Minor changes and a new name for Merrimac Community Charter School

Merrimac Community Charter School will now be known as Merrimac Community School, in the wake of a few changes coming in the fall. Due to changes from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, the school will dissolve its charter with the State of Wisconsin and now enter in agreement with the Sauk Prairie School District. The changes coming to the school would be minor: there will be a defined attendance area, as there is now, with options for open enrollment for students in the rest of the district. The board approved the changes at its July 13 meeting. According to a presentation at the previous meeting, the school--with a new name--will continue to offer the same curriculum and teaching methods. The name change is necessary because with the dissolution of the charter with the State, Merrimac will no longer be a charter school, as defined by the Department of Public Instruction. The Merrimac Governance Council will continue to serve the school, but will now work with the School District. At the July 13 meeting, a Merrimac parent spoke to the board about the timing of the release of information about the changes. She said parents only found out about the changes from the District two weeks before the board was to vote on the change.  Superintendent Jeff Wright also walked the board through a presentation highlighting the new construction at the school. The firm in charge of the changes can provide near real-time three dimensional computer models showing not only the new layout, but lighting as well, so the district can see how the placement of windows and skylights affect the interior.