Participating Schools
We welcome our new partner schools
1. MLC School Sydney Australia [ visit ]
2. Christ's College ChristChurch New Zealand [ visit ]
3. Kyoto Gakuen Junior and Senior High School Japan [ visit ]
4. Learning Services (South) Tasmania [ visit ]
5. Parramatta Marist High School - Sydney, Australia [ visit ]
6. St Joseph’s College, Hunters Hill, Sydney, Australia [ visit ]
7. Victoria University - The Avatar Project [ visit ]
7. Debney Park Public Secondary College Melbourne, Australia [ visit ]
8. Milford High School, Milford, NH USA [ visit ]
9. Nauset Public Schools, MA USA [ visit ]
10. Melbourne Grammar, Victoria Australia [ visit ]
11. Monroe High School - Rochester District New York USA
12. Global Challenge -Vermont, USA [ visit ]
13. Hwa Chong Instituation - Singapore [ visit ]
13. Think Academy - Chile South America [ visit ]
14. South East Learning Grid - UK [ visit ]
15. E - Academy - Porto, Portugal [ visit ]
16. 1 to 1 English Language School - Taiwan
17. Distance Education Centre, Victoria Australia [ visit ]
18. Los Angeles County High School for the Arts [ visit ]
19. Modesto City Schools - California, USA [visit]
20. Lower Canada College - Montréal [visit]
21. Diamond Valley College - Melbourne, Australia [visit]
22. World Affairs Council - Seattle, USA [visit]
23. Metrocentre YMCA - Seattle, USA [visit]
24. Seattle Girls' School - Seattle, USA [visit]
25. Native American Community Academy - Albuquerque, USA [visit]
26. The Hotchkiss School - Lakeville, USA [visit]
MLC School Our Values:
Diversity, Integrity, International Citizenship, Connectedness, Wholeness, Excellence
MLC is a school of broad ranging opportunity and diversity. MLC boasts an enviable record of providing an outstanding learning environment for girls, while working to meet their needs as individuals. MLC helps to support each girl to find her potential so that she may make a positive contribution to our society.
Our school reflects the warmth and vitality of many cultures. We are modern Australia. We celebrate difference.
There is no typical MLC girl. MLC girls have the confidence to be themselves, in a school where they know they belong, growing into the adults each individual hopes to be.
MLC School’s educational philosophy, Transforming Learning, is underpinned by the timeless values of Diversity, Integrity, International Citizenship, Connectedness, Wholeness and Excellence.
You will find these values reflected in the choices that we offer, in our curriculum, in our innovative approach to learning, in the range and quality of student achievements and in the organisation of our learning environment to offer care by education.
Although we have had over 120 years as leading specialists in the education of girls, MLC School is continually evolving to meet the needs of our students better. We are committed to a process of data-driven decision-making and improvement.
Our vision is of a dynamic community of learners, operating within a broader learning community. Our dream is for the development of the individual who is a lifelong learner and who will know it is possible to improve our world.
Christ's College ChristChurch New Zealand
Christ's College Christchurch was established in 1850, making it one of the oldest schools in New Zealand, and has been on its current site for over 145 years. The College campus has many historic buildings dating as far back as 1863. Christ's College may be traditional in its physical environment but it recognises that innovative approaches to learning are a key to the future.
A range of opportunities immediately present themselves by being involved in the Skoolaborate project. Our students are already global citizens - the technology the boys have access to is something that their teachers generation only probably saw in sci fi television programmes and movies.
We need to harness these technologies for learning - and in doing so provide ours boys with positive values as they engage in innovative learning opportunities in a virtual environment. This environment will allow the students to take risks, try new ideas and learn through a constructivist approach, in a medium which is highly engaging and motivational for the current generation.
The innovation of secondlife may provide opportunities to develop learning in a "real" sense which is presently beyond the scope of traditional academic practice. 21st Century education recognises the need that changes are required in the teaching process. Skoolaborate will bring students from different cultures together into this learning environment, but in a very non traditional way.
