Curriculum
"If something is timeless, then it will also be timely."
--Robert Fagles, on his translation of The Aeneid
A student's academic program at The Academy requires each individual to be a generalist, acquiring knowledge of mathematics, science, history, English, art, music, Latin, and a modern foreign language. By offering those learning experiences in small classes led by skillful teachers, we foster active engagement with the ideas at hand; students debate ideas with each other in seminars, collaborate with each other in the laboratory, critique each others' work on the stage and in the studio, and present to each other the fruits of their research. Students are expected to build upon earlier experiences and learning, applying themselves to incrementally more difficult tasks as they grow and mature.
The Academy is divided by grade (7th-12th) and also by school -- Junior School (7th-8th) and Senior School (9th-12th). The academic focus of the Junior School is skill development and process, while Upper School academics stress mastery and content. A shared schedule, a shared faculty, and a shared facility however, lessen this distinction. Students in the Junior School may take classes in the Upper School (generally in math and foreign language) and vice versa.
The core curriculum provides a broad common ground on which students with different views, interests, goals, and backgrounds can come together and form an intellectual community based on shared knowledge and common purpose, creating a community that honors and appreciates diverse individual voices, needs, and perspectives.
Students are given ample opportunities, both within specific classes and as part of the broader academic program, to pursue their individual intellectual interests. Research projects, exhibitions, essays, field work, senior projects, art projects and other learning activities are driven by student interest and initiative. These program elements give students a chance to investigate in an open-ended way, challenge themselves, and assume responsibility for their work. The lessons drawn from independent scholarship -- self-discipline, intellectual curiosity, and independence -- are reinforced by the conduct of each class.
Not all of what students learn at The Academy comes from books, however. We require participation in our arts and sports programs because a well-rounded person is someone who can throw a pot as well as a lacrosse ball, someone who can use the quadratic formula and formulate an argument, someone who can appreciate the art on the walls and sing on key.
At The Academy, as in ancient Greece and Rome, arts, music, and athletics are viewed as integral, rather than incidental, to one’s education. The ancients built theaters, adorned their streets with public art, and celebrated athletic prowess. Academy students make art, make music, and play sports every day; these activities are integrated into the schedule and are accessible without “try-outs” or cuts. Everybody plays. Everybody learns. Everybody stretches to master something that doesn’t come easily.
