Our Mission
Our beliefs
Rigorous curriculum
We respect the intelligence, innate desire to learn, and academic capability of our students.
Rigor equals equity.
We hold our students to high academic expectations because we know they are capable of reaching the bar we set. Our curriculum, vetted by experts, is used by high performing schools across the country to get results and prepare students for college.
Challenge and support.
All students receive daily interventions and are challenged with complex tasks in their core classes. We have two special educators in each grade, a robust RTI program, and small group instruction four times daily.
We begin with the end.
All of our students are going to college, so we carefully backwards map all assessments, units, and daily lessons using the New York State Common Core Standards and AP Literature, Mathematics, and History courses. We know the college-ready bar in each subject.
High quality instruction
We believe in the power of high quality teachers to transform our studentsβ academic trajectory.
Professional Development
Every teacher is equipped with the skills they need to effectively lead a classroom and deliver results. We have a culture of growth and feedback, weekly practice-based professional development, and every teacher has an instructional coach.
Measure results, not intentions.
We are unapologetically data-driven because every student deserves targeted instruction that pushes him or her to meet ambitious academic goals. We analyze exit tickets daily in all subjects, and give weekly quizzes, and Interims every six weeks.
Our system allows us to thrive
We have consistent systems throughout individual classrooms and across the school that create a predictable space in which students can excel academically and behaviorally. Teachers are normed and consistent, and classes are structured and joyful.
Invested school community
Our community is relentlessly ambitious, energetic, focused, & deeply respectful of each other.
RISE.
Our core values of Respect, Initiative, Scholarship, and Effort come alive in our school through our words, actions, and physical space. Students learn about our core values at Student Orientation and get daily individual and group feedback through scholar dollars and RISE points.
We celebrate academics.
Students become fully invested in their personal academic growth and achievement. Students earn awards and recognition at weekly awards ceremonies and reflect on progress in weekly small group Family Meetings with their advisors.
Families are partners.
Families become invested in our mission. We hold Home Visits with every new family and three Family Academy sessions each year. We host monthly school-based family events and engage in daily and weekly communication with our families.