Assessing Growth

We believe defining success is different for every individual, depending on their strengths, weaknesses, past, present, and future goals. Depending on the individual, an Ivy League school may be exactly what he needs to be challenged, engaged, and successful. For another, it may be their downfall. For this reason, we do not believe that there is a “one size fits all” definition of success for our students. We believe that "integrated growth" - an awareness of one's learning process and internalization and integration of learning towards continuous growth are at the core of leading a healthy and successful life. Our overall goal is to help our students learn as much as possible about themselves and the processes by which they can grow so that they can set realistic and productive goals, make plans and take steps to reach those goals, and make smart choices for themselves along the way. Ultimately, we do not want our students to be dependent on external support for functioning or growth but rather learn how to create their own challenging goals and support structures to apply throughout their lives. 

SCAFA©
New Summit Academy's SCAFA (Self, Community and Future Assessment©) is the product of years of experience and research that resulted in the development of our tool to assess individual growth based on integrated holistic goals. The SCAFA aids in determining quarterly SCAFA goals. This assessment is completed by a student’s parents upon enrollment, the student himself at the end of every quarter (as a means of self-assessment), and staff in all departments throughout any given week via the student SCAFA log.  ​These scores determine progress in a holistic manner so that students and families can see the overall progress over the enrollment period. 
  • Self: Physical Health, Self-Management, Identity, Openness
  • Community: Social Impact, Relationship Connection, Social Skills, Engagement
  • ​Future: Initiative, Executive Functioning, Resilience, Contributions

Updates
Update reports are sent to parents, educational consultants and team members twice a quarter to provide a viewpoint of where the student is currently engaging as well as to show overall progress toward SCAFA goals.  The reports include academic information, SCAFA information, progress towards goals, student life participation information and a general summary of strengths and challenges during the reporting period. 

Graduation from NSA Program

In order to graduate the NSA program, students must complete the following requirements: 
  • Completion of Orientation Program
  • Participation in Orientation and Transition workshop
  • Completion of Transition Program, including Transition Plan (including Relapse Prevention Plan)
  • Consistent engagement in individual counseling, family counseling, & 3 therapeutic groups per quarter to achieve SCAFA goals
  • Completion of all 5 Aventura rites of passage + 1 recreational Aventura
  • Minimum 100 hours of service
  • Minimum of 1 quarter of homestay participation
  • A minimum of one quarter of a formal leadership role (Student Council, New Student mentoring, club formation and ownership)
  • Minimum of 1 Honor Council Meeting per quarter as well as participation in supporting others' HCM.
  • Completion of 1 certification course
  • 2 successful home visits
  • Minimum credit requirements at 80%
  • Completion of aptitudes assessment
  • Completion of academic Course Progression Plan (CPP)
  • Completion of available academic enrichment workshops
  • Resume / Portfolio Development
  • Global Citizenship Certification
  • Integrated Reading Program
  • Approved Academic Transition Plan
  • No restrictions during Transition Quarter
  • SCAFA completion 
  • Minimal SCAFA requirements & progression %