318 people gathered at the Frankfort Crossing Campus on 28 East Tuesday night. Community leaders, parents, business owners, churches, office holders, Students, Teachers, friends of The Crossing and civic clubs came together to celebrate The Crossing’s 15 year in Clinton County and 20th year in existence state-wide as a secondary school for area students.
The banquet plays a critical role in financing “the gap” between income provided by student attendence and the actual cost of providing a “Crossing Education” for the 100 students at the facility.
Each year the Crossing School of Business and Entrepreneurship graduates about 45 students. About 90% of the Crossing students go on to:
- Higher Education
- Military
- Full Time Employment, usually in the Clinton County area.
Before the banquet began, guests toured several rooms on the campus. Each room had about 2 or 3 students introduce themselves and explain the significance of each station.
- History Room
- God Talk Room
- Community Service Room
- Business/Academics Room
- Family Room
- Manufacturing Lab Room
- Sweet Stop-Student Run Business
One goal of the banquet, sponsored by the local Crossing board of directors, was to tell the Crossing story to the community. Another goal was to raise funds to help support the unique mission of the Crossing School. The Crossing in Clinton County partners with Schools in Clinton and Carroll counties by offering a path to graduate that is customized to the needs of each individual student.
The Crossing School in Clinton County hopes to raise $50,000 from the event.
The Crossing School story has grown to serve 12 community campuses state-wide from Indianapolis to Elkhart. Crossing Schools in Indiana started in 2003 and the Frankfort Crossing Campus started in 2009. The Frankfort campus graduated seven students in that first year.
Marissa Mills, school administrator, said the most significant item at the school is not the 92% attendance rate, as impressive as that number is by any measure. The most significant thing happening at the school this year is the spiritual growth of the students, which is unusually high this year.
The Crossing School in Clinton County saves the County nearly $800,000 per year in county-wide probationary department costs compared to historical 2009 figures when Eric Spencer helped lead the charge to start the program locally.
Many times more impactful than the savings to taxpayers, the Crossing has racked up impressive numbers testifying to the success of the students and a program that leads to the development of local student talent and life preparation/career skills.
For more photos of the event click the links below