Moving Forward at an Alarming Pace

Good afternoon CAFM community! I hope your Lenten observance is proceeding penitently and cheerfully. I wanted to provide a quick update on our progress.

• The fire alarm system for the St. Thomas More parish hall where we will be having classes has been installed. This is a requirement in the fire code and marks the last item on our to-do list in obtaining our approval to accept Step Up For Students scholarship funds. All that remains are various inspections for which we have already been coordinating with the inspecting agencies. We should have our final SUFS approval sometime this summer.
• I have interviewed several well-qualified applicants for teaching positions and have many more applicants to interview. I am ecstatic about the types of people who are eager to come teach at our school, and I’m certain that CAFM students will be in great hands when they finally sit down for their first classes in August.
• We are in the process of drafting our schedule and ensuring we meet all requirements for a Florida High School diploma. Though the curriculum prescribed by the Chesterton Schools Network is more stringent than Florida standards, there are a couple of requirements that the curriculum doesn’t cover, such as Personal Financial Management and an online course. While this isn’t a requirement for private schools, we want to ensure that our graduates have met and exceeded the standards expected of all Florida high school graduates.
• We have partnered with the Pensacola Rowing Club to offer our students the opportunity to join our crew team and compete in local and regional competitions. This helps our students grow physically and socially and provides opportunities for college scholarships.

As you can see, we are getting closer to being ready to open our doors in August. However, we still have a lot of work to do. Our primary concern now is funding. Most of our students will be relying on Step Up For Students funding to attend CAFM. Those funds won’t be delivered to the school until October. In the meantime, we must be able to cover our operational costs such as payroll, rent, books, supplies, and insurance. I understand that money is an uncomfortable topic, but the simple fact is that we must raise the necessary funds to be able to open our doors.

If you would like to contribute to our mission of forming saints, you can visit the donate link on our website. Also, if you would like to help in other ways, please reach out to me at [email protected]. And, as always, please spread the word about our school and our mission to anyone you know who may want to get involved in any way.

I am continually in awe of the community in Pensacola, and the way that people have reached out to make our mission a reality. I want to thank everyone who has offered their time, talents, treasures, and most importantly, their prayers in getting us this far. Know that you are all in our prayers as well. God bless.

--Christopher Moore