Arts and College Preparatory Academy

The Call: A Thriving Program That Needed Room to Grow

The Arts and College Preparatory Academy had built something families valued: a charter school that combines arts education with college preparatory academics. The program was thriving. Families were asking for more grade levels. The leadership decided it was time to expand by adding a junior high program for 7th and 8th graders. That meant renovating the existing high school and building a new addition. But the school faced the two challenges that most charter schools know well: limited funding and limited experience with major construction projects.

Securing the Funding That Made It All Possible

The school’s own resources could not fund the expansion at the scale the program demanded. The leadership needed additional funding, and the OFCC grant process offered a path. But the grant application was complex and unfamiliar. ACPA’s leadership navigated the process with Triad’s guidance, and the grant was awarded, funding 50% of the project. Without this funding, the expansion would not have been possible at the scale the school needed. The grant did not just fund a building. It funded the growth of a program that families were counting on.

The Decisions That Built a Campus Worthy of the Program

With the funding secured, the leadership faced the construction process itself. The existing high school had to be renovated while the new junior high addition was built. Unforeseen conditions in the existing building had to be anticipated and managed. Every dollar of the budget had to be maximized because there was no margin for waste. And the finished spaces had to be inspirational enough to attract and retain students and families in a marketplace with options.

The leadership made the decisions. They defined what they wanted the spaces to feel like. They chose where to invest and where to economize. They engaged their stakeholders. And they navigated the entire process with a partner who provided the information and the expertise that allowed every decision to be made with confidence, without taking control away from the people whose school it is.

A School That Grew Because the Leadership Refused to Be Held Back

Today, ACPA serves 7th through 12th grade in facilities that reflect the quality of its arts and college preparatory program. An OFCC grant funded 50% of the project. The budget was maximized. Unforeseen conditions in the existing building were managed. The junior high addition and high school renovation were delivered on budget. And the leadership successfully completed a major construction project they had limited experience with, guided by a partner who kept them in control of every decision. The students at ACPA now have spaces that match the caliber of their education, because the school’s leadership refused to let limited funding or limited construction experience hold them back from growing.