Battle Rock Charter School

The Battle Rock Charter School is a small, rural school located in the Four Corners area of the state, in McElmo Canyon. The first teacher/administrator of the school was Stephen Hanson. In 2002 William Celis wrote a book about the school, "Battle Rock: The Struggle Over a One-Room School in America's Vanishing West." The school is one of only four one-room schoolhouses still being used in Colorado. The school has been in continuous operation since 1915; it became a charter school in 1994.

Having been to the Battle Rock school, I enjoyed reading Celis' book. Celis describes the farming and ranching cultural influence on the school. The school uses an experiential, place-based educational philosophy with a heavy emphasis on using the community and local experts to shape the curriculum. The school teaches the Navajo language.

For several years Stephen Hanson led the Colorado Rural Charter Schools Network. I was at one of their meetings when the discussion turned to how long it took people to get to the nearest grocery store. Almost everyone had more than an hour's drive.

The Battle Rock Charter School website is: http://www.battlerockschool.com/index.htm