From the Smarty Education Corner and Charlotte Preparatory School: A Community Where Your Child Will be Known, Loved and Challenged

By Seher Khanna, Associate Director of Admissions ~ Charlotte Preparatory School

When we first moved to Charlotte from the Washington, D.C. area we were looking for a Montessori education for our children during their primary years, and our plan was to switch to our local public school for Kindergarten. Well, 13 years later we are still here! What keeps us coming back year after year is the ethos of this school, and the community our family has been blessed to grow up in. Yes, I work here, but let me first share my perspective as a parent. My family is diverse. My children are half Indian and half Pakistani. We travel to those countries and many more regularly; they are very much connected with their heritage. They are exposed to both the Hindu and the Muslim faiths, and leave their South Charlotte bubble to volunteer for the needy in Pakistan during summer break. They speak three languages in our multi-generational home and are just as comfortable on the dance floor at a traditional Bollywood style wedding as they are on a tennis or squash court. We were looking for a school where each of our two very different children would be understood and appreciated for their own intrinsic worth, background, and potential. We wanted them immersed in an environment aligned with our family values of inclusion and respect; where they could learn first-hand about other cultures and traditions, share their own heritage, and learn to listen and dialogue with friends who had distinctly different perspectives. In short, we wanted a school where they would grow up to be confident, empathetic leaders.

We found that at Charlotte Prep. The school’s dedication to remaining child-centered has remained constant, with the physical and emotional health and happiness of each child at the forefront. The size of the #OnePrep family and the essence of a PreK – 8th grade philosophy mean that the teachers have a pulse on every child’s needs in the community, be those academic or emotional, on-campus, or virtual. From parent-education events about recognizing implicit bias to multicultural STEM celebrations on campus, Charlotte Prep is touching our lives in more ways than we could have imagined at the outset of this journey. Charlotte Prep is more than just a school. It is our home, our #OnePrep family.

Now let me put my school administrator hat back on. We are so excited to launch our “Be Kind” campaign this fall. In this strange and unsettling time, we are all adapting to a new normal, and the “Be Kind” campaign reinforces our values as a school. The campaign will find and celebrate small moments of kindness amongst children, as well as teachers and faculty. For example, weekly dinner is provided for all our staff and their families; students are recognized for their kind acts and as living pillars honoring our four pillars of leadership: Respect, Courage, Integrity, and Perseverance; our incredible Parents Association is in the process of building a community garden to encourage kindness even for the environment. In addition, we are also looking forward to implementing a campus-wide social emotional learning curriculum, Second Step. Aligned with Charlotte Prep’s emphasis on the whole child, Second Step takes a holistic approach to building resilience and lifelong interpersonal skills while strengthening student emotion identification and management, empathy, and problem-solving abilities. Our goal with Second Step is to continue strengthening the Charlotte Prep community and assist our children in navigating the world more effectively.

Character education and an emphasis on diversity and inclusion are central to the school’s mission. It is part of our DNA and a hallmark of who we are as a school family. We value positive character and integrity as the essential building blocks of a truly meaningful life. With our intentionally designed small class sizes, we ensure that every student is known, loved, and challenged. We recognize and appreciate the richness of a diverse student body, which accounts for approximately 40% of our population. We develop principled, self-confident leaders who model self-control and creative problem-solving skills, and are able to lead others.

I could go on, but you really need to visit our community to feel the contagious spirit of joy and kindness that permeates every corner of our campus. Please visit our Virtual Admissions Portal to book a tour or phone conversation, browse through our viewbook, or RSVP for a Virtual Open House.

Montessori (Age 2 – 5) Virtual Information Session Oct. 28 @ 9:30 a.m.
Kindergarten – 8th Virtual Information Session November 5 @ 9:30 a.m.

Charlotte Preparatory School
212 Boyce Road
Charlotte, NC 28211
(704) 366-5994
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Twitter: @CharlottePrep
Instagram: @Charlotte.Prep