Location, Location, Loca...

The planning aspect of our micro-school that we’ve spent the most time on this summer has been trying to determine the best location. We have had some amazing choices - the upstairs of a cute, old home right in the downtown of our city - walkable to the library, stores, and parks.. Another option is a home 15 minutes outside of town, with lots of outdoor space and cozy areas for learning. We have considered church basements, our own basements, outdoor spaces with pavilions and porta-potties, and any other location you can think of that would possibly work for 8-12 kids to meet up and learn. Would the library notice if we just showed up every single day? What about the coffee shop? The fraternity houses? It’s not like they are using those party basements during the week (just kidding. Kind of.)

A significant part of location is determined by the zoning board and the city planning committee. And even their insight depends on discussions and input from the fire marshall, the building inspector, and our own design professional. Needless to say, finding the perfect location is not a four-month project.

What may be ideal and cozy for learners could be a fire hazard, be too far out of town, or just not be eligible to go through the zoning process in time for our start date.

For this year, we are looking for a temporary location where we can begin our journey with HMLC. Once this year is underway, we will start our location journey again - this time looking for a permanent location. One where we can take the time to fully go through the process of securing the perfect site.

When I began student teaching, right here in this very town, the elementary school where I was assigned was under renovation. The first month or so of my student teaching included working in a classroom where the walls had been stripped down to the cinderblock gray. The tiles had been removed from the ceiling so you could look up to see the wires above. The floor was smooth concrete, the carpet having been removed. It was a beautiful place to begin my teaching career because it showed me that the room itself did not need to be a hindrance to learning. The teacher expertly kept her students engaged and working, and the classroom maintained its feeling of warmth and community despite the industrial walls and floor. It was lovely to move into our new, beautiful space, but truly, not much changed. The students and the community in the classroom were the same as they had been before the move.

The location journey this summer has reminded me of this. I have ideals for what I would like the school’s location to be - and long term I hope we can match those ideals. For now, I know what is truly important is the community we form together as a group of learners, along with how we engage and inspire our learners to ask questions and dive into their projects.

No matter where we open our doors, I know the work we do together will outshine our location.