For students to be engaged in learning, and for maximum learning to occur, we believe an effective school community must comprise elements of both mind and heart.

Respect is a core value.

Our community of caring adults and young people creates a safe environment that encourages risk-taking, an open-minded attitude, and a life-long love of learning.

Challenge, within a college preparatory program of both rigorous academics and intensive arts, advances critical thinking and innovative problem solving. 

A study of the arts results in culturally literate young people with an increased motivation to learn, who recognize and accept multiple perspectives, and who seek to create a more beautiful world.

Collaboration and project-based learning bring a high level of engagement and develop the ability to listen to, honor, and extend the ideas of others.

Integration of subject matter and experience reveal the complexity of the world, leading to the discovery of new meaning and a more lasting understanding.

Inquiry, a challenging method of learning, connects students with content, helps them find their voice, leads to the thrill of discovery, and fosters critical thinking.

Leadership opportunities promote responsible citizenship for the future and the opportunity to enrich others through a shared process.

Service to both the local and global community develops ethical, compassionate behavior and an awareness of the needs of others.

Core Goals for Learning

The following aspects of learning are at the core of our program. It is the goal of our community to:

• Develop respect for the unique attributes of self and others.
  
• Learn means to access, evaluate and synthesize information from a range of sources and formats, using this information to build understanding and to draw new conclusions.
  
• Acquire the skills to communicate ideas efficiently, effectively and aesthetically.
  
• Build associations from seemingly disparate bodies of knowledge, producing new understandings to facilitate innovation.
  
• Cultivate curious lifelong learners who have a broad world-view, assimilate varying viewpoints, adapt to change, and contribute to the well-being of both the immediate and global communities.
  
• Help students gain confidence and develop internal standards of excellence as they take the risks necessary to achieve high standards and produce creative solutions.
  
• Become informed stewards of the environment, recognizing the vast inter-connectedness of the natural world.
  
• Find relevance in the arts as integral to our lives, supportive of imaginative thought, and as part of the evolving cultural record.