Carta #15: Llegada de la Orden CTIM | Letter #15: Arrival of STEM Order

by Futuro Verde | Dec 8, 2023

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Carta #14: Cambios en Prepa y Primaria para el 2do semestre | Letter #14: Prepa and Primary changes for 2nd semester

by Futuro Verde | Nov 30, 2023

(​english version at the bottom) – Nov 27 / 2023

Estimados padres y profesores,

Compartimos algunos cambios en el personal pedagógico y posiciones de Prepa (Pk3-Kinder) y Upper Primary (4to-5to):

1) La Prof. Stephanie Núñez estará con Futuro Verde hasta diciembre 15, ya que ha optado por una nueva oportunidad de trabajo. Nos apena su partida, pero agradecemos enormemente la dedicación y el cariño entregado a Futuro verde en todos estos años. Le deseamos lo mejor en esta nueva etapa de su vida profesional..

2) La Prof. Katherine Barrantes, que actualmente sustituye a la Prof. Anya Forrestell durante su incapacidad médica, retornará a su posición en Preescolar como profesora crew de Kinder. La Prof. Katherine estudió educación preescolar y estará completando su bachillerato este diciembre en la Universidad Hispanoamericana. Estamos agradecidos por la excelente labor de Prof. Katherine en Upper Primary.  ¡Katherine – estamos emocionados de que continúes tus contribuciones en nuestro equipo!

3)  Como anticipamos en un correo anterior, la Prof. Anya Forrestell volverá a su puesto como maestra de Upper Primary (4to-5to) de ciencias y matemáticas. El Prof. Roberto Quirós continuará enseñando matemáticas de Lower Secondary (6to-9no), y la nueva Prof. Daniela Sandí tomará las riendas del programa IB de Upper Secondary (10mo – 12vo). Esta reestructuración mejorará notablemente nuestro programa de matemáticas IB.

4) La Prof. Jennifer McLellan, nuestra autora y profesora que tiene ​5 años en Futuro Verde, será la nueva coordinadora del ciclo Preescolar (pk3, pk4. kinder).​ Prof. Jenn esta super preparada – estudió su BA en la​ University of Northern British Columbia – Canada, y su MA en Moreland University, Washington DC, USA. 

¡Estamos súper entusiasmado con las ideas que ha traído Prof. Jennifer para el excelente ciclo de Preescolar que ya tenemos! Más naturaleza y más aprendizaje, haciendo más juego, más literacia, y más socialización. 

Como parte de la expansión de nuestro programa de desarrollo profesional, apoyaremos el proyecto de Preescolar enviando en febrero a Prof. Jennifer a Lima – Perú, a un taller de Primary Years Program, del Bachillerato Internacional. ¡Continuamos fortaleciendo a Futuro Verde, invirtiendo en nuestros profesores!

Miramos al próximo semestre con optimismo y con estabilidad pedagógica, con una notable mejora en nuestra realidad económica, éxito en recaudaciones y donaciones, mejoras notables en nuestra planta física y aulas, e inversiones históricas en material de ciencias, tecnología educativa y libros de texto. ¡Seguimos fortaleciéndonos!

​Con esperanzas siempre,

Dr. G

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Dear parents and teachers,

We share some changes in the teaching staff of Prepa (Pk3-Kinder) and Upper Primary (4th-6th):

1) Prof. Stephanie Núñez will be with Futuro Verde until December 15, as she has opted for a new job opportunity. We are sorry to see her go, but we are very grateful for her dedication and love for Futuro Verde during all these years, and we wish her the best in this new stage of her professional life.

2) Prof. Katherine Barrantes, who replaced Prof. Anya Forrestell during her medical disability, will return to her position at Prepa. Prof. Katherine studied preschool education and is completing her university degree this December at the Universidad Hispanoamericana. We are grateful for the excellent work of Prof. Katherine at Upper Primary. Katherine – we are excited for you to continue your contributions!

3) As we anticipated in a previous email, Prof. Anya Forrestell will return to her position as Upper Primary (4th-5th) science and mathematics teacher. Prof. Roberto Quirós will continue teaching Lower Secondary mathematics (6th-9th), and the new Prof. Daniela Sandi will take the reins of the Upper Secondary IB program (10th-12th). This restructuring will significantly improve our IB mathematics program.