The virtual world sets limits only with resepct to the limits of imagination. This is an opportunity for students to drive their learning in a journey where all things are possible - even those that haven't yet been created or recognised...like a scifi movie of the teachers generation - we are going boldly...into the future....an unknown future but one which is sure to be significant for education.
Kyoto Gakuen Junior and Senior High School Japan
京都学園中学高等学校
Student Body: ~1,000
Private
Principal: Yutaka Kozu
VP: Kohei Sasai
General Affairs Director: Yasuaki "Mickey" Kuromiya
Wiki Address: www.kyotogakuen.ed.jp
High School Home-page: www.kyotogakuen.ac.jp/shs/
Junior High Home-page: www.kyotogakuen.ac.jp/jhs/
Konan Tsujimoto founded the school in 1925 when it was originally named ‘Kyoto Commercial High School’. He lived mainly during the Meiji Period (1868-1912); a time when Japan began to open itself up to the world after hundreds of years of self-imposed isolation. As a young student in the United States at the end of the 19th century, he pondered deeply about Japan’s struggle to reach out to the the world. However, he did not approve of Japan’s indiscriminate adaptation and imitation of western civilization. He questioned the virtue of such tendencies which he considered to be blind admiration and not genuine appreciation and respect. The question in his mind was wether or not Japan would ever be able to command the respect of the world community without a deep understanding of their own culture. Thus, he set-out to create a school that educated its students with a true sense of “Japanese spirit”. The goal was to develop them into “citizens of the world who could interact with people from other countries on equal footing, on the principals of mutual understanding and benefit without the arrogance of superiority and the clumsiness of inferiority.”
Today, Kyoto Gakuen offers two courses at the junior high level - Frontier and Academia. The Frontier course satisfies all government mandated requirements, and offers students education in extra-curricular areas such as agricultural science and oral communication (English). The Academia course is similar, but students are put through a more rigorous curriculum to prepare them for entrance in the best high school programs. At the high school level, there are four major areas - Tokushin (GATE), Kokusai (International), Futsu (Regular), and Sports. And, within the Kokusai program, there are two courses. The regular Kokusai course is tailored toward providing the maximum amount of English instruction possible to prepare students for international exams such as TOEIC, IELTS, and TOEFL. The Kokusai ICT course has a less intense focus on English, and utilizes computers and technology in the classroom. Both of these courses travel abroad for a period of study in either England or America.
Learning Services (South) Tasmania
The Tasmanian curriculum is designed to help students become lifelong learners. Lifelong learners are
• Inquiring and reflective thinkers
• Effective communicators
• Self-directed and ethical people
• Responsible citizens
• World contributors.
Learning and teaching are at the heart of a coherent curriculum. They are most rewarding when the key focus is on the student acquiring the understandings, skills and attributes needed to achieve their individual potential and on them establishing a commitment to lifelong learning and to developing fulfilling career and life pathways.
The student is placed at the centre of a personalised learning and teaching process designed to meet the needs of living, learning and working as active citizens in the 21st century. Tasmanian government schools have common and agreed values of
• Connectedness
• Integrity
• Responsibility
• Resilience
• Achievement
• Creativity
• Equity.
Participants in this project have been selected from Hobart College, Ogilvie High School, and Rosetta High School.
Parramatta Marist Brothers
Parramatta Marist High School (PMHS) is the oldest Catholic High School in Australia. PMHS is a boys school from years 7-12 with approximately 960 students. We are located in Sydney's western suburbs. Our school in an authentic Catholic school, following the traditions of the Marist Brothers and Saint Marcellin Champagnat. We are part of the Parramatta Diocese, operating within the Catholic Education Office, Parramatta.
Our participation in Skoolaborate has been facilitated out of the 2007 NSW Learnscope initiative, and we hope to enable our students to take their place in a virtual community and benefit from the learning experiences and cultural exchanges that this unique educational project offers. Initially, 50 students will take part in years 9 and 12, facilitated by Dean Groom and Karyn West, who are both information technology teachers at PMHS.
