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NSA’s innovative Global Citizenship certification program engages our students in the investigation of eight facets of what it means to be a Global Citizen, including Human Rights, Social Justice, Digital Citizenship, and, this week, Diversity.
Our Spanish teachers guided students in learning about the global refugee crisis, and NSA hosted two special guests: Costa Rica’s Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a United Nations Refugee Agent, who each discussed local and global refugee issues.
This engaging day is just one small part in New Summit Academy’s efforts to develop our students into Global Citizens.
Our Spanish teachers guided students in learning about the global refugee crisis, and NSA hosted two special guests: Costa Rica’s Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a United Nations Refugee Agent, who each discussed local and global refugee issues.
This engaging day is just one small part in New Summit Academy’s efforts to develop our students into Global Citizens.
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New Summit Academy continues to offer its students once-in-a-lifetime travel and immersion opportunities!
This past month, students and staff traveled to either Peru or South Africa, engaging with local cultures, performing community service, marveling at the beauty of these nations, and having some fun! Here are just a few of the activities that students experienced in their travels:
-Whitewater rafting the Apurimac River
-Learning how graffiti is used for positive social change
-Working in the Sacred Valley alongside the Amaru indigenous community
-Spotting hippos and rhino while on safari
-Hiking through the Andes on the Auzangate trek
-Exploring Machu Picchu
What a month for New Summit Academy!
This past month, students and staff traveled to either Peru or South Africa, engaging with local cultures, performing community service, marveling at the beauty of these nations, and having some fun! Here are just a few of the activities that students experienced in their travels:
-Whitewater rafting the Apurimac River
-Learning how graffiti is used for positive social change
-Working in the Sacred Valley alongside the Amaru indigenous community
-Spotting hippos and rhino while on safari
-Hiking through the Andes on the Auzangate trek
-Exploring Machu Picchu
What a month for New Summit Academy!
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This month brings exciting, hands-on experiential learning for our students and staff!
Below is a quick introduction to the once-in-a-lifetime opportunities that our community will be engaging in during the coming weeks:
Wilderness Advanced First Aid & CPR Certification
Students and staff will work together in this week-long, professional-level certification program, guided by the Wilderness Medicine Institute. Lessons on risk management and prevention, site surveys, CPR, and emergency treatment will be paired with hands-on simulated emergency scenarios where students will put their knowledge into action.
South Africa International Aventura
Some of our more senior students will travel to South Africa for what is sure to be a life-changing adventure. After getting to know Cape Town and introductions to local communities, students will participate in wildlife safaris, team-building exercises with local nonprofits, visits to museums and historical sites, and even a workshop with a local artist on using graffiti to bring positive change to communities!
Peru International Aventura
Many of our NSA students will travel to Peru to experience the Sacred Valley as few visitors ever get to do. The journey begins with an introduction to the ancient city of Cuzco and exploring the Incan site of Machu Picchu and Pisac. Students will then raft the Apurimac River before hiking the challenging but stunningly beautiful Ausangate Trek!
Costa Rica Orientation Aventura
Our newest NSA students will spend a week on two separate trips, with some relax time on campus in-between, getting to know the beauty and fun that Costa Rica has to offer. The first leg will introduce students to the Pacific Coast, where they will spend time on the beaches and sea kayaking. White water rafting on the world-famous Sarapiqui and zip-lining through the rainforests of Arenal make up the second trip. What a way to start at NSA!
SCUBA Certification in Bocas del Toro
To round out the August Experiential Session, a group of students and staff will travel to the archipelago of Bocas del Toro in Panama to earn their SCUBA Certifications. Bocas is world-renowned for its stunning beaches, coral reefs, and populations of marine mammals. This Aventura is sure to be remembered!
No other school on the planet engages its students in experiential learning like New Summit Academy!
Below is a quick introduction to the once-in-a-lifetime opportunities that our community will be engaging in during the coming weeks:
Wilderness Advanced First Aid & CPR Certification
Students and staff will work together in this week-long, professional-level certification program, guided by the Wilderness Medicine Institute. Lessons on risk management and prevention, site surveys, CPR, and emergency treatment will be paired with hands-on simulated emergency scenarios where students will put their knowledge into action.
South Africa International Aventura
Some of our more senior students will travel to South Africa for what is sure to be a life-changing adventure. After getting to know Cape Town and introductions to local communities, students will participate in wildlife safaris, team-building exercises with local nonprofits, visits to museums and historical sites, and even a workshop with a local artist on using graffiti to bring positive change to communities!
