Charter School Governance Board

Foster Elementary Charter School is a public leadership charter school committed to developing students who lead themselves and others with confidence, responsibility, and purpose. As a small, diverse, and close-knit school community within the Appleton Area School District, Foster combines individualized support with high expectations to ensure every student grows academically, socially, and as a leader.

As a charter school, Foster is granted flexibility to design an educational program that intentionally integrates leadership development and rigorous academics while remaining fully accountable to public education standards. This flexibility allows Foster to implement high-quality, research-based curricula that support deep learning and mastery. The school has adopted Illustrative Mathematics school-wide and utilizes strong literacy resources, including Wit & Wisdom, UFLI, and HD Word, which emphasize knowledge-building, vocabulary development, and foundational reading skills.

Leadership is not an add-on at Foster—it is the foundation of the school’s charter.

Through the Leader in Me framework, leadership instruction is grounded in Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, which provides a common language and skill set for students and staff. The 7 Habits are explicitly taught, practiced, and reflected upon across classrooms and grade levels. Students set goals, take ownership of their learning, collaborate with others, and engage in service projects that address real community needs. Leadership growth is celebrated through regular school-wide recognitions and authentic student leadership opportunities.

With the autonomy of a leadership charter school comes increased accountability. The Foster Elementary Charter School Governance Board provides oversight of the school’s academic program, financial stewardship, and fidelity to its charter mission.

Composed of parents and community members, the Board ensures that decisions remain aligned with Foster’s leadership-focused vision and are centered on student success. Parents and community members are encouraged to attend monthly board meetings, with dates and times shared in advance.

Governance Board Agendas & Minutes

To ensure accessibility for all visitors, our school is reducing the use of PDFs and scanned documents on our website. If you need a specific document, such as meeting agendas or minutes, the Governance Board handbook or bylaws, or our Charter contract, please get in touch with us to request a copy. We will provide the requested materials, printed or via email, as quickly as possible.