Lake Superior Academy

The Story of Lake Superior Academy

For eleven years (2004 -2015) the EUP Learning Center offered after school support for students who struggled to meet the academic requirements of their school’s classroom. During these eleven years, it was demonstrated and well-documented that over 80% of students who needed the extra support, flourished when the instructor used a kinesthetic (hands-on/movement) approach to presenting the material. Students who initially came in the door saying they felt, “stupid” because they just couldn’t get it, left with confidence in themselves and the ability to understand and retain new concepts.
Parents repeatedly asked, “Why can’t this type of teaching be used in the regular classroom?” Montessori schools do just that. They teach the same academic concepts using a completely hands-on, concrete approach to instruction. Students with any learning style learn in this environment, but the style of instruction allows students who cannot learn and retain without movement the opportunity to keep up and maintain academic progress with traditional learners.
Montessori schools have been traditionally offered only in the private sector of education in rather affluent communities. These schools require very high tuition which could not be maintained in our local economy. The only possible way to offer a Montessori option in the Eastern Upper Peninsula was to establish a Charter School that could offer a tuition-free alternative for local families.

And that is how Lake Superior Academy came into existence in our community.