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Who We Are

TRANSFORMING EDUCATION

Enroll your PreK-8th child in the #1 Christian Expeditionary Learning school in Colorado.

OUR MISSION IS TO GUIDE STUDENTS IN KNOWLEDGE, CHARACTER, AND FAITH TO DISCOVER AN AUTHENTIC LOVE OF LEARNING AND A LIFE OF OPPORTUNITY.

WHAT MAKES DPCA DIFFERENT?

Besides being the only four day school in Buena Vista, only Christian school in Chaffee County, and only Christian Expeditionary Learning school in the Central Rockies...

INTENTIONALLY 

SMALL

By limiting our enrollment to 100 K-8th students, we are able to provide personalized care and instruction to meet the needs of each of our students and provide a safe, family centered environment.

RIGOR + JOY

Our rigorous academics are hands on, active, and engaging for all learning types. We work hard together, play hard together, and celebrate each other's growth and achievements with great joy.

ADVENTURE

Outdoor Expeditions such as climbing, backpacking, and xc skiing allow students to take their learning beyond the classroom and develop confidence, communication, and teamwork skills.

CHARACTER + FAITH

We care about who students are becoming, not just what they know. We emphasize character development and spiritual growth alongside academic knowledge in order to empower students to become agents of good in their local communities and our world.

OUR STAFF VALUES 

Our staff are truly what makes DPCA unique! In order for the school's mission to be translated from words into reality, we are committed as a team to modeling the following behaviors in ways that consistently cultivate a joyful, welcoming, Christ-centered culture. 

LEADERS IN LEARNING | As educators, our staff model a love of learning for their students not only by continuing to pursue professional development opportunities, but by remaining willing to grow and change in order to best serve their students. 

MOTIVATED BY LOVE | All the ways our staff serves parents, their children, each other, and our local community are authentically characterized by love, so that our actions may serve as an indicator of Christ's work in our hearts. 
 

BUILDERS OF COMMUNITY | Our staff is focused on developing personal relationships with students, a positive school culture, and a supportive work environment in order to unify our learning community and best serve the broader community of Chaffee County. 

Meet Our Staff

ADMINISTRATION

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Ashley Blazer
Head of School 
blazer_a@dpcaweb.org

Ashley has served this community in numerous ways while living here, including participation on the boards of 51:10 Youth Ranch and the BV Pregnancy Center, serving briefly at Trail West as the High Ropes Course Coordinator, and instructing Holy Yoga. She has also continued to faithfully serve DPCA as a substitute teacher, professional development instructor, and leadership consultant. Her three children have been a part of Busy Bees and DPCA since 2011, and by the end of May, all three will have graduated from DPCA. Ashley currently works with Silverstone Leadership as a Leadership Consultant and Executive Coach. She holds a Masters in HIgher Education from the University of Mississippi and a Bachelor of Science from The University of Texas. 

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Hannah Otteni
Office Manager
otteni_h@dpcaweb.org
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Maggie Stark
Business Manager
tuition@dpcaweb.org

 ELEMENTARY & MIDDLE SCHOOL

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Charity Courson

Kindergarten

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Brooke Espinosa
1st Grade
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Pam Hinterreiter
1st  Grade
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Heidi Gerberich
2nd Grade

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Caitlyn Treat
3rd Grade
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Dawn Chambers
4th Grade 
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Brenda DeWalt

5th Grade

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Brook Cervenka
Outdoor Programming,
MS Science
Art/Music/Drama 
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Gavin Depew
MS History/ PE
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Jenny Depew
Spanish/ Crew/Bible
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Annie Meadows
Literature/ Assistant Principal

 

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Thea Gab
Middle School Math

 

EARLY LEARNING

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Anne Sytsma

Pre School Director/

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Emily Brown

 Lead Preschool Teacher/ Assistant Director

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Julianna Miller
Preschool Teacher

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Catherine Bearss

Assistant Preschool Teacher

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Mary Moore
 Assistant Preschool Teacher

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Becca Wingo 

Assistant Preschool Teacher

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Erica Alluisi
Assistant Preschool Teacher
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Rachel Dewalt
Preschool Teacher

Employment

Interested in joining our team of passionate, adventurous, leaders in learning?

Check out our employment page to see if we've posted your dream job yet! 

BOARD MEMBERS

Anne Patterson
School Founder
Levi LaGree
Board Member
 
John PInyard
Board Member
Jonathan Litwiller
Board Member
Kathy Young
Board Member

 
Joe Chambers
Board Member

The school board meets the third Monday of every month at 6pm. These meetings are

open to the public by appointment. The school board enjoys hearing from community members, 

our school families, students, and staff. Feel free to email to get on the monthly meeting schedule or with

any questions, concerns, feedback, or ideas you might have!

 

schoolboard@dpcaweb.org

About Our Board
The Role of the Board
 
The Board serves as a support and resource to the administrator and staff and as a advocate and voice for the school in the larger community. They oversee the decision making processes and provide accountability in guiding the mission and vision of the school. In addition, they oversee fundraising efforts. 
 
The Board meets monthly - these meetings are open to the public by appointment. The Board is open to hearing from students, parents, staff, and members of the community. If you are interested in attending a meeting or in applying to be a board member, please contact us for more information. 
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