All Categories - New Summit Academy Costa Rica

What are we thankful for?

11/23/2023

🏫 "I am thankful that - as stressful as it can be - I am able to provide guidance for our students' next steps after high school. We just received our first fall 2024 college acceptance with an offer of $28,000 a year in merit scholarships!" - Martin, Director of Learning & College Counselor

🤩 "I’m thankful to have the chance to work and share experiences with the best team of persons who every day give the best of themselves to inspire and transform the life of our students and their families." - Diego, HR Director

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 I'm thankful for my family, for my sons, daughters, and my grandson, their health and wellbeing for the new summit academy family, as well for our students and their families. Happy Thanksgiving!" - Miguel, Trip Leader & EE Mentor

🙏 “I’m thankful for having the opportunity to use my talents to help, mentor and learn along side teenagers. My life’s work is so meaningful to me; I feel blessed” - Juan Diego, Science Teacher & Fitness Coordinator

🕊️ “This Thanksgiving I am incredibly grateful for many and all the blessings in my life. First and foremost, my darling wife Bonnie and my family; four grown adult children and three grandkids. I am thankful that my family in Israel are safe and pray that the terrible war ends for all the people involved and who are in harms way. I am thankful for living in this wonderful country of Costa Rica and especially having the blessing of working at NSA. I love each and every person at the school and I am thankful that it has given me a driving purpose in my golden years." - Stephen, Film & Photography Teacher

💝"In this time of reflection and great changes, I want to thank our creator and life: for the people you put in our lives, for the experiences we have had (good and not so good, which make us grow), for the blessing of working in a place that serves as help and transformation for many, and especially and always in my heart for my family and especially my parents who taught me the values that I live and to be the woman that I am." 🙌🏻🙏🏻

Family Support & Growth at NSA

11/20/2023

With the goal of empowering parents to understand and support their child's journey as well as strengthen the foundation of family dynamics and the home environment, parents embark on their own journey with NSA support.

Here are a few examples of what our parents engage in!

2 weekly Zoom Parent Education & Support Groups
1 on 1 Parent Plan Coaching with Clinical Director Mario Duran
Parent Workshops on-site with sessions, seminars & parent-teacher conferences
Weekly Individual Calls with students, therapists and family sessions
Flexible family visits in Costa Rica (with pre- & post-visit family therapy sessions)
Home Visits to the USA 6 weeks per year (to practice skills being learned)

Family Workshops (New Families & Transition Families)

Our families have the opportunity to attend our new family workshop at the beginning of their son's process, as well as the transition workshop during their son's final quarter at NSA.

Our therapeutic team has created a well-balanced two- to three-day workshop where they facilitate presentations, group activities, individual sessions, construction of goal plans, alumni meetings, among other things!

Here are a few highlights and learnings from our parents:

"Working with the NSA team - always professional, insightful, and supportive."

"We appreciated the family sessions on both days that helped to identify the heart of the issues within our family, and the support during the breakout session to work on our transitions plan."

"Learning to prioritize my relationship with my son over control - the importance of proactive support vs reactive support for him."

"The chance for students and parents to gain insights from the experiences of alumni was amazing."

"The ability to connect with NSA staff on such a personal level was extremely important to us. From Ignacio's powerful family sessions to the roundtable with Jon's teachers, it helped us see he was in good hands and we had all the support we could ask for."

"The parendectomy, where parents and students exchanged experiences and shared feedback, showed us that there were others who shared many of the challenges that our family does, yet were learning ways to cope and adjust just as we hoped we would."

As students evolve, so do their families!

Want to explore more?

Halloween in Costa Rica!

10/31/2023

While Halloween is widely celebrated in the United States, have you ever wondered what it's like to embrace this spooky tradition in a Latin country like Costa Rica? 🎃🌴

We organized a Halloween Celebration party with our Homestay Families and Costa Rican friends. Our students got to share some of their Halloween traditions with the Ticos mixed with the Latin dance element that cannot be missed at a Costa Rican party!

From all of us here at New Summit, we wish you a spooky and unforgettable Halloween, no matter where you are in the world. Stay safe, embrace the spirit of the season, and remember to enjoy the Pura Vida spirit of Costa Rica this October! 🎃🌴

Advice from a recent graduate...

