A board of directors, consisting of parents, educational leaders, business and community leaders and representation by Discovery Academy’s teacher of the year, oversees the operation of Discovery Academy.  The support offered by this group is extremely beneficial to the school. 

Meetings are held on the dates below and are open to the public.  Dates and times are advertised on our school marquee, our school website @ www.discoveryacademy.org and in the student planner.  Meeting dates for the 2010-2011 school year are as follows:

- August 9, 2011

- October 24, 2011

- January 10, 2012

- March 20, 2012

1. -June 12, 2012
   

All meetings begin at 8:30 a.m. in the Media Center.

Additional special meetings may be called by the Executive Director or on request of the Board Chair or majority of the members of the Board.

    All regular and special meetings of the Governing Board shall be held at the School Administration Building.

    The Board Secretary shall keep minutes of all official actions and proceedings of the Board. 

    Meetings of the Board will be conducted as nearly as possible according to Robert’s Rules of Order Revised.

    A quorum of voting member to be in attendance is necessary or the meeting shall be cancelled.

An agenda shall be prepared by the Executive Director in time to insure that a copy of the agenda may be received seven days before the meeting.  The agenda shall contain the items to be considered, in the order of presentation.  After the agenda has been made available, change shall be only for good cause, as determined by the person designated to preside, and stated in the record.

The Policy for the Public Addressing the Governing Board was approved 12/16/02 and is as follows:

The agenda provides an opportunity for members of the public to address the Governing Board.  Speakers addressing agenda items will be called by the Chair to speak at the appropriate time during the meeting.  Each speaker should expect to speak no more than once at any one meeting, and shall be limited to three minutes except in unusual circumstances as determined at the sole discretion of the Board Chair.  Members of the public desiring to address the Governing Board should notify the Office of the Principal, telephone number (863) 295-5955 no later than 72 hours prior to the meeting.

Persons needing assistance under the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities act (ADA) should contact Cheryl Wilkinson at least three working days prior to the Governing Board meeting.

Copies of the Annual Charter School Report  are available at the school site and other information regarding the operation of the school is available upon request.

A Report of Independent Auditors on Internal Control over financial reporting is conducted annually and submitted to the Board of Directors of Discovery, the District School Board of Polk County and is included in the Annual Report submitted to the State of Florida.  Since Discovery Academy has been a charter school, these audits have not identified any deficiencies in internal control over financial reporting that are considered to be a material weakness.  In addition, that were no findings or recommendations to improve compliance, internal control or the financial reporting process for any of the years audited during the term of the charter contract. 

The school has always strived to have a comprehensive system of internal controls in place to safeguard assets, provide for accurate financial reporting and ensure proper approvals for all transactions.  Consequently, the school has never received a significant negative finding from its independent audits.

Discovery Academy is financially stable.  Discovery has competently and effectively manage its finances from its inception as a charter school in 2001.  Over the past seven years, the school has not had a year with a deficit in its results of operation on a fund basis and has accumulated a positive fund balance and numerous resource materials for learning.

Governing Board Members

Mike Jones represents our community.  His involvement began when he visited with many of our students in the capacity of Youth Pastor.  He is presently Lead Pastor at the First Baptist Church of Lake Alfred.  He regularly attends our functions and continues to be concerned about our students and their success.

Patricia Love is a parent representative on the board from Lake Alfred.  Mrs. Love has previously had a child attend Discovery Academy and now has another one here.  She is employed as a workers compensation auditor for Summit Consulting.  She is also an active member of her church.

Charlotte Butler is the board chair and a retired teacher from the community of Auburndale.  She formerly taught at Discovery Academy and was a member of the Leadership Team and a Teacher of the Year.  She is also the parent contact for the Board.  Her email address is charlotte.butler@discoveryacademy.org

John Grega is a retired School Administrator and ESE Coordinator and has an extensive background in Exceptional Student Education.

Marveen Brown is a retired Assistant Principal of nine years and has a background in Exceptional Student Education.  She is trained in Kagan Cooperative Learning, Rigor and Relevance and Harry Wong educational strategies.

Cheryl Wilkinson - Board Secretary

Mrs. Wilkinson has been an employee of public education for 28 years and began her career as a paraprofessional.  She then advanced to Principal’s Secretary and is presently the Assistant to the Executive Director of Discovery Academy.

Carol Fulks - President / Executive Director

Mrs. Fulks has been in Education Administration for 21 years and is currently the Executive Director for Discovery Academy.  She has been involved in numerous initiatives throughout her career in education.  Carol’s prior business knowledge has helped her to implement these initiatives effectively.  Her broad view of the education system has been a product of having begun her career in education as a Parent Volunteer, then a Paraprofessional and continuing her career through the present. Carol’s accomplishments include certification in six areas of education, Administration and Supervision, Elementary Education, Early Childhood, Middle School Mathematics, Middle School Social Studies, and Middle School English.  She has consistently stayed current with research-base strategies and is also a certified trainer for Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (Stephen Covey), Positive Classroom Discipline (Fred Jones), Cooperative Learning (Kagan & Kagan), and Brain Based Teaching and Learning (Eric Jensen).  Most recently, she completed the Educational Leadership Institute sponsored by Dr. Willard Daggett of the International Center for Leadership I Education.  Carol Fulks has dedicated her work over the past two decades to the middle school philosophy because it addresses the needs of the adolescent child in a changing world.

Mission

“We are dedicated to actively engaging all individuals in quality learning experiences that will enable them to value themselves and become responsible, productive citizens in a changing world.”

Discovery Academy’s mission statement reflects a clear and strong focus on student learning.  It is easily understood and intricately woven into all areas of our curriculum as our mission statement becomes a living document.

Accreditation

The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS)and the Council on Accreditation and School Improvement (CASI) and the Commission on International and Trans-Regional Accreditation has granted accreditation status to Discovery Academy of Lake Alfred.  This provides assurance to our stakeholders that a commitment has been made to pursue educational excellence and that the necessary resources will be available to accomplish that objective.

Philosophy

Our belief is that every student needs to succeed in the 21st century with an education that is both academically rigorous and “real-world” relevant.  We think of academic rigor as students being able to apply their skills and knowledge to real-world problems, to adapt solutions to an ever-changing society, and to solve problems we have to yet recognize.  Teaching through application is a very effective way to engage students and ensure they can apply what they have learned. 

We believe that the Discovery Academy family works together and shares responsibility for guiding our students’ education by:

1. -providing a safe and orderly environment conducive to learning for students
   

2. -actively engaging students in the learning process through a variety of teaching strategies and modality styles
   

3. -encouraging students to value themselves and have an acceptance of cultural differences of ideas and feelings
   

4. -providing ongoing technological training for growth in a changing world.
   

Discovery Academy of Lake Alfred is a conversion charter school serving students in grades 6-8.  This charter school began in 2001 with an emphasis on excellence in academics, technology, Kagan Cooperative Learning, and Hirsch Core Knowledge curriculum.  Discovery promotes the middle school components of advisory classes, teaming and common planning time for teachers.  Other aspects that make Discovery unique are instructional strategies incorporating brain based teaching and learning, multiple intelligence research, service learning, and numerous student activities.