Leadership & Vision

Visions Unlimited Academy is public Arizona charter school that provides high quality standards based instruction to the community’s children in a family environment. Teachers are well trained, highly qualified and committed to learning and to applying scientifically proven instructional techniques to teach the Arizona Academic Standards. Our students thrive from the individual attention and personal development that accompany our Reader’s Workshop, Writer’s Workshop and Math workshop approaches to learning and classroom activities. The staff exceeds the federal standard for being ‘highly qualified’ and offer effective instruction based on student needs as it applies to standards attainment. Visions Unlimited Academy has an excellent instructional program, a sensitive and effective special education department and enjoys considerable parent support.

We are a learning community that has developed into an organization that reflects the best in learning / teaching practice and continues to strive to better acquaint ourselves with the techniques and structures each individual student needs. This is a never-ending challenge; we continue to add expertise and modify our facilities to provide opportunities in our Vision for Autism Room. We embrace all learners—typical and special needs students as individuals who are entitled to respect, exhibit competence and dignity, explicit instruction and social and academic involvement with mainstream students.

As an Arizona Charter school, Visions Unlimited Academy offers its educational programs and an emphasis on individual social and academic achievement to all students, kindergarten through eighth grades. We welcome visitors, volunteers and inquiries from the public, other professionals and prospective parents nationwide. Visions’ emphasis on quality instruction and family environment guide day to day interactions with students, parents and everyone that comes through our doors. Visions Unlimited Academy is founded on integrity, excellence and unlimited vision.

The Keys to student success:

• Natural learning environment
  
  
• Students academically challenged
  
  
• Evaluation of student performance
  
  
• Strong relationship between home and school
  
  
• High learning standards

Mission Statement

Visions Unlimited Academy is a learning family that instills the desire for everyone to achieve success through a love of learning in a safe and positive environment. The School nurtures self worth through exceptional social, emotional, intellectual and physical learning opportunities. Our school is founded on integrity, excellence, and unlimited vision.

Visions Unlimited Academy Board of Education 2011-2012

The "Board" is designed to perform valuable functions in the overall life of the school. The Board of Education is the legal entity charged with assuring we have openness, transparency and that the overall trajectory of the life of the school is moving forward in the interest of the students and the State of Arizona. Our board members serve a valuable role by providing insight in the overall direction and management of Visions Unlimited Academy. Our members include Steven Orton, Cathy Stroupe, Andrea Grogg, and the director, Richard Valentine.

These folks are dedicated, committed, unpaid and have earned our respect and gratitude.

Our Board

The first time I visited the campus I knew that they were doing something special.
Steve Orton
Board Member

Steve Orton
"I have always felt a kindred spirit with Visions Unlimited Academy. I knew from the first time I visited the campus that they were doing something special, something that no other school in the area was doing and I wanted to be a part of it. I was excited to have my children attend and thoroughly enjoyed how they were taught as individuals, how they prospered with the community of caring adults and children at this school, even the small things like gathering around the flagpole for the pledge of allegiance, a moment of silence and singing songs that tie us together as Americans and human beings. Those kinds of things are not happening in most other schools."

Cathy Stroupe
Ms. Stroupe is an original board member and attended the very first organizational meeting for parents in March of 2000. She has been a consistent voice for parents and students in Board and operational discussion and practice. As a board member with the view for the long haul, Ms. Stroupe can call the body to consider the vision, the path we have followed and the one we must follow forward. This balance and commitment is a valuable asset and beneficial to her fellow board members and the families she has long served. Ms. Stroupe is a long time resident of the San Pedro Valley and has raised her family here. She and Mr. Stroupe have three adult children who are a credit to her energy, vision and enduring support.

Andrea Grogg
Ms. Grogg joins the Visions Unlimited Academy Board after several years as a highly qualified Parapro in our special education effort. She brings significant, in-depth operational strength to the board meeting and has the ability to recognize the commitment to children as the enduring quality of the organization. This commitment extends to the ‘vision’ that guides our instruction—Workshop Approaches to reading, writing, mathematics and study of social studies and science to the application level. As a parent of a child enrolled in the school now for his fourth year, she is quick to remind her colleagues that Visions Unlimited Academy is WHY she lives in Benson, Arizona. That commitment extends to Workshop Approaches because they allow acceptance, recognition and success of all students regardless of their strengths or handicap. Currently, Ms. Grogg is on staff as a teacher in training and has an important role in the day to day operation of the school.

Richard Valentine
Mr. Valetine is the Charter Holder, Director of Visions Unlimited Academy and currently serves as president of the Board of Education. He is an experienced educator, having served six school districts in Arizona and Colorado as teacher, principal and Director of school improvement. He also has been a school improvement consultant specializing in measuring instructional quality for those needing his service in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.

This experience provides numerous examples of what works in education (Workshop approaches to instruction, teaching to the Application stage and the Anti-at risk factors - family, focus, personal skill development, success, order, coaching, and connectedness). He also frequently reminds us what does not work: judge met, inflexibility, testing without teaching, exclusivity and the incessant demand for sameness. Richard was one of the original founders and has served as director several years and dedicated himself to finding solutions obstacles to making the “Vision” a reality.