Peru International Aventura
Many of our NSA students will travel to Peru to experience the Sacred Valley as few visitors ever get to do. The journey begins with an introduction to the ancient city of Cuzco and exploring the Incan site of Machu Picchu and Pisac. Students will then raft the Apurimac River before hiking the challenging but stunningly beautiful Ausangate Trek!
Costa Rica Orientation Aventura
Our newest NSA students will spend a week on two separate trips, with some relax time on campus in-between, getting to know the beauty and fun that Costa Rica has to offer. The first leg will introduce students to the Pacific Coast, where they will spend time on the beaches and sea kayaking. White water rafting on the world-famous Sarapiqui and zip-lining through the rainforests of Arenal make up the second trip. What a way to start at NSA!
SCUBA Certification in Bocas del Toro
To round out the August Experiential Session, a group of students and staff will travel to the archipelago of Bocas del Toro in Panama to earn their SCUBA Certifications. Bocas is world-renowned for its stunning beaches, coral reefs, and populations of marine mammals. This Aventura is sure to be remembered!
No other school on the planet engages its students in experiential learning like New Summit Academy!
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Earning Honor Status at New Summit Academy means so much more than making good grades (although, that’s part of it too!)
An Honor Student is recognized by his SCAFA Advising Team as consistently guiding his behaviors according to the NSA value system and excelling in the areas of scholarship, citizenship, character, community service, and leadership.
While earning Honor Status allows the students additional privileges, this flexibility comes with a higher level of trust earned over time, and Honor Students willingly accept the responsibility of helping out their peers as well as the community as a whole.
An Honor Student is recognized by his SCAFA Advising Team as consistently guiding his behaviors according to the NSA value system and excelling in the areas of scholarship, citizenship, character, community service, and leadership.
While earning Honor Status allows the students additional privileges, this flexibility comes with a higher level of trust earned over time, and Honor Students willingly accept the responsibility of helping out their peers as well as the community as a whole.
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New Summit Academy’s mission is to empower students toward healthier lifestyles through processing experiences and solving problems to become more relationship-based, goal-driven, resourceful global citizens.
The goal of helping young men develop into global citizens has guided the development of many of the most impactful and memorable components of the NSA program.
These experiences of stepping outside of our comfort zones, asking intelligent questions while building critical thinking skills, and immersing in the world around us are all woven throughout NSA’s personal growth, academic, and experiential education programs.
Below are just a few examples of how we do this at NSA:
Building Connections and Serving our Community: All New Summit Academy students engage in service throughout their stay (in fact, it’s a requirement of our program!)
Students participate in reforestation projects, care for children at Hogar de Vida, provide activities for Retirement Home residents, and teach English classes to locals in Atenas.
Cultural Engagement: Each weekend, after having learned about the activity in their Spanish classes, our students immerse in the Costa Rican culture through experiences that include trips to museums, parks, festivals, tours of coffee and chocolate farms, and sports days in the park.
Global Citizenship Workshops: Eight times a year, students participate in teacher-led, experiential workshops that examine the facets of Social Justice, Human Rights, Interdependence, Ecological Stewardship, and more.
These facets then serve as lenses through which students approach their core classes for each quarter.
The goal of helping young men develop into global citizens has guided the development of many of the most impactful and memorable components of the NSA program.
These experiences of stepping outside of our comfort zones, asking intelligent questions while building critical thinking skills, and immersing in the world around us are all woven throughout NSA’s personal growth, academic, and experiential education programs.
Below are just a few examples of how we do this at NSA:
Building Connections and Serving our Community: All New Summit Academy students engage in service throughout their stay (in fact, it’s a requirement of our program!)
Students participate in reforestation projects, care for children at Hogar de Vida, provide activities for Retirement Home residents, and teach English classes to locals in Atenas.
Cultural Engagement: Each weekend, after having learned about the activity in their Spanish classes, our students immerse in the Costa Rican culture through experiences that include trips to museums, parks, festivals, tours of coffee and chocolate farms, and sports days in the park.
Global Citizenship Workshops: Eight times a year, students participate in teacher-led, experiential workshops that examine the facets of Social Justice, Human Rights, Interdependence, Ecological Stewardship, and more.
These facets then serve as lenses through which students approach their core classes for each quarter.
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Our newsletters often highlight the cool activities that our students experience week to week at New Summit Academy.
But it felt important to also highlight the PEOPLE that our students get to experience and interact with on a regular basis. Everyone who visits our Atenas campus expresses how amazing it is that our team functions like a well-oiled machine.
Yet, we’re not a machine. We are a network of hearts and souls dedicated to making our community a better place - one where students feel seen, heard, challenged, and supported to be their best self -- a self that opens their mind to experience, learns from mistakes, and sets goals and achieves them.