Our aim for Skoolaborate is to provide our students with a safe and exciting opportunity to explore virtual worlds; to engage in global communication with other students; and to take part in projects which will engage them as learners.
Victoria University - The Avatar Project
The Avatar Project is a youth project developing an online community of young people creating, building and interacting in Teen Second Life. We are based at Victoria University in Melbourne. Participants in Avatar come from a diverse range of backgrounds, but they need to be between the ages of 13-17 and enjoy getting involved in a new virtual community of people. We accept groups involved with schools or other youth agencies.
Debney Park Secondary College:
Debney Park Secondary College is committed to the establishment and maintenance of a learning community that provides opportunities for young people to work together to achieve academic, personal, social and emotional well-being and maturity. The college experience will equip our young people to make informed and successful transitions to the post-school destination of their choice and to see themselves as learners for life.
This year we celebrate the 150th Anniversary of State Education at the Debney Park Secondary College site.
St Josephs College Hunters Hill, Australia
St Joseph’s College is a Catholic secondary day and boarding school for boys. For over 125 years the college has educated boys to become capable and compassionate young men, taking their place with confidence and integrity in their families, their communities and their workplaces.
Founded by the Marist Brothers in 1881, the college strives to provide boys with a quality education that draws faith, culture and life into harmony by incorporating a range of high quality learning, spiritual, physical and recreation experiences.
We know that the academic and social well being of our students is enhanced when the learning environment provides spaces where students can learn in different ways, at different speeds, and where they feel safe and valued. We also know that the changes that 21st century learning has brought to the ways our teachers teach and students learn are momentous. Yet the very essence of the St Joseph's spirit will never wane, as each boy follows the motto of the Marist order, in the tradition of the founder Marcellin Champagnat, to "Strive for better Things”.
St Joseph’s boys are participating in Skoolaborate because we wish to take learning and teaching to the new frontiers of virtual learning by providing our students and teachers with opportunities to strive for creativity, knowledge, citizenship, global awareness and personal success in virtual learning environments.
Milford District, New England USA
Located at the foot of the Monadnock Mountains just ten minutes from Nashua and thirty minutes from Manchester, Milford, also known as the Granite Town, provides its 14,000 residents with an ideal blend of traditional New England culture with close proximity to urban businesses and entertainment. Like the community it represents, the Milford School District provides rich and diverse educational experiences to its youth.
The Milford Schools educate 2,600 pre-school through high school students within its five school facilities. Our two hundred teachers provide a highly personalized education to our students, offering curriculum and instructional methodologies designed to allow each student to achieve to his or her potential. Challenging school programming and a wealth of co-curricular opportunities are available to students. From on-site, after-school enrichment activities to programs for advanced learners at all of its schools, there is something for every student and family in the Milford school system.
Nauset Regional Middle School, MA USA
Nauset Regional Middle School is a grade six through eight (ages 11-14 years) middle school located in Orleans, MA, US, a small town located on Cape Cod. Our area of Cape Cod is both close to the ocean and to the bay, and is a year-round tourist attraction for visitors. The beaches are primarily under the jurisdiction of the Federal Government, which allows them to remain pristine and untouched by development.
Our school district, Nauset Public Schools, services about 2800 students, with almost 600 of them at Nauset Middle School.
Nauset Regional Middle School supports the transition between childhood and adolescence by providing a safe, respectful and nurturing environment, which promotes academic excellence and self-esteem. Through challenging and innovative activities, students, teachers, parents, and the community work cooperatively to develop healthy, lifelong learners and responsible citizens who are culturally and environmentally active and aware.
The core academic classes of history, mathematics, social studies and science is complemented by the exploratory classes in computer technology, general music, art, foreign language, industrial technology, family and consumer science, and physical education. All students take a full range of academic courses each term. In addition, there are classes for some of the advanced students in the areas of social studies, english, mathematics, and science.
