Meredith Leonard, Chairman of the Board with the Alpine Education Foundation offered an update on the Alpine Charter School, now under construction.

Wyoming Classical Academy is on schedule to hold their first classes in Alpine in the fall of 2026.

In a conversation on SVI Media’s Weekday Wake-up she spoke of the groundbreaking, the choice for school management and need for community support.

“It was a lot of fun. We had a huge turnout  which was fantastic.” Leonard said of the groundbreaking program in October. “We kind of threw it together last minute, because I will be honest with you, Dave Jenkins was way ahead of us and he had actually already broken ground so it was fun to see all of the equipment on site and see all of the children that this school will soon serve and meet supporters that we hadn’t met yet.”

Leonard advised, construction is underway for the school located near the Alpine Town Hall, Libary and Fire Department.

“We are getting utilities in place which will be great because it will allow us to have the modulars up and operational through the winter,” she explained. “We’re hoping to be able to use the modulars for parent information nights  and allow them to come in and tour the modulars and see that they’re well equipped and ready to go as classrooms. We will also be kicking off our formal enrollment here in the next couple of weeks so we encourage parents to connect with us via Facebook or through our website.”

She said parents may also email her directly with questions at: info@alpineeducation.foundation. “We’re happy to answer any questions and then we will have monthly events coming up that we’ll be sure to keep everyone posted on,” she said.

Acklowdgeing the change to Wyoming Classical Academy, Leonard explained the new direction. “So many of you know that we were originally pursuing a partnership with a school out of Utah. However, there was an opportunity for us to partner with the Wyoming Classical Academy and after further exploration, we just decided that it made the most sense. We still got the beautiful classical education that we are excited to get the word out about, but we also have a state partnership which is fantastic and then with that comes a lot of really great partnerships with other entities including Academica who will act as our operational partner. And then we are currently working to apply to become a Hillsdale curriculum school and we’re hoping to receive that approval next month, which will be fantastic because they really bring a wealth of knowledge to the classical curriculum and then we’ll also have a nationwide network with the Hillsdale partnership.”

Long term construction plans for the school are still being processed, Leonard explained.

“We have a five-year lease with the town of Alpine,” she recalled. “We’re hoping that once the school is up and operational and full that we can make the case for a longer term lease and then we’ll start raising money to build a permanent school which you know is really one of the reasons that I got involved.”

Development of the school will help community, Leonard advised.

“I think a beautiful classical permanent school in Alpine will really help to set the standard in terms of development and growth for the town. Development is always on everyone’s mind and I think that if we can get a great classical school built then it’s really going to set the standard for quality development and really help engage the community and build a beautiful town.”

Leonard was asked to explain the process of a charter school’s funding.

“So a charter school is a tuition-free public school,” she said.  “We will receive money from the state the same way that a local public school receives money. We do have to meet all of the standards that are set by the state. Through the classical education we obviously would always work to achieve those standards, but then exceed those standards.”

She noted the school offers choice for parents.

“It’s really just an opportunity to provide choice for parents, depending on their school structure or obviously Alpine being the location. It just allows parents to make the best choice for their child and their family. And so they don’t necessarily have to be tied to a local school based on jurisdiction or based on location. They have a choice of what works best for their families.”

The school will open with a K-6 designation. “That’s based on recommendation of Wyoming Classical Academy,” Leonard explained. “That is actually how they started. Their campus is in Mills. They’re in their third year and they just opened their brand new beautiful school and they have around 370 kids enrolled.”

She continued, “So they’re really setting the precedent for us and setting the standard and that is where we hope to be in the next few years.”

Funding will come from local support, Leonard said, noting the importance of local contributions. “Unlike local typical schools, we do not receive any state funding to get up and off the ground. So everything, all the money that we have raised and all the progress that we have made financially, has been primarily grassroots. So we’re continuing in that effort to raise funds.”

She added. “The other thing that parents can do to help is express interest in the school when the enrollment opens. Of course if you’re 100% set on the school, enroll your kids. We would love to have a full school year one.”

She invited parents to seek information about the new school. “The other thing that parents can really do is to reach out. If you have questions or considerations or needs or specifics that can help us make this school a better choice for you, reach out. We’re happy to have those discussions.”

She continued, “We’re happy to have those conversations. We want to know how we can help, and we want to know how we can make this a really fantastic school for the community.”

“Obviously this has been decades in the making. More than anything, we just want to say thank you to everyone who has been there to support us,” Leonard concluded. “Thank you to all the parents, to the donors, to the community. We are so excited with our progress, and we’re so excited for the future.”

For additional information, the school’s URL is alpine.wyoclassical.org and the Facebook handle is the Alpine Charter School.