To return to the ELM web site, simply close this window. What is the mission of Escuela Luz del Mundo? “Escuela Luz del Mundo” (ELM) or “Light of the World School” will be a Christ-centered, community-based school in the Southeast Heights of Albuquerque, NM that intentionally strives to glorify God by providing a rigorous, college-preparatory education for low-income children. By building on the social and cultural resources of the East Central Avenue neighborhood, ELM will be a culturally relevant and affirming school where students are actively involved in glorifying God through serving their community. What are the central goals of Escuela Luz del Mundo? The school will make the development of a personal relationship of every child with Christ Jesus a priority and hold all school stakeholders personally accountable for fostering each student’s God-given talents and human potential. Teachers will be provided extensive support to develop an inquiry-based curriculum in which experiential learning is central to expand students’ critical thinking skills. The core academic subjects as well as Spanish will be the focus of the academic program. All students will learn how to “critically read the world” while keeping Christ Jesus as the central focus of their lives. Every student who graduates from ELM will be academically, socially, and spiritually prepared to enroll in and be successful at a four-year institution of higher education. Why is there a need for a Christ-centered, community-based school in the Southeast Heights? The Southeast Heights includes many high poverty neighborhoods and is home to a high percentage of Mexican immigrants. Many residents of this community have limited access to social support networks. High quality educational opportunities are limited in this area as well. At Highland High School, the number of students who graduated from the school has averaged 220-280/year over the past five years, though the total student population has averaged almost 2000. These numbers appear to indicate that less than 50% of the students who initially matriculate at Highland, actually graduate from the school. How will ELM be different from other Christian schools? First, ELM will strive to glorify God by providing a rigorous, college-preparatory education for low-income children. Secondly, students at ELM will also be required to engage in meaningful community service that is directly aligned with their academic learning goals. Finally, our school supports efforts already underway through East Central Ministries to transform a community in the name of Christ Jesus. What does it mean that ELM is a “Christ-centered” school? Being a Christ-centered school entails more than simply focusing on teaching a “Christian curriculum.” It means challenging ourselves to live out the teaching of Christ on a daily basis. At Escuela Luz del Mundo, we believe that “showing Christ” to students entails being living examples of His love that is embodied within us. We’re not Christians, is that a problem? This isn’t a problem. While all the staff at the school will be Christians, it’s not a requirement that you or your children be Christians. We also won’t discriminate at ELM based upon race, ethnicity, or gender. We plan to change lives not only by providing an excellent, standards-based education, but also to see lives changed in a way that is only possible as children develop a faith relationship with Jesus Christ. Will my child learn very much attending this school? At ELM, your student will have the opportunity to engage in a rigorous, college-preparatory education. We are also planning to teach through lots of hands-on, minds-on learning experiences. We envision establishing a dynamic learning environment in which students have opportunities to develop their God-given talents in creative ways. For example, students will engage in relevant lessons such as real-life projects that focus on the needs of their communities, like helping to sustain a community garden. Furthermore, we plan to work with Albuquerque Public Schools and the city to offer an art program for students. Lastly, the teachers and the students and parents they serve at ELM will be required to sign a contract that specifies rigorous behavioral and academic expectations that must be met by all on a continuing basis. All will be held accountable to these expectations and will also be involved in evaluating their own and other students’ progress in meeting and exceeding behavioral and academic goals established for each student. My child is starting to fall behind, will you be able to help her/him? Because the school will be small, your child will get lots of personal attention from caring adults. We also will have an extended school day four days a week (Monday-Thursday) from 8:30 until 5 (on Fridays, students will be released at 3:40). Because of the personal attention that we can provide and the extended school day, we’ll be able to both help children get “caught up” in their skills while moving forward into a more advanced curriculum (e.g., algebra in middle school). We also believe that at ELM, we’ll be able to teach to the “whole child.” Every child who attends ELM will get special attention every day. If my child starts in sixth-grade at ELM this fall, will s/he be able to continue at the school or will s/he need to transfer back to Hayes Middle School next year? ELM will start with an initial cohort of 20-30 sixth graders in the fall of 2007. Our goal is to add a grade each year until the initial class graduates, while continuing to matriculate new students every year. However, a child could still transfer back to a regular public school without any negative repercussions. Do we need to apply to ELM and is there an application fee? If we spend the money to apply, is my child guaranteed admission? Yes, there is an application process that must be completed to attend Escuela Luz del Mundo. The application fee is $10 and the deadline to apply for the fall is March 15th. As part of the application process, we will interview you and your child to make sure that you and ELM are a good match. We are committed at ELM to providing access to a Christ-centered, high-quality education for students who may otherwise have limited educational opportunities. To bring this vision to fruition, we plan to be discerning in whom we admit so that every student who attends ELM can take advantage of the opportunities that will be provided for them at the school. How much will it cost to go to ELM? Financial aid will be provided on the basis of need, but every student’s family will be required to make some financial and/or time contributions to ELM. We have developed a sliding scale for tuition to attend the school. The minimum amount required to send a child to ELM is $100 for one semester. More importantly, though, is that we will develop a plan with the family of each child that attends the school to engage family members in activities at ELM. In this way, families of children that attend the school will be intimately involved in the work that we’ll be doing at Escuela Luz del Mundo.

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Updated: December 9, 2007