Melbourne Grammar School, Victoria Australia
Melbourne Grammar School is an independent boy’s school within the central business district of the city of Melbourne. It is one of Australia’s oldest schools and has a long and proud tradition of high academic achievement and dedication to service. Many past pupils have gone on to become well known public figures in Australian Politics, Justice, Medicine, the Sciences and Entertainment. Around 1800 students are currently enrolled at the school from Preparatory grade through to Year 12, with about 150 boarders many of whom are from other countries. Every student from year 4 to 12 and member of staff has a laptop computer.
The School’s vision is to create an innovative, multi-faceted, dynamic and technology-rich learning environment that provides every student with a range of opportunities for success, self-discovery and leadership concerned with the development of the 'whole person' - intellectually, physically, emotionally, psychologically, socially and spiritually - affirming and valuing students as individuals capable of making valuable contributions to society, while emphasising the dignity of each individual and promoting respect for others.
Monroe High School, Rochester New York USA
MONROE HIGH SCHOOL is part of the Rochester City School District in upstate New York. Located in the heart of Rochester’s cultural district, and is within walking distance of theaters, museums, and parks, Monroe Offers
- Honors, Advanced Placement, and dual credit courses for students who are interested and ready for challenge.
- Language Academy Honors program, a Spanish immersion program for students interested in developing fluency in both English and Spanish, while also taking accelerated courses in math and science.
- Bilingual program which helps students develop proficiency in English while providing academic instruction in both English and Spanish
"We, the staff, students, parents and supporters of Monroe High School work together to create a safe community that fosters respect and caring for each other while addressing the unique needs of high school students. We provide a variety of opportunities to achieve our educational goals, build an appreciation of world cultures and help students acquire the skills needed to live, work and succeed in a global society."
Monroe High School is a community of lifelong learners, committed to gather, to grow, to become more than we are. We see, treasure, and preserve the value of each other in order to discover a better future for all. We affirm education as a journey with endless possibilities. This is a special place. We envision it serving as an international learning and life center. Working in harmony with the larger Rochester community, we meet the ever-changing needs of our students and their families.
MEET OUR STUDENTS:
http://web.mac.com/monroe.esol.steffen
The Global Challenge
Save the World on Your Way to College!
The Global Challenge is an online international competition that encourages learning in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. If you are not yet in college, then we invite you to register, study, produce work and reap the rewards!
Think Academy Chile South America
Think
Academy school is located in Chile (South America). We are a catholic
virtual school (k-12) We teach using computers and the students are at
their homes, connected and working together to achieve academic,
personal and social well-being. Our school is based in honesty and we
prepare them with international standards. Our major goal is prepare
our students to think and to be happy with themselves. We want them to
attend to the best universities in the world.
SEGfL covers a large geographical area. It is a populous consortium with over eight million residents and seventeen very different Local Authorities. SEGfL has 3,046 schools with 56,800 teachers and over 1,000,000 pupils. 2,090 SEGfL schools have broadband connections (December 2007.)
The role of SEGfL is varied and its main functions are changing. SEGfL's key aim remains to connect every school in the region to broadband services which are both fit for purpose and sustainable: broadband services that can facilitate digital communications in all areas of the curriculum and every aspect of school life.
Projects coordinated by SEGfL seek to push the boundaries of creative use of broadband technologies within the curriculum. Last year, SEGfL piloted a project in partnership with the Open University’s teen Second Life island, Schome Park.
Read some of the project outcomes here - http://www.segfl.org.uk/microsites/view_page.php?id=707
An example of some of the students’ work can be viewed here - ‘Gothic murder mystery’ Machinima - http://schomepark.blip.tv/file/971966/
UK ‘Teachers TV’ has filmed a programme about schools use of teen Second Life (Schome Park) within the curriculum. This will be available for viewing sometime in early 2009.
HWA Chong Institution
Hwa
Chong Institution is the culmination of the watershed merger between
the former Chinese High School (founded 1919) and Hwa Chong Junior
College (founded 1974) in 2005. With a rich history and a distinguished
heritage, the school is constantly venturing into new frontiers. Honed
over the years, our sense of enterprise and daring has allowed us the
foresight to spot opportunities in the Singapore education landscape.
Here, we hope to share the Hwa Chong story of nurturing leaders for the nation: leaders with the boldness to pursue their passions, the desire to keep learning through their lives, and the compassion for their fellow citizens.
