GVSU, Excel Charter Academy mark 30 years of innovation in education

A partnership spanning three decades is celebrating a key milestone for the 2025-2026 academic year. 

For 30 years, Grand Valley has advanced cutting-edge solutions for K-12 students, teachers and administrators as one of Michigan’s first public charter school authorizers. Excel Charter Academy, the first school authorized by GVSU, has been collaborating with the Charter Schools Office since the beginning. 

“Grand Valley and the schools we charter strive to be innovators in public education by empowering communities, learners and educators with the ability to try something new,” said Leah Breen, associate vice president for Education Innovation and School Services at the Division of K-12 Education Innovation and Scholar Success, which oversees GVSU’s charter authorizing responsibilities.  

GVSU’s journey as an authorizer began when Michigan Gov. John Engler signed legislation that created charter schools on January 14, 1994. After months of exploring the community benefits charter schools could generate, the Board of Trustees voted in 1995 to make Grand Valley one of the first charter school authorizers in the state. That September, GVSU authorized Excel.  

GVSU now authorizes 78 charter public schools that enroll more than 33,000 students across the state.

“When Excel Charter Academy was founded, the school had to blaze its own path because there was no model for it to follow,” Breen said. “Within a few years, the outcomes it was helping students achieve made it the model of success for other communities across the country.” 

ECA serves more than 780 K-8 students and stands out as one of the top elementary and middle charter schools across GVSU’s network of schools.  

In its annual rankings of the nation’s elementary and middle schools, U.S. News and World Report ranked ECA ninth among Michigan’s charter middle schools and 10th among the state’s charter elementary schools. ECA also placed at No. 41 on the publication’s listing of all Michigan public middle schools.  

"When Excel Charter Academy was founded in 1995, I could never have imagined all that charter schools would be able to do for students and families across the country," said J.C. Huizenga, chairman and founder of National Heritage Academies, Excel's operator. "Fast forward three decades, and it is amazing to see what our students and educators have accomplished since our humble beginnings."

“We have a tremendous relationship with Grand Valley,” said Dan Bartels, Excel’s principal. “Every year, there are professional development opportunities GVSU is willing to offer. 

“The support Grand Valley lends is very encouraging. It’s exactly what we need to help us and our teachers.” 

Bartels, who’s been at Excel for 28 of its 30 years, said the school prides itself on building a strong sense of community among staff, teachers, families and students.  

“We want to do the common things uncommonly well,” Bartels said. “That's one of our themes. We want to do academics like every school would but do it at a high level.  

“Also important is character education, the focus on having fun in the right way, and on building community. We talk a lot about moral focus virtues with students."  

Marking 30 years of partnership, GVSU and ECA continue to demonstrate how innovation and collaboration can drive student success, Breen said. The relationship forged in 1995 remains a foundation for new ideas and opportunities in public education. 

“We are proud to be the school’s authorizer and even more proud of all that the Excel community accomplishes every year,” Breen said. “Its impact is immeasurable.”