The Arrow Online - Letter from Ms. Hiatt

Dear Families,

Greetings! Over the next two months, you will notice more frequent communication from us, and I want to thank you in advance for taking the time to read these updates. We have many exciting developments to share, and several will invite your participation and support.

On to business: Applications for our new student lottery will open this Saturday, November 1. Please spread the word!

While currently enrolled families are not directly affected by this process, I’d like to take a moment to explain why this period is important to our school community and how enrollment connects to our long-term growth and stability.

Public schools receive funding (per pupil revenue) for every child in attendance, which constitutes the vast majority of our operating budget. While our enrollment this year was slightly above budgeted projections, we still had open seats in all but two grades.

In addition to direct funding, charter schools like ours are assigned credit ratings that affect our ability to secure funding for large projects, such as our future building expansion. In simplified terms, four major factors influence a school’s credit rating: demand (enrollment), operations, academic performance, and financial health.

As part of a network governed by a shared board, Ascent Classical Academy benefits from strong financial oversight, operational expertise, and the advantages of scale. However, it also means that funding priorities and credit ratings are evaluated collectively across all schools in the network.

Here at Ascent Classical Academy of Northern Colorado, we have worked diligently to contribute positively to all four areas. One of our goals this year (and every year) is to be fully enrolled for the 2026–27 school year, with healthy waitlists in grades K-8. This demonstrates to potential lenders and donors that our school is thriving, in high demand, and a strong candidate for investment.

To that end, we would be grateful for your help in spreading the word, inviting families you know to attend an information session, schedule a tour, and apply for the lottery.

Upcoming Parent Information Meetings:

Tuesday, November 4 at 4:30 PM
Tuesday, November 4 at 6:00 PM
Saturday, November 8 at 10:00 AM

Prospective families can learn more, sign up for a tour, or submit an application at www.nc.ascentcolorado.org/apply/

Thank you so much for your support in this effort! I look forward to sharing progress toward our goal in the months to come!

Warmly,
Annie Hiatt
Headmistress
Ascent Classical Academy of Northern Colorado

Athletic Field Update

Dear Families,

This update has been a long time coming, and I am delighted to finally share news about our athletic field. To get straight to the point: we have accepted a bid, and irrigation work will begin over winter break, with sod being laid as soon as students depart this spring. The new field will be ready for use by August.

Last spring, many of you gave generously at Archer Fest with the express goal of funding an athletic field east of the school, replacing the current space that is, in truth, mostly weeds. At that time, we hoped to build a CHSAA-sized field to support our growing sports program. We wanted to learn from the experience of building a slightly undersized gym and make the best possible investment for our students.

By June, we had received three bids, each significantly higher than expected, well over half a million dollars. On top of cost, other obstacles arose: a shallow gas line along the east edge of the property, the enormous amount of fill dirt required to meet CHSAA grading standards, and the reality that even if we could host competitions, we lacked room for lights or bleachers due to the pond.

Faced with these challenges, Mr. Candelaria and I returned to the drawing board. With input from parents, coaches, board members, and our network finance committee, we asked: What do our students truly need most? The answer was clear. More than a competition site, they needed a safe, beautiful place to practice and play every day.

We asked bidders to resubmit with a revised scope: a sod field. This change not only brought costs down but also allowed us to extend sod around the north side of the outdoor space. The new project cost is approximately $160,000, an amount we can cover through Archer Fest proceeds, additional fundraising, and careful stewardship of our operations budget. We have also planned for long-term maintenance to ensure this investment endures.

Being able to deliver on this campus improvement is a privilege, and I remain deeply grateful for the generosity, time, and encouragement of our families. I look forward to keeping you updated as work progresses throughout the school year.

Warmly,
Annie Hiatt
Headmistress
Ascent Classical Academy of Northern Colorado

Open-Campus Lunch Update

Dear Upper School Parents,

I don’t anticipate that every letter from me will be an announcement of something new, but as we begin a new school year, there is another change we are eager to share. For many years, both parents and high school students have expressed a desire for more freedom and responsibility, and it has long been my hope to entrust our young adults with greater opportunities to grow in maturity and independence.