In commemorating our students' achievements, we also wish to share with you not just the learning opportunities beyond the classroom, but also the passion that inspires these students to continue the school's tradition of excellence.
E - Academia - Port0, Portugal:
“Utopia is on the horizon. I move two steps closer, it moves two
steps further away. I walk another ten steps and the horizon runs ten
steps further away. As much as I may walk, I'll never reach it. So
what's the point of utopia? The point is this: to keep walking”
(Eduardo Galeano)
What is e-Academia?
The efficiency of education is in fact a process of permanent quest. Therefore utopia has to be present at all times. e-Academia (e-Academy) emerges from that walk. E-academia is a project involving three dimensions: educational; psychological and technological.
This project aims to articulate these dimensions to test a process of supporting young people in a motivating and inspiring way so that they become more engaged in promoting their development as students and individuals.
1 to 1 English Language School - Taiwan
1on1 English Language School was founded in 2002, located in Kaohsiung, Taiwan's second largest city. 1on1 English has developed a unique program that utilizes current and emerging technologies to help the local students improve their conversational English skills.
In 2007, when 1on1 English joined Skoolaborate, we created a new section within our program called English2ndLife. Students aged 13-18 have the opportunity to communicate with students and teachers from around the world. Our students are better prepared to communicate effectively in English and at the same time acquire skills that will help them survive in today's highly technical world.
http://www.1on1english.us
http://www.english2ndlife.ning.com
Distance Education Centre Victoria, Australia
FLEXIBLE LEARNING FOR ALL
For over 100 years, the Distance Education Centre Victoria has been Victoria's major provider of distance education courses for students from Preparatory to Year 12. It delivers programs to more than 3000 students each year.
We are the leading providers of primary and secondary distance education in Victoria. Our personalised learning support ensures local and global access to the highest quality flexible education.
Teachers working at the DECV are qualified professionals with proven ICT competencies who have embraced the possibilities and challenges of teaching via distance modes.
Distance education simply means education that is not based in a physical classroom. Teaching and learning programs can be delivered in many ways – online, via disk, in print. Contact methods can include phone, email, chat, blog, wiki, bulletins or simply by post. The teaching and learning program is developed and implemented by teachers, and regular and ongoing contact between teacher and student is encouraged and expected.
The programs are designed to meet the educational needs of students whose circumstances can prevent them from accessing courses at regular schools. While many students are travelling, ill or find regular schooling difficult, many others use the DECV's services to enrol in one or two subjects that they cannot access in their regular school.
Our students engage, enjoy and excel.
Los Angeles County High School for the Arts - Arts High
Our School offers a specialized program combining college-preparatory academic
instruction and conservatory-style training in the visual and
performing arts. Founded in 1985, the tuition-free public school is run
by the Los Angeles County Office of Education in partnership with and
on the campus of California State University, Los Angeles (CSULA).
Recognized as the premier public arts high school in the western U.S., Arts High is the recipient of numerous awards, including: California Distinguished School for academic excellence, Golden Bell Award (visual arts program), Grammy Signature School (music program) and Bravo Award (Music Center of Los Angeles County) for excellence in arts education.
The school serves over 570 culturally and socioeconomically diverse teens from more than 60 school districts in the region. Prospective students must meet minimum academic, attendance and behavior standards, and must audition for acceptance into one of four departments: music (vocal and instrumental), theatre, dance or visual arts. Each department selects its own students through a juried audition or portfolio review process. Once admitted, students can elect training in TV/Film and/or audition for musical theatre productions.
Modesto City Schools California, USA
Pacific Rim Exchange (PacRimX) was started in 2006 to supplement our foreign exchange program between Modesto City Schools in California, USA and Kyoto Gakuen High School in Kyoto Japan. The project was created to facilitate the building of relationships between our students. With the introduction of voice in Second Life, the ability to speak in native languages and practice those being learned became a reality for our students.
