Theresa Mason, Vine Academy Grapevine co-founder and head of school, spoke to council May 16 about a conditional use permit request to move the school to 417 W. Wall St., the former Mt. Horum Baptist Church building. The request was passed by both the planning and zoning commission and council. The school is currently located at 422 S. Church St., inside the First United Methodist Church.
“We are growing, and moving into this new space will give us a little bit more room to grow in the future,” said Mason, who is also is broker and co-owner of Magnolia Realty in Grapevine.
The backstory: The school was founded by Mason and her husband, Justin, as well as Adam and Dre Syswerda during the 2020-21 school year and opened in the fall of 2021. It is an Acton Affiliate, which mixes technology and independent learning that leads to discovery and freedom of movement in the classroom, according to the Acton Academy website.
Mason will go back to planning and zoning and council in June with renderings for the design of the school that plans to operate at the new location for the 2023-24 school year.
Notable quote: “Our core values are curiosity and character development; we develop lifelong-learning skills,” Mason said. “We have a like-minded community. We work towards achieving goals and individualized learning. Kind of a Montessori style, it is not particular grades. It is a learning environment that is multiaged. They learn by socratic discussion, and we have a lot of self-paced challenges.”
By the numbers: The current location had 12 students during the 2022-23 school year and is on track to double that number for the 2023-24 school, Mason said.
- The school has two guides, a term used instead of teacher.
- Instead of classrooms, the school has two studios. The Spark Studio is for 4- to 6-year-olds and the Elementary Studio is for 7- to 11-year-olds.
- The school hours at the new location will be from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. with no after-school program or services.
