A letter from Head of School:
Dear Parents:
Those of you who weren’t able to attend Howard Rodstein’s presentation last Monday evening missed an opportunity to hear from someone who has spent over forty years as a progressive educator. Howard spoke with passion about what makes The Peak School not only different from traditional schools, but why the way we approach teaching and learning is so important for our students now and for their future.
The Scarsdale Alternative School (SAS), established in 1972 (where Howard has been teaching since 1998 and Director since 2003), is the model upon which Peak based our participatory democratic principles and programs. This foundation is critical to our commitment to not only address the intellectual development of students, but also guide them towards becoming ethical, compassionate citizens.
It was also reassuring to hear that SAS graduates have been admitted to competitive colleges and universities of all kinds across the country (in Howard’s opinion aided by the kind of narrative transcripts we use at Peak). Many alumni of progressive education attribute their successes beyond college to their experience at a progressive high school.
Howard and I are both excited about creating opportunities for our two schools to interact more with each other. We at Peak can continue to benefit by SAS’s 40+ years institutional experience; and Howard admires our pioneering spirit as we recreate programs in ways unique to our students, faculty, and Summit County environment. Exchanges of student interns, collaborations among teachers, and conferences bringing together students from both schools are just a few ideas worth exploring.
This week, our students are taking the ACT Aspire exam – a comprehensive nationally normed standardized test for students in grades 3 thru high school. The past three years we’ve administered the Terra Nova exam each spring, and our students have consistently scored far above the national average. The Aspire test, which replaced ACT’s Explore exam, is another tool that will hopefully be useful in helping us identify the strengths and weaknesses of our academic program. Two periods today and tomorrow, and one period on Wednesday will be devoted to the test.
A reminder to all that the next meeting of the Board of Trustees is this Friday, November 13, from 3:30 to 5:30 pm at the school; I hope many of you will be able to attend.
Good wishes to all!
|