10/25/2023

One of our recent graduates from August 2023 tells us about his experience at NSA and shares advice for future students.

The Experience

“I’d become a lot more patient with the people around me, myself, and a lot more comfortable with my life as it is in general."
"I've had a favorite part since I got here! The way people live and their culture. People enjoy the free time that they have in a way I was not used to back home."
"NSA was that little area for me to cultivate the things that I needed to work on."

What advice would you give to others?

“It’s a good place for you to develop who you really are and not worry about all the external consequences of what other people want you to be.”
"The community is really awesome to be around."
“I would challenge everybody to be their best selves.”

Wilderness First Aid certification!

10/11/2023

Congrats!! This past week our students and staff earned their WFA certifications.

Throughout the week-long course, our dedicated WFA instructors teach students how to recognize and respond to situations that include:

Risk Management and Assessment
Patient Assessment Techniques
Injury Management
Common Wilderness Medical Problems

Finding the path to mental fitness: From languishing to flourishing

9/28/2023

Dr. Danny Recio & Dr. Heather Tracy, 202222222222

Mental health is a hot topic at all levels of education, and higher ed is no exception.
Check out Dr. Danny Recio & Dr. Heather Tracy’s article published in the well respected EAIE FORUM magazine last summer of 2023. Finding the path to mental fitness: From languishing to flourishing is a worthy read!

The power of family support...

5/4/2023

From a current NSA parent:

For me, the power and strength in the family support at NSA is one area that I feel parents would like to know about when they’re seeking a program.
I would also be honored to speak about any area you’d like to highlight as all aspects of NSA are an A+ to me!
I also wanted to mention that the support I feel from other parents in my cohort is profound! That’s a result of the Tuesday and Wednesday parent coaching meetings with Mario as well as the Transition Workshop Weekend.

Another round of Aventuras - challenge, collaboration, & companerismo!

2/10/2023

Students returned from 3 different Aventura trips citing dolphin and turtle sightings in the Gulfo Dulce, amazing rapids on the Cloud Forest Rafting trip, and mind-blowing biodiversity in Corcovado National Park. Enjoy the photos below!

The Votes Are In! Students Evaluate NSA Teachers.

1/28/2023

If you want to know more about academics at NSA, we could brag about how our teachers...

Engage our students in meaningful classes from 8:30am - 2:40pm 5 days a week
Guide students in developing important academic and lifelong learning skills
Individualize classes based on students' interests and support needs
Experience Aventuras side-by-side with them
Celebrate student successes with awards and - perhaps more importantly - validation and relational recognition.

But why would we need to do any of that when these quotes taken from student evaluations of our teachers says it all!

Thank you, teachers, for making learning fun again!

Is a Gap Year for us?

6/8/2022

What if you were guaranteed immense clarity and direction just from taking a simple year off of school to travel abroad? What if it could propel you way farther than jumping straight into college? Would you do it without hesitation?

Danny Recio, Director and Founder of The Bridge Gap Program, took a gap year in South Africa after high school. It was during his time there where he had a “coming of age” experience and found his calling in working with people. All because of his time abroad, Danny went on to start gap year programs - a therapeutic option called The Bridge (a therapeutic community for young men) and a more traditional coed gap program (Si! Gap Program) in Costa Rica, guiding them along their own coming of age experiences.

In this episode of Success is Subjective, Danny joins Joanna to share his journey as he traveled as a young adult, exploring different cultures and how his gap year experience has stuck with him, even a decade later. Listen in for Danny’s insight on the impact the right gap year program can have on a young adult, possibly changing the entire trajectory of their life.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-118-making-the-most-of-your-young-adulthood/id1499891712?i=1000550592741

What You Will Learn

What it was like growing up and going to school in Costa Rica
Danny’s gap year in South Africa
How impactful and helpful taking a gap year can be
When Danny became interested in psychology
Danny’s experience in college in Costa Rica vs the U.S.
Danny’s insight on what can be really helpful for young adults as they navigate their identity and the world around them
How The Bridge Gap Program came about
Danny’s advice on goal setting
Connect with Danny Recio at his Bridge email or his NSA email

This website was made by a collaborative effort between two students (SK and JA) and NSA staff.
All pictures are real photographs taken from student experiences at NSA. Thank you for taking the time to peruse our site!
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