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Soccer. Cooking. Birthday Parties. Barbecues. Our students have the unique opportunity to participate in these activities and much more with their beloved Costa Rican homestay families.
Each family, carefully selected to match student interests and personalities, opens their home to one of our students every Sunday and shares their lives and culture with them.
To thank them, NSA hosted our always-anticipated homestay family picnic this past week, which included an impressive karaoke contest, delicious lunch, and the ever-popular bingo tournament. Many thanks to our Atenas community for providing our students with a home away from home!
Each family, carefully selected to match student interests and personalities, opens their home to one of our students every Sunday and shares their lives and culture with them.
To thank them, NSA hosted our always-anticipated homestay family picnic this past week, which included an impressive karaoke contest, delicious lunch, and the ever-popular bingo tournament. Many thanks to our Atenas community for providing our students with a home away from home!
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Students and staff spent an arduous week working side-by-side to learn and master the content and skills needed to earn their WAFA and CPR certifications. Our fabulous instructors are adept at interspersing classroom learning with real-life, hands-on application of wilderness medicine essentials including:
- Scene and situation evaluation
- The ABC’s of airway, breathing and circulation evaluation
- Comprehensive patient assessment
- Stabilization and treatment techniques
Our community worked to dress fake (but so realistic!) wounds, splint broken bones, diagnose heat stroke and more on their way to earning professional level WAFA and CPR certification cards.
Congratulations on everyone’s hard work and success!
- Scene and situation evaluation
- The ABC’s of airway, breathing and circulation evaluation
- Comprehensive patient assessment
- Stabilization and treatment techniques
Our community worked to dress fake (but so realistic!) wounds, splint broken bones, diagnose heat stroke and more on their way to earning professional level WAFA and CPR certification cards.
Congratulations on everyone’s hard work and success!
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Each of NSA’s cultural immersion opportunities, supported by classroom Spanish language study, are enriching for our students’ Costa Rica experience, but none is as important as our relationship and work with Hogar de Vida. Dedicated student volunteers continue to spend each Tuesday afternoon performing community service by helping to improve the facilities and, more importantly, by spending time with the children.
Our students convert into big kids themselves as they color, swing, make clay models, and run around the grounds of the children’s home.
Our community is so grateful for the relationship we have with Hogar de Vida, and thank Daisy, our Cultural Coordinator, and all the Hogar staff for making it happen.
Our students convert into big kids themselves as they color, swing, make clay models, and run around the grounds of the children’s home.
Our community is so grateful for the relationship we have with Hogar de Vida, and thank Daisy, our Cultural Coordinator, and all the Hogar staff for making it happen.
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Pursuing healthy passions is an important part to living a full, balanced life, and our Clubs enable our students to advocate for their particular interests in that pursuit. Any student can start a Club with enough interest and by passing a proposal with the Experiential Education team. Once a Club is approved, student and staff leaders facilitate a quarterly Club Fair for student sign-ups.
This quarter’s Clubs include Cooking, Gardening, Chess, Comic Books, Biking, Climbing, Music Makers, and Backcountry Skills.
Clubs then collaborate to organize and schedule weekly meetings and weekend outings, developing student advocacy, organization and follow through while having fun!
This quarter’s Clubs include Cooking, Gardening, Chess, Comic Books, Biking, Climbing, Music Makers, and Backcountry Skills.
Clubs then collaborate to organize and schedule weekly meetings and weekend outings, developing student advocacy, organization and follow through while having fun!
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The next two weeks are exciting ones for our students, families and staff of NSA! Newer students will be off adventuring and relaxing in the untouched forests of Sarapiqui and on the shores of Lake Arenal. They will be spending the week zip-lining, playing soccer, stand-up paddle boarding and horseback riding in some of the most beautiful areas of the country.
Another group of students will be traveling to South Africa for two weeks of impactful cultural immersion and community building.
Next week, our students and staff will be hard at work studying and applying their learning hands-on in their efforts to earn their Wilderness Advanced First Aid (WAFA) and CPR certifications. Stay tuned for stories and photos from these upcoming activities!
Another group of students will be traveling to South Africa for two weeks of impactful cultural immersion and community building.
Next week, our students and staff will be hard at work studying and applying their learning hands-on in their efforts to earn their Wilderness Advanced First Aid (WAFA) and CPR certifications. Stay tuned for stories and photos from these upcoming activities!
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NSA and The Bridge have been not only long-time members of the National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs (NATSAP), but innovators leading the way toward more effective and enriching models of engagement and growth for young people.
At this year’s national NATSAP conference in Tampa, our programs collaborated to facilitate four different presentations, which included:
- Martin Naffziger and Kelly Weld speaking about how investment in a rigorous Academic program can develop stronger Therapeutic offerings
- Dr. Heather Tracy and Mario Duran presenting on how to balance student empowerment with administrative needs
- Dr. Danny Recio discussing his recently-published article in the Journal of Therapeutic Schools and Programs titled Coming of Age in Foreign Lands
- Martin Naffziger presenting in collaboration with Montana Academy on innovative structures in education and the responsibility that therapeutic programs have to develop strong Academics
All of our Supportive Immersion programs will continue forward with industry-leading standards of education, personal growth and experiential education!
