ANNUAL REPORT 2011-2012 www.ronclarkacademy.com OUR VISION For children everywhere, in every classroom, to experience passionate lessons, advanced rigor and engaging methods that are ignited by the RCA Experience. WELCOME TO THE RON CLARK ACADEMY The Ron Clark Academy is a private school with a public mission – to demonstrate excellence as we equip educators with best practices that transform student learning and promote academic and social success. We place a focus on academic rigor, student engagement, and climate and culture – the pillars of RCA. RCA has intentionally created a model school setting where students thrive in a rigorous and innovative learning environment and visiting educators are engaged in a vibrant and wholly unique professional development experience. Through The RCA Experience educator training, teachers and school administrators from around the world visit our classrooms to observe our instructional methods and attend our professional development workshops. Founded After School Programs Fall 2007 by Ron Clark and Kim Bearden Robotics, basketball, soccer, etiquette, drumming, tutoring, Location Essentials Step Team, Georgia Southeast Atlanta, Georgia Aquarium Research Team, Model Enrollment United Nations Team, cheerleading, 110 students, Grades 5th - 8th financial literacy, Junior Achievement, and more Sebastian DEAR FRIENDS, As we reflect over the past year, we are once Our educator training program, The RCA again extremely grateful for the abundant Experience, reached several milestones support we have received and for the this year: we have now trained over 15,000 difference that RCA has been able to make in educators from 40 states and 22 countries the lives of students, both in our classroom around the world. These educators affect the and in classrooms around the world. lives of over 10 million students. We have completed a year-long measurement study, Academically, our students continue to thrive. and the results appear in this report. We are Our award-winning Model United Nations excited and overwhelmed by the impact that Team competed in Istanbul Turkey earlier we are having on classrooms across the this year, and our Robotics Team is currently globe. advancing to the state level. Our Georgia Our $4.8 million dollar capital campaign is Aquarium Team continues to participate in underway for the construction of our new extended and enhanced marine studies each multi-purpose educator training facility, and week, and our students once again received we are thrilled that to date, we have reached many scholarship opportunities for high 91% of our campaign goal. This facility will school. enable us to expand our educator training even more. A groundbreaking is in the near Our students have also continued to learn the RON CLARK & future! importance of serving our community through KIM BEARDEN projects ranging from our neighborhood Our school was built by the community, and Cofounders of the Christmas party to serving the homeless we greatly appreciate all that you have done Ron Clark Academy and singing for seniors. Our Essentials Step to continue to support us on our journey. Team has been a force in the community, Together, we are changing lives. recognizing our local firefighters and policemen and organizing other service Sincerely, projects. 2011-2012 YEAR IN REVIEW The Class of 2011 received $1.4 million RCA Staff perform a Step Show for in scholarships and financial assistance students on the first day of school to attend some of the best boarding and private schools across the country RCA Legos Robotics Team competed in its first state competition Over 400 attendees attended this year’s against 48 other top performing RCA National Educators’ Conference – a robotics teams in Georgia after record number for RCA recently winning the Regional Championships 8th grade Model UN students were invited to compete against high The Essential Step Team performs at school students in the Yale Model UN Nickelodeon’s Worldwide Day of Play Conference in Prague Event RCA hosts its first middle school Top science students were selected Model UN Conference with to travel to the Galapagos Islands for help from Georgia Tech a unique marine adventure RCA reaches milestone of training more Kim Bearden is honored by the than 15,000 educators at RCA Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) as one of their KeKe Palmer invites RCA students to Woman of Inspiration for 2011 join in her anti-bullying campaign Ron Clark receives the NAACP Ron Clark releases his third book, President’s Award The End of Molasses Classes EXTRAORDINARY FROM THE CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD Where do I begin? There have Ultimately, we have something By this I mean that while the first been so many outstanding special at the Ron Clark Academy two legs of the stool must consist accomplishments this past year. that we want all schools to have: a of a great faculty and staff and place where an extraordinary day is dedicated parents, the other leg • Our incredible graduating class the rule rather than the exception. of the stool must consist of an received over 1.4 million dollars in For this, we should all be proud of outstanding group of supporters. scholarships. RCA. • Another 3,000 educators have In this regard, RCA is truly blessed been trained at RCA and are now To reach this level of excellence, it as none of this would be possible impacting the lives of their students takes an incredible amount of hard without you. work, dedication and willingness to • The RCA Model United Nations go the extra mile. I see this ethos Please know that we sincerely Team participated in the inaugural in literally each and every member appreciate your support, and I pray Yale University Model Government of RCA’s faculty and staff. They that we fully exhibit to you the simulation in Prague, Czech are truly and extraordinary group impact your contributions are having Republic and our very own Imani doing extraordinary things. The not only on students at RCA but on Moss was named Outstanding parents see it, the students see education across the country. Delegate it and the educators that train at RCA see it and the beneficiaries So, thanks to each of you and • RCA has launched its first capital are students from across the thanks to my colleagues on the campaign to construct a new globe. Extraordinary things by Board of Trustees. multipurpose building that will be extraordinary people. dedicated to enhancing its educator training program Just as the mosaic of events occurring at RCA are inextricably Each of these are incredible interwoven, the pieces to the puzzle achievements, but at the end of that make RCA an agent for change the day, they are all inextricably in the global educational arena are ALONZO LLORENS, SR. interwoven. also inextricably interwoven. RCA Board Chairman LEADERSHIP BOARD MEMBERS ALONZO SUNNY ROB BAILEY JEFF DIANNE LLORENS BURROWS KIGHT TEAGUE MIXSON BERNEZ Partner, Gordon Community Senior VP of Partner, Kilpatrick Senior VP, Senior VP of & Rees LLP Volunteer Compensation Townsend Holder Properties Corporate and Benefits Communications, Board Chair Vice Chair & Delta Air Lines Secretary Development Equifax Governance Committee Chair Committee Treasurer & Building Public Relations Chair Committee Chair & Marketing Committee Chair ADVISORY BOARD BOARD OF TRUSTEES Jeff Anderson Susan O’Dwyer STEPHEN MACDONALD President, Audio Enhancement Director of Business Development, STEVE BEECHAM Biotechnology Patent Habif, Arogeti & Wynne, LLP President Consultant Home Town Mortgage Ann W. Cramer Coxe Curry & Associates TOM MAXEY Betsy Plattenburg RON CLARK Executive Vice President, Director of Development and Founder Great American Financial Bonnie Dean Corporate Relations, Georgia Tech Mathematics and Resources, Inc. Vice President, Selig Enterprises Research Institute Global Studies Teacher The Ron Clark Academy MIKE NIELSEN Mat Dutkiewicz Scarlet Pressley Brown President Executive Vice President, Director of External Affairs and MATT CRISP W.S. Nielsen Company Great American Financial Community Relations, Delta Air Principal, Founder and Board Giving Chair Resources, Inc. Lines & Vice President of the Delta Air Lines Foundation Chief Operating Officer, SCOTT SELIG eVestment Alliance Vice President, Selig Mark Elliott Enterprises Education Technology Executive David Rhodes MINDY JONES Headmaster, Platinum Ambassador, SHERYL SELLAWAY Sean Franklin Kings Ridge Christian School Reliv International Executive Director of PR & Founder, Idea Speeder LLC GOAL Chair Employee Communication, Dr. Betty Siegel Verizon Wireless Rupal Mamtani President Emeritus, Entrepreneur Kennesaw State University Michael Marks Laura Turner Seydel CPA, Marks & Associates National Environmental Advocate and Eco-Living Expert Gloria Patterson Independent Education Matthew Winston Management Professional Assistant to the President, University of Georgia MEET ROBIN My name is Robin Okunowo and I am an eighth grade student at the Ron Clark At the end of last school year, I gave a Academy. I can honestly say that my life presentation to the whole aquarium staff has been forever changed because I was that summarized our research. My love fortunate enough to be a student at RCA. of science was only intensified from the awesome opportunity. I am proud to say When I came to RCA in fifth grade, I didn’t that not only have I been an honor student even know what Lego Robotics was; the past three years, but I have worked in seventh grade, I was captain of the hard to help my fellow classmates become school’s robotics team and helped lead the honor students as well. team to win trophies at the county, region, and state level. Now that I am an eighth grader, I realize how RCA has helped me see the world in “Every experience I have Before RCA, I didn’t understand the role many new ways, literally and figuratively. had at RCA has made me the UN played in the world. Now, I have My views of the world have been competed in Model UN competitions broadened by Mr.