Executive Summary

Proposed ECHS House System
Executive Summary

Rationale:
As our school has grown, we have managed to maintain a high level of focus on academics and to maintain our unique culture. We sense it slipping in many subtle ways. We want to preserve our culture and improve our performance and create an even better atmosphere in which to teach and learn. We see the house system as a way to do so.

Mission Statement:
The house system at ECHS exists to create opportunities for edifying bonds between and among students and faculty, to foster student mentoring, to facilitate and improve discipline, and to perpetuate the Charterian spirit: a spirit of loyalty, creativity, respect, intellectual achievement, perseverance, courage, kindness, good judgment, humility, fairness, and citizenship.

House Establishment:
· At the onset, the houses (we propose four for purposes of clarity and competition) shall be established on a club-level based on student interest. Membership is open to all students and faculty.
· Faculty will volunteer their time to serve as house leaders. Faculty members involved in this discussion at this writing include (in alphabetical order) Endermann, Lansing, Panlasigui, Takagi, and Waterhouse.
· The teachers chosen as heads of house shall divide all interested students into homogeneous groups.
· The houses shall each seek to especially embody two or three of the traits listed above as part of what it means to be a true Charterian. The focus of each house shall, of course, be academics and service.
· Student leaders shall rise and take leadership roles in the houses—mentoring other students and planning activities.

House Activities:
Houses shall have three sorts of activities: academic, social, and service. Each house shall have students mentoring and tutoring other students. Each house shall meet socially-to share lunch occasionally or have some sort of activity at the discretion of the house itself and ECHS administrative authority. Ideally, this will serve as a “senior buddy” system often mentioned in staff meetings, younger students will be brought into the unique ECHS culture and see clearly our focus on academics and edifying relationships. Each house shall have service activities and commitments similar in nature to the commitments required of NHS and CSF. These projects shall reflect the foci of the various houses.

House Cup:
At the core of the house system is the House Cup competition. Students are awarded team points for excellence in academics (scores on exams, success on papers, etc.), behavior (positive service on campus in and out of the classroom), and service (special projects in the ECHS community). Houses also receive points based on the outcomes of regularly scheduled house competitions which may be charter Olympic style events or academic competitions. This is done under the supervision of the ASB and requires minimal funding.

House members lose points for their house for rule infractions and negative behaviors—tardies, cell phone violations, dress code violations.

At specific intervals, academic semester or academic year, the House Cup is awarded to the house with the most points during that interval of time.