With the start of the 2014-15 school year less than a week away, Fountain Hills Charter School Principal Tom Cox said that he and his staff are ready to get rolling on another year of fun and education.

As 2013 gave way to 2014, Cox began his tenure with FHCS, marking a big change for the local school with a shift in leadership. Cox said that, last year, the other big change for FHCS was initiating benchmark assessments and various other software programs to help customize each student’s education.

Looking ahead, Cox said that the local school will continue to implement some changes that will further enhance the learning process.

“We intend to utilize technology to simplify teachers’ daily routines,” Cox said.

“We are also moving to an online lesson planning that is in line with Common Core. We are focusing resources and time to help staff be more prepared to teach mathematics, too. As we analyze our data, we [are finding that] we need to devote more time and energy in this area.”

Cox said that this sort of refocusing will be seen all over campus, as FHCS continues to strive for excellence. Like with most schools and districts around the state, though, he said that site funding remains a hurdle that must be addressed. So far, though, he said that the local Charter School has been able to roll with the punches.

“Finance is always an issue with charter and other schools,” he added.

“We have been able to streamline what we do and how we do it to provide more funds for the classrooms.”

The new school year kicks off on Monday, and it will be a half-day schedule for FHCS students. That schedule will continue through Wednesday for kindergarteners. No matter what grade the student is in, however, Cox said that he and his “amazing staff” are ready to make 2014-15 an equally amazing school year.

“Our enrollment for 2014-15 is up to the level that we were able to add an additional teacher, so we now have two teachers for each grade level up through the fifth grade,” Cox added.

“We are looking forward to an exciting year. Students will receive a world class education from a super staff, and we are going to have tons of fun activities outside te classroom.”