4) Prof. Jennifer McLellan, our author and teacher who has been at Futuro Verde for several years, will be the new coordinator of the Preschool cycle (pk3, pk4. kindergarten). Prof. Jennifer is highly qualified having obtained her BA at the​ University of Northern British Columbia – Canada, and her MA at Moreland University, Washington DC, USA. 

We are super excited about the ideas that Prof. Jennifer has brought for the excellent Preschool cycle that we already have! More nature, more learning by doing, more playing, more literacy, and more socialization.

As part of the expansion of our professional development program, we will support the Preschool project by sending Prof. Jennifer to Lima, Peru in February to a Primary Years Program workshop of the International Baccalaureate. We continue to strengthen Futuro Verde, investing in our teachers!

We look to the next semester with optimism and with pedagogical stability, with a notable improvement in our economic reality, success in fundraising and donations, notable improvements in our physical plant and classrooms, and historic investments in science and technology materials, multimedia and textbooks. We continue to get stronger!

With hope always,

Dr. Gabriel

Summary of the Ordinary & Extraordinary Assembly

by Futuro Verde | Oct 18, 2023

Dear families,

Summary of the Ordinary & Extraordinary Assembly

The extraordinary assembly meeting took place this past Tuesday, October 17th 2023 at 3 pm and the following items were presented:

1. Welcome – Jennifer Middleton (President)

Jennifer welcomed families to the assembly meeting and thanked them for their continued support. She explained the purpose of the assembly and went over general logistics.

2. Fiscal Report – Jennifer Middleton (President)

Jennifer reported that all members continue to be very committed to their roles and sometimes even beyond their roles, always working for the welfare of the school. The board meets twice a month to discuss current happenings at the school, updates from the director, ongoing challenges, and future planning and decision making.

There will be two board meetings (one per semester) that will be open to the entire association. More information about these meetings, including the dates and time will be announced at a later date.

In the first couple months of school many board meetings were focused on the 2023-2024 budget and it was approved.

Several subcommittees were created in order to progress on various initiatives in smaller working groups. These subcommittees include strategic planning, by-laws, rebranding, and fundraising.

As always, not only do they remain active on these occasions, but they maintain active communication on a daily basis through a WhatsApp chat to discuss daily/weekly occurrences.

3. Financial Report for the 22-23 & 23-24 school years

Finance manager, Tania Rodriguez, presented the financial status for conclusion of the 2022-2023 school year. She then presented the approved budget for the 2023-2024 school year and the financial goals of the institution.

Please see the presentation for specific details and information.

4. Fundraising Committee

Two representatives of the Fundraising Committee, Yindra Liska and Anjy Cameron, spoke about the purpose of the fundraising committee and how more parents can get involved. They clarified that the committee is led and organized by parents and not by the school.

5. Voting Results – Board of Directors

Elections were held for 5 positions on the Board. These positions were President, Vice-president, Treasurer, Member at large 2, and Member at large 3. There were 64 members of the association present to vote and 64 total votes counted for each position.

The results were as follows:

• President: Jennifer Middleton (63 votes, 1 blank)
• Vice-President: Soledad Yacob (61 votes, 2 blank, 1 null)
• Treasurer: Matthew Heywood (64 votes)
• Member at large 2: Jeffe Tanghe (44 votes) vs. Valentina Massaferro (20 votes)
• Member at large 3: Cristina Aguinagalde (63 votes, 1 blank)

Congratulations to the new members of the Board of Directors!

A huge thank you to Sonya Danchik and Georges Lefebvre for their many years of service on the Board! They will be missed!

The new term will begin on November 1st, 2023 and will end on October 31st, 2026

If you have any questions, please write to junta@futuro-verde.org.

As always, thank you for your continued support,

Futuro Verde Board of Directors

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Estimadas familias,

Resumen de la Asamblea Ordinaria y Extraordinaria

La reunión de la asamblea extraordinaria tuvo lugar el pasado martes 17 de octubre de 2023 a las 15:00 horas y en ella se presentaron los siguientes puntos:

1. Bienvenida – Jennifer Middleton (Presidenta)

Jennifer dio la bienvenida a las familias a la reunión de la asamblea y les agradeció su continuo apoyo. Explicó el propósito de la asamblea y repasó la logística general.

