Teton Science Schools will bring TSS Educational Programs to families of Eastern Idaho through increasing educational services and opportunities for kids, families, teachers and communities of Eastern Idaho. Effective September 1, 2012, the Teton Valley Community School located in Victor, Idaho joined TSS as the seventh major program area. This is an important first step in supporting and serving families in Idaho.
Teton Valley Community School is the heart of Teton Science Schools’ Idaho Initiative. It has been operating successfully in Teton Valley since 2002 and currently serves 96 students in preschool through sixth grade. For the past two years, TSS has run summer programs for students in grades 1-6, based at the Idaho campus, in addition to the Community School’s own summer day camp programs. This summer TSS programs will extend to Idaho Falls and Pocatello areas as well.
Teton Science Schools’ presence in the Victor-Driggs area has received a warm welcome from Teton County, Idaho School District principals, as well as the Superintendent of Schools. They have all expressed interest and excitement about the potential of bringing TSS programming to Teton Valley for students and teachers, as well as bringing students and teachers to the Jackson and Kelly campuses for educational programs.
TSS staff have met with more than 30 Teton Valley community members to communicate the new partnership and the Idaho Initiative. These meetings also provided positive input from community leaders about how they think TSS could help meet the educational needs of the valley.
The Idaho Initiative has great potential for extending the mission of TSS. Southeastern Idaho has a population of approximately 360,000 people within a two hour drive from Victor. The combination of highly educated workforces, strong family orientations, deep agricultural heritage and natural resource economies makes the area a natural fit for TSS programming and collaboration. The capacity for philanthropic support from the area is also very strong. Teton Science Schools’ desire is to engage in these communities with partners that embrace our successful place-based programs for Eastern Idaho students.