Beginning this year, with parent permission, all high school students (9th-12th grade) will have the opportunity for open-campus lunch every day. This represents a significant change, but one that reflects our commitment to trusting students with greater responsibility and freedom.

A few notes on logistics:

Previously, to qualify for this privilege students could not have any tardies. In practice, however, the system was creating administrative burdens for our office staff and perverse incentives for students that did not align with our goals. After reflection, we believe a more mission-oriented approach is to avoid attaching “eligibility” constraints to lunch, one of the few unstructured times in our students’ day.

That said, until we have more room in our building lunch will always be subject to certain constraints. The period is necessarily limited by other building needs and instructional time requirements. Arriving to class on time will continue to be a non-negotiable expectation, regardless of the time of day. Excessive tardies will result in an attendance plan created in partnership with parents to support their student. And lunch detention may still be used as a disciplinary measure on occasion when appropriate.

The process for leaving campus will also be simplified. High school students with parental permission will self-release at lunch without the need to formally check out, a procedure that previously ate into their time and caused confusion in the lobby.

Students who choose open-campus lunch must:

Conduct themselves as courteous citizens by obeying all community rules, including traffic and passenger laws, and showing respect to the broader community.
Leave school property during lunch. Remaining in the parking lot presents security challenges and potentially interferes with kindergarten drop-off and pick-up.
Return prepared for class before the bell rings, not running through the door at the last moment.
Students will not be permitted to eat in class, so meals need to be eaten before class and outside drinks need to be consumed outside of class.

Lastly, for security purposes, all students must enter and exit only through the front doors. We ask your support in reinforcing this last rule, as use of other entrances introduces safety concerns for the rest of the school community.

This change will go into effect on Monday September 15, 2025. New parent permission forms will be sent home with students this week, and a signed form must be returned to Mrs. Burley before students are permitted to leave campus.

We are excited for this change and grateful, as always, for your partnership as we work to form our students into virtuous young men and women. Any questions or concerns are always welcome.

Warmly,
Annie Hiatt
Headmistress
Ascent Classical Academy of Northern Colorado

August Letter

Dear Families,

Good evening! This letter is dedicated to informing you about three important changes to our grading system.

The first change is a fairly large one. After many conversations with our leadership team, faculty, Hillsdale’s teacher support team, and parents, we have decided to discontinue the use of Scholarship grades. We will continue to uphold the principles Scholarship was meant to recognize, namely, a student’s willingness to participate in the educational life of the school and to take responsibility for their own learning. However, we found that it is very difficult to measure these qualities objectively. In practice, we determined that cultivating scholarship is more akin to teaching virtue than to assessing academic subjects. Moving forward, deviations from good scholarship will be addressed through conversations with you, as the primary educator of your child.

Second item. Previously, grades were locked at the end of each quarter. This was intended to encourage timely submission of assignments and to allow for a mid-semester reset. In practice, however, we occasionally needed the flexibility to adjust assignments from a previous quarter. We also encountered issues with athletic eligibility. If a student began the quarter with a low initial grade, even if it did not reflect their actual performance, it sometimes affected their eligibility for weekend or subsequent week events. Under the new procedure, grades will be stored only at the semester. This change also simplifies grade calculations for Upper School: final semester grades will now consist of 80% semester coursework and 20% the semester final exam for core classes. Credit will continue to be awarded on a semester basis for high school students. We will continue to enforce our late work policies (outline in the drop down below) and appreciate your support in fostering accountability.