2. Reporte Fiscal – Jennifer Middleton (Presidenta)

Jennifer informó que todos los miembros continúan muy comprometidos con sus funciones y a veces incluso más allá de sus funciones, trabajando siempre por el bienestar de la escuela. La junta se reúne dos veces al mes para discutir los acontecimientos actuales en la escuela, las actualizaciones del director, los desafíos en curso, y la planificación futura y la toma de decisiones.

Habrá dos reuniones de la junta (una por semestre) que estarán abiertas a toda la asociación. Más adelante se anunciará más información sobre estas reuniones, incluidas las fechas y la hora.

En los dos primeros meses de clases, muchas reuniones de la junta se centraron en el presupuesto 2023-2024, que fue aprobado.

Se crearon varios subcomités para avanzar en varias iniciativas en grupos de trabajo más pequeños. Estos subcomités incluyen la planificación estratégica, los estatutos, la renovación de la marca y la recaudación de fondos.

Como siempre, no solo se mantienen activos en estas ocasiones, sino que mantienen una comunicación activa a diario a través de un chat de WhatsApp para comentar las incidencias diarias/semanales.

3. Informe financiero de los cursos 22-23 y 23-24

La gerente de finanzas, Tania Rodríguez, presentó el estado financiero para la conclusión del año escolar 2022-2023. Luego presentó el presupuesto aprobado para el año escolar 2023-2024 y las metas financieras de la institución.

Favor de ver la presentación para detalles e información específica.

4. Comité de Recaudación de Fondos

Dos representantes del Comité de Recaudación de Fondos, Yindra Liska y Anjy Cameron, hablaron sobre el propósito del comité de recaudación de fondos y cómo más padres pueden participar. Aclararon que el comité está dirigido y organizado por los padres y no por la escuela.

5. Resultados de la votación – Junta Directiva

Se realizaron elecciones para 5 puestos en la Junta Directiva. Estos cargos fueron Presidente, Vicepresidente, Tesorero, Miembro 2 y Miembro 3. Hubo 64 miembros de la asociación presentes para votar y 64 votos totales contados para cada posición.

Los resultados fueron los siguientes:

• Presidenta: Jennifer Middleton (63 votos, 1 en blanco)
• Vicepresidenta: Soledad Yacob (61 votos, 2 en blanco, 1 nulo)
• Tesorero: Matthew Heywood (64 votos)
• Vocal 2: Jeffe Tanghe (44 votos) vs. Valentina Massaferro (20 votos)
• Vocal suplente 3: Cristina Aguinagalde (63 votos, 1 en blanco)

¡Bienvenidos a los nuevos miembros de la Junta Directiva!  

Muchas gracias a Sonya Danchik y Georges Lefebvre por sus muchos años de servicio en el Consejo. Les extrañaremos!

El nuevo mandato comenzarán el 1 de noviembre de 2023 y finalizará el 31 de octubre de 2026.

Si tiene alguna pregunta, escriba a junta@futuro-verde.org

Como siempre, gracias por su continuo apoyo,

Junta Directiva de Futuro Verde

IB Art Exhibition

by Futuro Verde | Mar 23, 2023

Summary of the Extraordinary Assembly

by Futuro Verde | Mar 23, 2023

Summary of the Extraordinary Assembly

The extraordinary assembly meeting took place this past Thursday, March 16th, 2023 at 4 pm via Zoom and the following items were presented:

1. Welcome – Sonya Danchik (Interim President)

Sonya welcomed families to the assembly meeting and thanked them for their continued support.

2. Fiscal Report – Sonya Danchik (Interim President)

Sonya reported that all members continue to be very committed to their roles and sometimes even beyond their roles, always working for the welfare of the school. The board meets weekly to discuss current happenings at the school, updates from the director, ongoing challenges, and future planning and decision making.

Strategic and financial planning committees that meet weekly to focus on growth, school improvement and future planning. Also there is a fundraising committee to work on generating funds and organizing events for the school.

As always, not only do they remain active on these occasions, but they maintain active communication on a daily basis through a WhatsApp chat to discuss daily/weekly occurrences.

3. Financial Update – David Booth (Treasurer)

The current state of finances, a comparative analysis, and recommendations for the 2023-2024 school year were presented to the Assembly.

