Making (Stronger) Community Connections

Turning life experiences into credit-bearing field trips (called treks)

Helping students progress at their own pace

Supporting the mental health needs of every student

But MC2 was impacted by COVID in other ways. The internship program, which constitutes approximately 40% of the time a student spends at MC2 was hindered by industry closures as well as increased vaccination and safety requirements. The school also witnessed decreased attendance numbers, something MC2 has in common with other schools across the state and country.

Supporting these two areas is the focal point of the latest MC2 initiatives. Utilizing Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funding, MC2 has created two critical staff positions: a Steward for the school’s new maker space and a Family Liaison that will work with families to remove the barriers associated with attending school.

To make the internship program more robust, MC2 has spent the last year developing a maker space, called CoCreate, with the help of local businesses and nonprofit partners. The maker space will help students explore and cultivate new skills that will open up career possibilities. In the future, CoCreate will expand its reach to become a resource for the entire community.

At the center of the maker space is a new MC2 staff member, the Steward, whose job is to grow the repertoire of tools and skills available to students, connect with local makers and artists in the Monadnock Region, and ultimately grow CoCreate into a community-accessible maker space promoting “creative, practical, and responsible making.”

“I look forward to setting up opportunities for students to develop an understanding of the systems and resources that are part of all creative ‘making’ endeavors,” says Jerry Kuhn, CoCreate’s Steward and a founding member of the CoCreate team.

According to Mr. Kuhn, who recently retired from the Tech Ed Department of Monadnock Regional High School, CoCreate will offer students the chance to practice their ability to respond creatively to challenges and express themselves in ways that expand on traditional school media. “We expect to use our resources to design for digital work, like laser cutting, 3D prototyping, and graphic design, and we will also be using tools for woodworking/woodturning, bike repair, and macrame. We expect to keep a very broad interpretation of what it means to be a maker, and hope we can reach out to other makers in the community to supplement our offerings,” he says.

Joining Mr. Kuhn on the staff is MC2’s new Family Liaison, Jen Matson. Mrs. Matson, who previously worked at Monadnock Developmental Services in Keene, will support MC2 families to remove the barriers that prevent students from being fully present at school.

After just two months, Mrs. Matson has helped establish mental health supports for staff and students that involve individual and group counseling and is working to foster relationships with MC2 learners and staff, as well as build working relationships with the families/caregivers of these learners. The end goal is helping learners to feel strong and confident enough to walk out their door each day and attend to their education in a facility that makes them feel like they are safe and their voices are heard.

“Being given the position of Family Liaison is so much more than a title for me. It is a mission,” says Mrs. Matson. “Every individual is going through something in their lives, good, bad or indifferent. Some could view it as minimal and to others, it is life-altering. Nonetheless, we all need someone we can lean on. Someone who is a trusted source of not only resources, but compassion, empathy, understanding, and HEART. I want to be that person for MC2 learners and families. I WANT to help them find those resources they need to attain their family and life goals, big or small. I want to help families climb over those hurdles and smash those roadblocks that life can sometimes put in their way.”

MC2 has been very strategic in its use of relief funds, which has allowed it to grow, address critical student needs while providing more opportunities for learning and exploration.

In addition to the new staff members, Chris O’Reilly, executive director of MC2, says that there are also plans to use ESSER funds to develop more outdoor learning opportunities, an increased wellness curriculum, and provide extra support services for all learners, and more professional development opportunities for all staff.

As an organization MC2 has worked through some extremely difficult challenges over the past few years, according to O’Reilly. “ In the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, we had to consolidate both of our campuses into one. We also had to move from our original site on Emerald Street to our new site on Marlboro Street in the middle of the school year last year, while simultaneously fitting out the new space. As a result of the consolidation the majority of our Board of Trustees, who resided in the greater Manchester area, also stepped down and were replaced with Trustees from the Keene area. Despite all this, MC2 remains stable and is starting to see steady enrollment growth. Our 2022-2023 school year is up 20% over last year”.

To learn more about MC2 Charter School, or to take a tour, call us at 603-283-0844.