At this year’s national NATSAP conference in Tampa, our programs collaborated to facilitate four different presentations, which included:
- Martin Naffziger and Kelly Weld speaking about how investment in a rigorous Academic program can develop stronger Therapeutic offerings
- Dr. Heather Tracy and Mario Duran presenting on how to balance student empowerment with administrative needs
- Dr. Danny Recio discussing his recently-published article in the Journal of Therapeutic Schools and Programs titled Coming of Age in Foreign Lands
- Martin Naffziger presenting in collaboration with Montana Academy on innovative structures in education and the responsibility that therapeutic programs have to develop strong Academics
All of our Supportive Immersion programs will continue forward with industry-leading standards of education, personal growth and experiential education!
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“In my time here, I have met people from backgrounds that I had never even really imagined. Young parentless children in a rural Costa Rican orphanage, an otherworldly experience with Amaru tribespeople in Peru, these people who have shown me compassion and accepted mine in return have changed my outlook. I have realized how very lucky a lot of us are.”
-Class of June 2018
“Over the last year or so, I have added alot of new things to my backpack: new skills, knowledge, perspectives. And white pine logs. I have also been able to shed some old weights and burdens, stuff I no longer need and rocks that I hadn’t realized I was carrying. I have repacked that big green backpack more times than I can count. And now, as I prepare to set off on another journey, I pack it again. I have what I need to take on what’s next, and some space in the pack for something new.” -Class of December 2017
“I started to work on myself; going to the gym every day, planning out my schedule for the week, even running for Student Council President and winning. I earned Honors status and finished my senior year with a 3.67. I no longer seek unhealthy comfort - no longer crawl into the shade - because I've learned that I'm good enough to do whatever I put my heart into.”
-Class of September 2017
“As I strive to be the best person that I can be, the obstacles in my life continue to press down, but now I have the tools needed to successfully overcome them and progress forward and continue to follow my own dreams and ambitions.” -Class of December 2017
“Nine months later, looking back with my new perspective, I am glad to be where I am. I have slipped since I've been here, but never fallen. I've learned how to handle, and even embrace, struggle rather than avoid it. Though not everywhere I go may be immediately comfortable and easy, I am n ow confident that I have the experience and skill set to succeed in the face of challenge.”
-Class of March 2018
-Class of June 2018
“Over the last year or so, I have added alot of new things to my backpack: new skills, knowledge, perspectives. And white pine logs. I have also been able to shed some old weights and burdens, stuff I no longer need and rocks that I hadn’t realized I was carrying. I have repacked that big green backpack more times than I can count. And now, as I prepare to set off on another journey, I pack it again. I have what I need to take on what’s next, and some space in the pack for something new.” -Class of December 2017
“I started to work on myself; going to the gym every day, planning out my schedule for the week, even running for Student Council President and winning. I earned Honors status and finished my senior year with a 3.67. I no longer seek unhealthy comfort - no longer crawl into the shade - because I've learned that I'm good enough to do whatever I put my heart into.”
-Class of September 2017
“As I strive to be the best person that I can be, the obstacles in my life continue to press down, but now I have the tools needed to successfully overcome them and progress forward and continue to follow my own dreams and ambitions.” -Class of December 2017
“Nine months later, looking back with my new perspective, I am glad to be where I am. I have slipped since I've been here, but never fallen. I've learned how to handle, and even embrace, struggle rather than avoid it. Though not everywhere I go may be immediately comfortable and easy, I am n ow confident that I have the experience and skill set to succeed in the face of challenge.”
-Class of March 2018
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This week, New Summit Academy proudly awarded high school diplomas and certificates of program completion to six young men who have – like all of our graduates – shown impressive effort and growth during the past year.
December graduation coincides with our seniors wrapping up their college application process, and reflecting through their personal essays on their unique journeys. As we celebrate this graduation and look forward to more stories of success in the future, we would like to share a handful of excerpts from these student reflections:
December graduation coincides with our seniors wrapping up their college application process, and reflecting through their personal essays on their unique journeys. As we celebrate this graduation and look forward to more stories of success in the future, we would like to share a handful of excerpts from these student reflections:
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NSA students have a unique opportunity to develop true language mastery and cultural understanding through our Spanish and Cultural Immersion curriculum. Grammatical learning objectives are employed in the classroom as a means to enrich weekly cultural immersion activities, allowing students to approach the Costa Rican culture with more understanding and ability to engage.
Recent culminating immersion projects have included a presentation at the local elementary school on the country’s indigenous communities, trips to the farmer’s market, pick-up sports in San Jose's La Sabana Park and interviews with the local water institute about Atenas and water rights.
Many thanks to our dedicated Spanish Teachers and Experiential Education mentors for facilitating these opportunities for true cultural immersion.
Recent culminating immersion projects have included a presentation at the local elementary school on the country’s indigenous communities, trips to the farmer’s market, pick-up sports in San Jose's La Sabana Park and interviews with the local water institute about Atenas and water rights.
Many thanks to our dedicated Spanish Teachers and Experiential Education mentors for facilitating these opportunities for true cultural immersion.
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The Thanksgiving holiday at NSA is all about our communities, and celebrating and giving thanks to those who are such an important part of our lives. Our students had bountiful opportunities to spend time with their various communities throughout the week.
Some of our families were able to join us for a New Family Workshop, engaging in family sessions, academic workshops and parent-teacher conferences, as well as important family time together in Costa Rica.
Our families, real and extended, gathered together on Thursday to prepare and share an amazing Thanksgiving dinner.
Students also brought a little bit of the holiday to their friends at Hogar de Vida children’s home, making turkey hats for the little ones, and serving lunch to the community.
NSA is thankful for all of our communities that do so much to enrich our lives!