Current state:

• Futuro Verde is operating on a significant deficit this year as a result of enrollment numbers lower than expected, macroeconomic factors such as significant inflation and exchange rate fluctuation, unexpected costs around IB and infrastructure, and three years of compressed transition years resulting in lost months of revenues during periods of ongoing fixed costs.
• The team has put in place a plan to address these issues and has been working to ensure the best financial position possible to enter the 2023-2024 school year, having achieved 64% of the goal to date.
• The current finances and budgetary plans are not sustainable, and Futuro Verde has been using its reserves to maintain positive cash flows. The school cannot continue to operate in this manner going forward.
• The team has been working for a number of months to build detailed financial modeling tools that have allowed for the creation of dozens of financial models leveraging multiple different variables. These tools and models allow the school to better understand its current situation as well as enable fiscally responsible and sustainable planning of budgets and ongoing decision making.

Comparative analysis:

• A comparative analysis was conducted through research regarding other IB schools in Costa Rica and on the Peninsula.
• Virtually all of Futuro Verde’s income is derived through tuition and fees, and while Futuro Verde’s enrollment fees are generally on-par with market averages, its tuition averages 40% lower. In some cases, Costa Rican IB annual tuition is more than twice that of Futuro Verde.
• A majority of schools charge additional fees for technology, books and materials, scholarship and capital expenditure funds, medical services, insurance, and more. Futuro Verde does not.
• Futuro Verde offers a very generous sibling policy while a majority of other schools do not.
• In order to be sustainable and manage a fiscally responsible budget, Futuro Verde must make changes to bring its sources of income closer to market.

2023-2024 School Year:

• We have completed the transition to the full International School Year calendar (Northern Hemisphere). Beginning August 1, 2023 and beyond, Futuro Verde’s fiscal year will run from August 1st to July 31st.
• Enrollment will begin April 17th, 2023, and communications will be going out around specific dates and information for new and returning students.
• Tuition will be due beginning August 5, 2023 and families will have the option to pay the annual tuition: annually (with discount), quarterly, or 12 monthly payments.
• The first day of classes will be August 16, 2023, however, it is important that tuition payments are made beginning August 5th in order to ensure positive cash flows.
• The administration and the board presented three options to ensure the financial health, stability, and sustainability of the school beginning August 1st.
  • In all options, there is no increase to enrollment fees and a technology fee will be introduced in order to provide items such as new Chromebooks, LCDs and projectors, and fully featured software licenses.
  • All options allow for an expanded scholarship program to help our families that rely upon it.
  • All options allow for increased teacher training opportunities and a staff cost of living adjustment to salary to help with inflation and the growing costs of living here on the Peninsula.
  • All options introduce an updated sibling policy that will impact NEW families only. Current families will continue to enjoy the current discounting.
  • All options allow Futuro Verde to invest in strong and experienced staff and leadership as well as required infrastructure improvements.
  • All options allow for the building back of reserve funds to approximately 2-3% of revenues (toward a long term goal of accruing 10-15%).
  • Depending upon enrollment numbers, these options allow for varying degrees of expansion and improvement with items such as class offerings, facility improvements, educational materials, and additional building investments.
  • Each option introduces a tuition increase of:
    • Option A: CRC50,000/ month
    • Option B: CRC60,000/ month
    • Option C: CRC70,000/ month
• The Board’s recommendation to the Association is Option B, which allows Futuro Verde to accomplish the vast majority of its objectives while financially protecting against situations of lower enrollment numbers and taking steps to build back a healthy reserve.

Voting results

• Option B:
  • No increase to the enrollment fee.
  • Sibling policy for NEW families: 5% 1st sibling, 10% 2nd, 15% for 3+
  • New Annual Technology fee of CRC40,000
  • Monthly Tuition increase of +CRC60,000/ month

4. Vacancies on the Board of Directors

During the assembly, Sonya presented the vacant positions on the board and the candidates for each of those positions. She introduced the candidates, Aida Rodriguez for vocal and Kate Schenone Macgregor for secretary.

Voting results

• Approved Secretary – Kate Schenone MacGregor
• Approved Vocal – Aida Rodriguez

Please write to junta@futuro-verde.org if you have any questions.

Thank you for your continued support,

Futuro Verde Board of Directors