Students in our environment are welcome and encouraged to explore the teaching profession formally through one-to-one partnerships with current teaching staff. Additionally, we promote leadership and learning through a variety of programs, all of which contribute to the development of future teaches.
The school community has grown through attention to student interests, talents and aspirations. In recent years, teachers and students have become involved in: community-wide environmental activities designed to promote recycling and assess local water quality, an extensive dual credit program that excels in spite of small class sizes, and a movement to a fully inclusive school environment for students with exceptional needs. This spring, we formally introduced project-based learning into the master schedule and during that class students collaborate with community members and university professors to assess the active living environment around them in order to design for the future.
Additionally, we support travel and are proud to have our vocational agriculture program tour different parts of the country each spring to learn about agricultural production, while our Anatomy & Physiology class visits a cadaver lab, our junior class overnights at CSU-Ft. Collins to learn about the university experience and our outdoor living class travels to Ft. Garland to learn about how that community installed a recreation center and pool. We believe community engagement and experiential learning are at the forefront of “deeper learning,” though we continue to experience challenges presented by living through a paradigm shift in education. We aspire to be innovative and forward thinking, but understand that bringing all stakeholders along in that process will take time, attention and positive energy.