Our project is funded by our ROP program through a series of computer electives at two of our high schools. This project has grown to involve several different computer classes, spawned a new advanced computer class, and last year was joined by a forensics academy at another one of our high schools. The forensics academy is building a virtual forensics lab with fully functional lab equipment for students to experiment and learn before using the actual equipment in their school labs (and consuming real supplies).
A three week summer school multimedia and virtual worlds class in Modesto is attended each year by a group of Kyoto students. Modesto sends a group of students to Japan during Spring break to visit Kyoto Gakuen High School. Students in our schools now have two opportunities to meet face to face during the year, in addition to the virtual campus of Skoolaborate. This cultural exchange between our students is valuable to becoming a global citizen of the 21st Century.
These early virtual world projects have caught the interest of our School Board and Administration, and we are actively exploring other ways to use virtual world technologies for distance learning, independent study, and even for use in dependent charter schools for the district. Our exploration extends beyond Second Life in a related project, Virtued (Virtual Education). This is a regional California partnership that grew out of PacRimX.
In August of 2008 we formally joined our efforts with the Skoolaborate project. The biggest complaint we received from PacRimX students and teachers was that they wanted to interact with other students from around the world, that they felt like they were stuck in a “ship in a bottle” with our small project housed on four islands. Skoolaborate was the answer to this problem, and we are proud to be members of this exciting global project.
Modesto City Schools has over 30,000 students at 35 (soon to be 36) schools. We currently have over 200 students involved in the Skoolaborate project.
Lower Canada College, Montréal
“Students come first at Lower Canada College.” That is how our LCC mission statement adopted in October 2002 actually begins. It seems obvious enough, but what makes LCC truly unique is the clarity of our focus on engaging students.
We are committed to promoting the fullest development of our students in mind, body and heart. While deeply rooted in past traditions, our goal today is to produce well-rounded, socially responsible, independent thinkers through an academically challenging and balanced curricular programme in academics, athletics, and the arts.
With a history dating back to 1861, LCC is recognized as one of Canada’s leading coeducational independent day schools. With 745 students from kindergarten to Grade 12/Pre-University Year, we offer challenging academics and an extraordinary range of programmes suited to the needs and interests of most students. The LCC of today is also a university preparatory school committed to advancing bilingual education, to instilling a spirit of Non Nobis Solum/Not for Ourselves Alone, and to preparing students for success in the 21st century.
About LCC100
LCC100 is a celebration of our future and recognition of school achievements, past and present. It is also a tribute to the individuals who have profoundly influenced LCC—with an eye to those who will take us even further.
Since its founding, the School has shown a remarkable ability to move forward, while respecting its traditions. As a result, LCC enjoys a well deserved reputation as one of Canada’s leading independent schools.
We have never been a school to rest on its laurels. As we celebrate 100 years on Royal Avenue throughout 2009, we have our sights set on how to proceed for our next century in education.
Diamond Valley College
Diamond Valley College is a Year 7 to 12 State High School in Diamond Creek, a town of about 10,000 people in the outer north-eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Australia. The College has an enrolment of approximately 640 students who travel every day from rural areas such as Kinglake, Arthurs Creek, Kangaroo Ground and Panton Hill, as well as more residential areas such as Hurstbridge and Diamond Creek.
As a school we are committed to building positive relationships between students and the community in an environment where students, staff and parents feel safe, supported and valued as individuals. We aim to assist students in the development of mature attitudes and behaviour, self discipline and community responsibility. Our programs place a strong emphasis on independent and interdependent learning.
The Skoolaborate project represents an exciting new opportunity for our students. As well as an engaging and stimulating environment in which to test and develop their IT skills, it offers the chance work collaboratively with people their own age who come from vastly different backgrounds, and to explore the differences and similarities between their attitudes and expectations. Supported by an AGQTP (Australian Government Quality Teacher Programme) grant, DVC is also proud to be part of a wider research project to determine the effectiveness of games in an educational context.