Lastly, on the parent portal, you will now see only whole numbers for grades rather than decimals. PowerSchool assigns letter grades based on percentage scores, but previously, when a student earned, for example, a 93.5%, the system truncated the score down to a 93% (an A– worth 3.7 unweighted GPA points). Understandably, most would expect a 93.5% to round up to a 94% (an A worth 4.0 unweighted GPA points). This discrepancy created problems when calculating GPAs for college and scholarship purposes. The solution is to require PowerSchool to round to the nearest whole number earlier in the grade calculation process. What you will now see in the gradebook are those rounded numbers, which more accurately reflect your student’s performance.

Together, these changes are intended to strengthen both the clarity and fairness of our grading practices while remaining true to our mission. I believe they will simplify communication, uphold accountability, and ensure that grades more accurately reflect student performance. Thank you for your continued partnership in supporting your child’s growth in both character and academics.

Warmly,
Annie Hiatt
Headmistress
Ascent Classical Academy of Northern Colorado

On Attendance and Make-up work

Policy SE-1.0 Attendance

Overview
Classical education is highly interactive and requires consistent and punctual attendance. Because the classical approach relies heavily on classroom discussions among students and teachers, most work done in class cannot be made up if a student is absent. For this reason, parents should exercise prudence and make every reasonable effort to ensure that students do not miss class, including restricting trips to the allotted breaks. In the spirit of parental partnership, the schools expect parents to communicate well in advance about planned absences.

Missed Work
The Family handbook gives discretion to each school to set procedures regarding missing and make-up work.

In general, teachers will not provide advance work ahead of a planned absence. Students may take their usual learning materials home with them, but will not be given any assessments or classwork in advance. It is recommended that parents and students follow along on their teacher’s website and in the online gradebook to track assignments while absent, and follow up with teachers at an appropriate time to discuss the absence.

Upon returning to school, students may expect the following:

Students have a one day extension for every day missed to complete assessments, projects or other summative projects, up to seven school days. The Head of School will make final decisions regarding extensions for extenuating circumstances.
- This extension policy does not change the original due date of long-term assignments. Instead, it provides additional time only if a student misses in-class work time that their peers received. For example, if a student is absent on a day when class time was provided for project work, they will be given an equivalent amount of additional time.

Students will receive full credit for tests, quizzes, papers, and major projects that they miss during excused absences if those assessments are completed within the designated time frame.
Students are encouraged to complete missed homework and missed classwork to master material (and will be granted access to this material upon request), but these assignments will be exempted and not collected or graded.
Students are responsible for collecting missed notes and handouts upon their return by checking teacher websites, getting notes/classwork from a friend, speaking to teachers directly (outside of active instructional time), and arranging for tutoring. Please note that tutoring is not a full replacement for missed instructional time.
- Especially in middle school grades, student-supplied notes may not be sufficient or accurate. It is acceptable to supply the absent student with prepared notes, such as those prepared for students with accommodations or a stripped down version of teacher’s notes.
The policy for late work is as follows:
- Homework submitted one day late will receive 75% credit.
- Homework submitted two days late will receive 50% credit.
- Homework submitted more than two days late will not receive credit.

This policy is designed to encourage timely submission of assignments while allowing some flexibility for unforeseen circumstances.

Students who miss part of a class due to early dismissal or illness will be exempted from classwork missed after their departure. As above, students should understand their role in their own learning, and take ownership of missed content by seeking out resources and notes.
School-related absences, such being pulled for testing or sporting events should be managed in the same manner as excused absences. Especially with regard to student athletes and theatre performers, sports and theatre, while important, come secondary to academics and our students should be held to a high standard of accountability and responsibility. Communication with coaches and directors is strongly encouraged for students with chronically missing work and behavior problems in class.
We recognize the individual nature of extended excused absences, or consistently repeated absences, including but not limited to situations such as illness or medical conditions. Families can expect to be informed by the headmaster or designee of the general expectations related to the completion of assignments or course work in extenuating circumstances in accordance with House Bill 22-1260 (Student Access to Medically Necessary Instruction).

Upper School Final Examinations
Upper School students will complete final examinations in their core courses at the end of each semester and are expected to be present in person to complete them. Final exams may not be taken early, per board policy.