What makes this possible isn’t great leadership or air tight protocols (although we have those too). It’s the people who make NSA their home - day in and day out - and give their energy, intelligence, and hard work to make New Summit Academy, approaching its 15th year, what it is today.
We hope you enjoy some stats about NSA staff:
--Total number of Employees: 49.5 (the .5 reflects a couple of part-time employees)
--Youngest 25, Oldest 73
--6 under age 30
--20 age 30-40
--18 age 40-50
--6 age 50-60
--1 age 60+
Again, what a beautiful balance of age and experience to guide our students through what often feels like a difficult stage of life - adolescence!
Retention:
--28% of our Employees have worked for over 10 years at NSA (14) - Yes, that’s right! Almost 1/3 of our staff have been at NSA for over a decade!
--28% (14) Employees have worked for 5-10 years at NSA
--16% (8) Employees have worked for 3-5 years at NSA
--28% (14) Employees have worked for under 3 years at NSA
We are very proud that we have such great retention of employment -- 56% of our staff have been working at NSA for over 5 years!
We have such a mix of experienced veterans and new professionals who bring creative ideas and lots of fresh energy to our campus.
And 32% of our Employees are female, which lends a nice balance to an all-male school.
These statistics may not mean much to you, but they mean a lot to us. Our future newsletters will be highlighting some of these wonderful people who make NSA what it is - an amazing growth experience for our students!
But it felt important to also highlight the PEOPLE that our students get to experience and interact with on a regular basis. Everyone who visits our Atenas campus expresses how amazing it is that our team functions like a well-oiled machine.
Yet, we’re not a machine. We are a network of hearts and souls dedicated to making our community a better place - one where students feel seen, heard, challenged, and supported to be their best self -- a self that opens their mind to experience, learns from mistakes, and sets goals and achieves them.
What makes this possible isn’t great leadership or air tight protocols (although we have those too). It’s the people who make NSA their home - day in and day out - and give their energy, intelligence, and hard work to make New Summit Academy, approaching its 15th year, what it is today.
We hope you enjoy some stats about NSA staff:
--Total number of Employees: 49.5 (the .5 reflects a couple of part-time employees)
--Youngest 25, Oldest 73
--6 under age 30
--20 age 30-40
--18 age 40-50
--6 age 50-60
--1 age 60+
Again, what a beautiful balance of age and experience to guide our students through what often feels like a difficult stage of life - adolescence!
Retention:
--28% of our Employees have worked for over 10 years at NSA (14) - Yes, that’s right! Almost 1/3 of our staff have been at NSA for over a decade!
--28% (14) Employees have worked for 5-10 years at NSA
--16% (8) Employees have worked for 3-5 years at NSA
--28% (14) Employees have worked for under 3 years at NSA
We are very proud that we have such great retention of employment -- 56% of our staff have been working at NSA for over 5 years!
We have such a mix of experienced veterans and new professionals who bring creative ideas and lots of fresh energy to our campus.
And 32% of our Employees are female, which lends a nice balance to an all-male school.
These statistics may not mean much to you, but they mean a lot to us. Our future newsletters will be highlighting some of these wonderful people who make NSA what it is - an amazing growth experience for our students!
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NSA students are beginning the quarter by planning for their continued growth with their SCAFA (which stands for Self, Community, and Future) Teams.
On the first day of each quarter, NSA has a special schedule that allows students to each meet with their Academic Advisor, Experiential Education Mentor, and Case Manager – who make up their SCAFA Team – to review their quarterly goal plans and set concrete steps to achieve those goals.
When not attending SCAFA Meetings, students are working to unpack from their home visits or Recreational Aventuras, organizing their iPads for the upcoming quarter, participating in community service in Atenas, and expending some adolescent energy on the basketball court, on the soccer field, or in the gym.
SCAFA Day is one way we work to set up our students for success this quarter!
On the first day of each quarter, NSA has a special schedule that allows students to each meet with their Academic Advisor, Experiential Education Mentor, and Case Manager – who make up their SCAFA Team – to review their quarterly goal plans and set concrete steps to achieve those goals.
When not attending SCAFA Meetings, students are working to unpack from their home visits or Recreational Aventuras, organizing their iPads for the upcoming quarter, participating in community service in Atenas, and expending some adolescent energy on the basketball court, on the soccer field, or in the gym.
SCAFA Day is one way we work to set up our students for success this quarter!
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New Summit Academy celebrated a very special graduation day this spring, as we proudly sent eight young men into the world, prepared for success.
