A Message from Title I

Heritage Community Charter School is a Title I school. This means we receive Federal Title I Funds based on our school demographics; these funds help us meet the needs of diverse learners. As a school wide Title I program, we have the flexibility to use these funds to assist all students in the process of reaching their academic potential. At HCCS, Title I funds are used to provide intervention and enrichment opportunities for all students, hire additional paraprofessional staff members to support learning in the classrooms, purchase supplemental learning materials and resources, and host our annual Family Math Night and Family Literacy Night events. If you have any questions about the Title I program, please contact Dawn Marie Rupp by email or by phone at 208-453-8070.

Press Release about Accreditation at HCCS

Congratulations to Heritage Community Charter School! Click HERE to view the article reporting our Accreditation in the Idaho Press Tribune.

FAQ about the Idaho Core Standards at HCCS

Many parents have questions about how HCCS is handling the transition to the Idaho Core Standards (Common Core State Standards). Below is a summary addressing the most frequently asked questions and misconceptions.

What will be the same at HCCS with the new standards?

  • Philosophy: HCCS will continue to offer a classical education with an emphasis in language acquisition through the dual language immersion program.
  • Curriculum: HCCS will continue to use Core Knowledge, Origo Stepping Stones, The DBQ Project, Reading Street, Calle de Lectura, Estrellita, Imagine Learning, classical literature and primary source documents.
  • Instructional Practices: HCCS will continue to emphasize Socratic Dialogue, skill mastery, problem solving, eloquence in written and verbal communication, and critical analysis  in literature, history, science, data and mathematics.
  • Assessment: HCCS will continue to screen and monitor student progress in grades K-8 using the NWEA MAP assessment for reading and mathematics; these screeners help us identify and provide additional support for students at risk for not achieving academic success. We will also administer the following state assessments: ISAT (reading and math in grades 3-8, science is grades 5 and 7), Idaho Reading Indicator (K-3), and interim ISAT assessments to help monitor student progress.
  • Core Characteristics: HCCS will continue its emphasis on character development through the monthly core characteristics of Responsibility, Diligence/Work, Perseverance, Honesty, Loyalty, Self-Discipline, Compassion, Friendship, and Courage.

What will be different at HCCS with the new standards?

  • Standards Alignment: When the state of Idaho adopted the Idaho Core Standards (CCSS) in 2011, HCCS began the process of aligning our curriculum to the new instructional standards. The new standards are more rigorous than the previous Idaho State Standards for education. During the process of alignment, we found that our chosen curriculum, which was selected for its rigor and content, was already predominately aligned to the new standards.
  • Assessment: For the last several years Idaho has administered the ISAT in grades 3-8. The test was 100% multiple choice, computer based, and included three sections: reading, mathematics, and language arts. In 2014 Idaho began using a new assessment, the Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA). The test includes two sections: mathematics and English language arts. The test includes four types of questions: multiple choice, technology enhanced (drag and click), constructed response (paragraph or two), and performance tasks (includes multiple standards and uses texts, videos, speaking, reading, listening, writing and problem solving).

Heritage is now using School Messenger Automated Notification

Flyer with s3etup instructions for school messenger Flyer with s3etup instructions for school messenger in Spanish

Heritage is now a 4 star school!

Heritage Community Charter School is pleased to announce that our school has been publicly recognized be the Idaho State Department of Education as a top performing school in Idaho and has been rated 4 stars as a result of student achievement in the areas of:

  • Academic growth-how much progress did students make over the past school year
  • Academic proficiency-how many students have reached grade-level or higher in each subject area on the ISAT
  • Participation- schools must demonstrate that at least 95% of students in the schools were tested.