSA (California Charter Schools Association) in celebrating 30 years of charter schools in California and are proud to have created long-term homes for over 100 charter schools since 2004. It was great to see so many of you in person at their annual conference in Long Beach this year.
We are highlighting two of our charter school partners. Our featured video shows the significant impact of Othello Square and Impact | Salish Sea Elementary in serving the New Holly neighborhood in Southeast Seattle and the innovative mixed-used development we helped build. And in the Bay Area, we worked with Navigator Schools to create their first facility at Watsonville Prep, converting an old department store to a TK-8 school. You can learn more about the school and the project in the interview with CEO Kevin Sved.
In Washington we have more good news with the launch of our WA Charter School Facility Fund. Read below to learn more about this multimillion-dollar fund.
And congratulations to our newest addition to our WCSD board, Bill Kiolbasa.
Be sure to follow us on LinkedIn for the latest news.
Warmly,
John Sun
School Highlight: Navigator Schools
Last fall, PCSD delivered our first project with Navigator Public Schools. in Watsonville, CA. Navigator currently has three schools and their Watsonville Prep Academy, a TK-8 school, was divided on two Prop 39 sites about one mile apart. PCSD worked with them to find the perfect location to bring their school and community together. You can learn more about the school and the new campus built from an old department store in this interview with CEO Kevin Sved.
Featured Video: Othello Square
We are thrilled to release a video highlighting the community effort behind one of our recently completed facility development projects–Impact | Salish Sea Elementary in Seattle, Washington. The new facility is an outgrowth of Othello Square, a community-based initiative that empowers Southeast Seattle residents by expanding access to healthcare, housing, education, and economic opportunity. Our WCSD team partnered closely with HomeSight to listen to members of the community about what they wanted in a new school. We are excited to see the great things Impact Public Schools’ scholars will do in this new space.
New Fund: WA Charter School Facility Fund
Washington Charter School Development (WCSD) is thrilled to announce that we have just closed the first round of a multimillion-dollar WA Charter School Facility Fund. The proceeds of this fund will continue to support the delivery of high-quality public charter school facilities in Washington State. We look forward to continuing to support our school partners and provide a high impact area of investment for our philanthropic partners into 2022 and beyond.
Board Update
PCSD is excited to announce the appointment of Bill Kiolbasa to the WCSD board. Bill is the CEO and co-founder of Joule Growth Partners (JGP). Prior to co-founding JGP, Bill worked at Ballmer Group Philanthropy where he helped launch their national philanthropic efforts by building a $250M+ portfolio of leading national K-12 nonprofits. He was also the CFO/COO of WA Charters, where he helped found and grow the nascent charter sector in Washington state. You can read more about Bill here.
Bill Kiolbasa, Board Member
For Women’s History Month, PCSD launched Women of PCSD to highlight the many extraordinary women who guide our charter school partners through the complex facilities development process, leading and driving the work so our partners can stay focused on what matters most – teaching and learning. Follow us on LinkedIn to learn more and see our posts.
Want to learn more? Check out PCSD/WCSD's projects.