This graduating class served as leaders and role models for our students, and every student graduated with honors – a feat never before seen at NSA!
These students have been hard at work this past quarter, writing and polishing their transition plans, working side-by-side with their families to come to agreements on their plans, and meeting with the Transition Team and administrative staff to complete a final review. The grads then took one final trip together, celebrating their accomplishments at the summit of Chirripo, the highest peak in Costa Rica.
Some of our recent graduates will return to finish high school, while our senior graduates will be attending Juniata College, The University of Denver, Lehigh University, and the University of Oregon.
Congratulations to these amazing young men; we look forward to their many successes!
This graduating class served as leaders and role models for our students, and every student graduated with honors – a feat never before seen at NSA!
These students have been hard at work this past quarter, writing and polishing their transition plans, working side-by-side with their families to come to agreements on their plans, and meeting with the Transition Team and administrative staff to complete a final review. The grads then took one final trip together, celebrating their accomplishments at the summit of Chirripo, the highest peak in Costa Rica.
Some of our recent graduates will return to finish high school, while our senior graduates will be attending Juniata College, The University of Denver, Lehigh University, and the University of Oregon.
Congratulations to these amazing young men; we look forward to their many successes!
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NSA has always believed that non-traditional education is the most effective way to reach a greater variety of learners and to better prepare them for our rapidly-evolving world. We have spent the past 15 years engaging students in experiential, collaborative, problem-based learning, and now we are sharing it with the world!
This May, Heather Tracy and Martin Naffziger, our Executive Director and Director of Learning and Outcomes, traveled to Chicago to present: Why (and How) Non-Traditional Education Must Be the New Traditional.
The presentation, given in front of a crowd of diverse educators, outlined the trends in adolescents and the world we are preparing them for, and how a different set of skills must be developed to best set them up for success.
While in Chicago, we also had the chance to host a current and alumni parent meet-up, sharing updates and memories. Families of graduates from as far back as 2013 met and mingled with families of students graduating this May, so it was a truly special occasion.
Thanks to all of our families for your continued support!
This May, Heather Tracy and Martin Naffziger, our Executive Director and Director of Learning and Outcomes, traveled to Chicago to present: Why (and How) Non-Traditional Education Must Be the New Traditional.
The presentation, given in front of a crowd of diverse educators, outlined the trends in adolescents and the world we are preparing them for, and how a different set of skills must be developed to best set them up for success.
While in Chicago, we also had the chance to host a current and alumni parent meet-up, sharing updates and memories. Families of graduates from as far back as 2013 met and mingled with families of students graduating this May, so it was a truly special occasion.
Thanks to all of our families for your continued support!
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Our talented seniors at New Summit Academy have received all of their college decisions this month, and most have made the exciting decisions of where to enroll.
This process began last May, when students and families began developing comprehensive lists of characteristics that they believed would lead to continued student success.
Using these characteristics, individualized lists of schools were developed for each student, and the intensive process of honing these lists began.
Alongside this process, students worked on resumes, essays, requesting letters of recommendation and – sometimes at the last minute! – submitting applications that highlighted their strengths and their growth processes over the last year.
New Summit Academy is proud to share some of our College Application stats for the fall of 2019!
Seniors accepted to college: 100%
Acceptance rate of all colleges applied to: 79%
Total Merit Aid Offered: $970,000.00
Acceptances into Colleges that Change Lives: 5
The impressive list of schools – as unique as our students – where our seniors have enrolled or intend to enroll:
Loyola University Chicago, Lynn University, Juniata College, Christopher Newport University, Quest University, University of Oregon, University of Denver, and Lehigh University
Thanks to all of our supportive families and consultants whose participation helped to make this such a successful season!
This process began last May, when students and families began developing comprehensive lists of characteristics that they believed would lead to continued student success.
Using these characteristics, individualized lists of schools were developed for each student, and the intensive process of honing these lists began.
Alongside this process, students worked on resumes, essays, requesting letters of recommendation and – sometimes at the last minute! – submitting applications that highlighted their strengths and their growth processes over the last year.
New Summit Academy is proud to share some of our College Application stats for the fall of 2019!
Seniors accepted to college: 100%
Acceptance rate of all colleges applied to: 79%
Total Merit Aid Offered: $970,000.00
Acceptances into Colleges that Change Lives: 5
The impressive list of schools – as unique as our students – where our seniors have enrolled or intend to enroll:
Loyola University Chicago, Lynn University, Juniata College, Christopher Newport University, Quest University, University of Oregon, University of Denver, and Lehigh University
Thanks to all of our supportive families and consultants whose participation helped to make this such a successful season!
