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Chico Unified hears charter renewal presentations from INSPIRE, Nord Country and Sherwood Montessori
Summary
Three charter schools — INSPIRE School of Arts & Sciences, Nord Country School and Sherwood Montessori — presented renewal materials to the Chico Unified board, emphasizing specialized programming, student supports and academic outcomes; no renewal votes were taken at the public hearings.
Becky Brown, principal and superintendent of INSPIRE School of Arts & Sciences, told the Chico Unified board that her tuition-free charter high school serves about 357 students and offers robust career-technical and arts pathways. Brown said INSPIRE has higher rates of foster youth and students experiencing homelessness than other local high schools and cited efforts to reduce chronic absenteeism through bus passes and short-term independent study. "We are slated to break ground in June and to be on our new campus on the Fremont Street property in ’26," Brown said.
Amber Hayes, who identified herself as principal and superintendent of Nord Country School, described the K–8 rural school’s single-class-per-grade model and recent academic gains — including an 8.9 percentage-point increase in English language arts and a 23.6-point improvement in mathematics tied to a partnership with a regional leadership consortium. Hayes highlighted Nord’s community traditions, garden program and enrichment events that she said foster engagement for the district’s 214 students.
Michelle Jesbeck, director of Sherwood Montessori, accompanied by volunteer Liz Watling and board chair Tina Hanson Lewis, outlined Sherwood’s Montessori-aligned curriculum and enrollment trends. Jesbeck said the school is up to about 122 students and reported sustained growth in the percentage of students with disabilities and socioeconomic disadvantage. "We are making more than a year's growth, each year for kids in ELA and math," Jesbeck said, citing internal growth measures.
All three presentations were part of the board's public-hearing step in the charter-renewal process; board members asked questions about enrollment, transportation and program fidelity. Board members praised the programs' community engagement and student supports but took no final action on renewals at the meeting; the items will return for future board consideration.
The board also opened the hearings to public comment; no substantive objections were recorded during the hearings.