In the event of illness, a final exam may be made up upon the student’s return if the absence is substantiated with a doctor’s note.

For students with extenuating circumstances, determined at the discretion of the Head of School, we allow make-up exams to be taken during the testing window or at a pre-arranged later date. Students should not attempt to coordinate directly with their teachers regarding make-up exams. Faculty will be notified of these exceptions once the decision is made.

June Letter

Dear Families,

I hope this message finds you well and I hope you are enjoying a season of rest and renewal with your loved ones.

As we prepare for the upcoming school year, I wanted to share some news and updates.

June was a particularly full and fruitful month for our team. More than 30 teachers and administrators traveled to Hillsdale College for our annual summer training. This time of learning and fellowship helps our faculty sharpen their craft, deepen their understanding of classical pedagogy, and prepare for the important work of teaching.

We were especially excited to spend this time with several new members of our faculty. While some of these hires were made to replace departing staff, most are the result of school growth and internal movement, reflecting our continued momentum and long-term development as a school. Mrs. Reisch will be releasing posts introducing all our new hires over the coming weeks, but for now please join me in welcoming:

Mr. Kyle Powers – 2nd Grade
Ms. Shaila Burgess – Transitioning from Reception to 3rd Grade as an Apprentice Teacher
Mrs. Camille Parker – 4th Grade
Mrs. Katherine Arndt – 5th Grade Apprentice Teacher
Mr. Peter Crnkovich – 6th Grade
Mrs. Vivian Toman – Upper School Math
Mr. Haden Meyers – Upper School Humanities
Mrs. Jodee Rupple – Upper School Math
Ms. Leanne Barnett – Upper School Theatre
Mrs. Jessica Rosado – Upper School Orchestra
Ms. Dani Socarras – Assistant Athletic Director and Middle School PE
Mrs. Gabrielle Littlefield – Reception
Mrs. Lauren Walsh – Special Education
Mrs. Casie Emerson – Teaching Assistant
Mr. David Fier – Special Education

Each of these individuals brings a unique strength to our school community, and we are grateful to have them on board. For a full list of faculty and staff, please see the Faculty and Staff page on our website, which we just updated for the 2025-2026 school year.

I also wanted to share an update on the athletic field. As you may recall, we set a goal at Archer Fest to raise funds for this much-needed project. We are currently in the process of securing additional funding, soliciting bids and doing preliminary planning. The initial bid came in higher than anticipated, and we are now working to evaluate our options. We hope to present updated figures to the board at the August board meeting, as their approval and additional funding will be needed to move forward. I hope to have another update for you in August!

The last item I would like to share is an exciting new initiative we are launching, one that was born from the ideas and energy of a group of Ascent parents and local business owners. In partnership with them, and with support from Mrs. Guyor in her new role as Director of Development, we are excited to roll out the Ascent Business Alliance Small Business Directory. This project reflects the creativity and commitment of our parent community and serves multiple purposes: supporting and promoting small businesses, strengthening school-family connections, opening new fundraising opportunities for Ascent, and potentially offering networking experiences for our high school students as they explore different career paths. I’m grateful for the parents who helped bring this idea forward and hope you will consider joining us in this endeavor by joining the directory or patronizing the businesses within it.

As we look ahead, we are especially excited to celebrate the Semiquincentennial of our country this school year, a powerful opportunity to reflect on the enduring principles that shaped our republic and continue to guide our mission. Entering Ascent’s sixth year, we do so with deep gratitude, renewed purpose, and a steadfast commitment to building something lasting and true. Thank you for helping us cultivate a flourishing school community. It is a profound honor to partner with you in the education and formation of your children.

With that, I sign off on what I hope will be the first of many letters in the year ahead. And please remember, my door is always open to you.

Warmly,
Annie Hiatt
Headmistress
Ascent Classical Academy of Northern Colorado

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