World Affairs Council
The World Affairs Council (WAC) of Seattle, a non-profit, non-partisan organization founded in 1951, is a membership-based organization that creates forums for discussion of critical global issues. Our purpose is been to promote greater understanding of global affairs in our Puget Sound community through a balance of public events, educational activities and the international visitor program. Our programs include:
- The Global Classroom Program, which connects teachers and students with international resources, ideas, and people through a combination of professional development trainings, speaker series, curriculum design, and youth programs.
- The International Visitor Program, which promotes citizen diplomacy by coordinating educational and professional programs for international professionals and youth visiting the Puget Sound area. The International Visitor Program currently hosts over 1200 international professionals from over 120 countries in Seattle each year.
- Community Programs, which brings to the Puget Sound community over 120 lectures, luncheons and symposiums with global leaders and policy makers each year.
There are approximately 90 independent World Affairs Councils throughout the United States, all affiliated through World Affairs Councils of America (WACA).
Metrocentre YMCA
The YMCA of Greater Seattle is a charitable, non-profit organization serving King and south Snohomish counties since 1876. Reaching more than 190,00 people annually through 13 branches, two resident camps and more than 200 program sites, the YMCA provides a wide range of programs and services in child care, youth development, education, foster care, family support, wellness and outdoor experiences. Children and teens make-up 56 percent of those we serve, with involvement in programs that teach leadership skills and emphasize values and an ethic of service. Our mission "building a community where all people, especially the young, are encouraged to develop to their fullest potential in spirit, mind, and body", increases our ability to be responsive in meeting community needs.
The Metrocenter branch became part of the YMCA of Greater Seattle in 1973 and serves more than 5,000 young people annually providing education, employment, leadership, technology and service programs. Metrocenter YMCA is considered a non-traditional YMCA in that it is exclusively focused on youth and young adults and does not have a membership-based facility.
Seattle Girls' School
Our Mission is to inspire and develop courageous leaders who think independently, work collaboratively, learn joyfully, and champion change.
Our Passion is empowering each girl to live her potential.
Our Beliefs:
• Empowering a girl changes the world
• It is fundamental to understand and address issues of difference and oppression
• An integrated, collaborative curriculum challenges and engages students
• Middle school should be joyful, curiosity-filled, and safe and open to all voices
The Seattle Girls' School is a member of the National Coalition of Girls' Schools and is an Accredited Member of the Pacific Northwest Association of Independent Schools.
Native American Community Academy
The Native American Community Academy (NACA) is a public charter school in Albuquerque, New Mexico USA for 6th to 12th grade students. We are a small school. Our philosophy is grounded in both the traditions of Native American people of the Southwestern United States and a rigorous, modern approach to college-preparatory education.
Many Native children in Albuquerque live dual lives, with one foot in the traditions and culture of their families, and the other foot in the fast-paced and changing world of today. NACA's goal is to nurture and challenge our students. NACA is one of the first urban academies to support Native language, culture, health and college preparation for youth. At NACA, the whole community is rooting for students to succeed. That means that all of us - parents, teachers, mentors, and community leaders - make it our responsibility to make sure that each student fulfills his or her potential.
The Hotchkiss School
The Hotchkiss School is an independent boarding school located in Lakeville, Connecticut. Founded in 1891, the school provides an education of unsurpassed quality to 587 students in grades 9 through 12, and to a small number of postgraduates. Students at Hotchkiss come from across the United States and 31 foreign countries. Graduates attend many of the most selective universities and colleges.
The Hotchkiss School strives to develop in students a lifelong love of learning, responsible citizenship, and personal integrity. We are a community based on trust, mutual respect, and compassion, and we hold all members of the community accountable for upholding these values.
The School is committed to mastery of learning skills, development of intellectual curiosity, excellence, and creativity in all disciplines, and enthusiastic participation in athletics and other school activities. We encourage our students to develop clarity of thought, confidence and facility in expressing ideas, and artistic and aesthetic sensitivity. We expect all members of the community, in and out of the classroom, to subject their views and actions to critical examination and to accept responsibility for them. We hope that our graduates will leave Hotchkiss with a commitment to service to others and to environmental stewardship, and with a greater understanding of themselves and of their responsibilities in a global society.
