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As students prepare to graduate from New Summit Academy Costa Rica, they have the opportunity to explore potential career paths through internships, vocational exploration, and experiential learning. For July graduate Jaron, that path led behind the camera.
During his final academic term, Jaron pursued his passion for photography by learning from professionals, developing his technical skills, and building a portfolio that reflects both his creativity and growth. The images featured here capture just a few of the moments from his internship experience.
Through internships and hands-on learning, students at New Summit Academy gain real-world experience, discover new interests, and develop practical skills that help them prepare for college, future careers, and life beyond graduation.
​Congratulations, Jaron! We look forward to seeing where your talent and creativity take you next.
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When parents search for a supportive or therapeutic boarding school, they often focus on academics and clinical support. Equally important is the size of the school community.
At New Summit Academy Costa Rica, our intentionally small community allows every student to be known as an individual. Many of our students have struggled with anxiety, depression, executive functioning challenges, learning differences, or finding their place in traditional schools.
Strong relationships help change that.
Students build genuine connections with teachers, mentors, advisors, therapists, and peers who know them well. These relationships foster trust, accountability, healthy communication, confidence, and a strong sense of belonging. Research consistently shows that students in smaller schools report stronger connections to their school community and more positive educational experiences.
Community extends beyond the classroom through shared meals, outdoor adventures, cultural immersion, service learning, and campus life. These experiences help students develop social skills, resilience, independence, and lasting friendships.

When teenagers feel seen, valued, and supported, they become more engaged in learning and more confident in themselves. That's one of the greatest advantages of a small, supportive boarding school.
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New Summit Academy recently celebrated another graduating class with an intimate commencement ceremony on campus in Costa Rica. Surrounded by family members, friends, teachers, therapists, mentors, and members of the local community, our graduates took time to reflect on their journeys and the growth they experienced during their time at New Summit.
Graduation marks an important transition for every student. Some of our program graduates will continue their educational journeys at traditional boarding schools, while others will return home with greater confidence, stronger self-awareness, and a renewed sense of purpose.
We are also proud to recognize our May 2026 high school graduates, who will be attending the University of Denver, Lafayette College, and Sewanee: The University of the South.
We are also proud to recognize our May 2026 high school graduates, who will be attending the University of Denver, Lafayette College, and Sewanee: The University of the South.
Congratulations to all of our graduates and their families. We look forward to seeing all they accomplish in the years ahead!
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At New Summit Academy, this is what it looked like when a student turned an idea into something that made a real difference.
Last Saturday, our student, Wells, took the stage for a live benefit concert, the result of months of rehearsals, planning, and leadership. What began as a personal idea grew into a full-scale production. Wells formed a band, organized practices, and led the group all the way to a live performance in support of a local family he had been working with in Costa Rica.
The concert brought the community together and ultimately raised $5,600, exceeding expectations and creating tangible impact for the family.
Last Saturday, our student, Wells, took the stage for a live benefit concert, the result of months of rehearsals, planning, and leadership. What began as a personal idea grew into a full-scale production. Wells formed a band, organized practices, and led the group all the way to a live performance in support of a local family he had been working with in Costa Rica.
The concert brought the community together and ultimately raised $5,600, exceeding expectations and creating tangible impact for the family.
Supporting a Family in Costa Rica
The funds raised will go toward purchasing a power generator for the family, helping ensure reliable access to light, refrigeration, and greater day-to-day stability at home. For Wells, the project was not just about music. It was about following through on a commitment and using his strengths to support others in a meaningful, practical way.
Experiences like this are part of what defines our supportive boarding school. Students are supported in taking ownership of their growth while also learning how their actions can positively affect others.
Experiences like this are part of what defines our supportive boarding school. Students are supported in taking ownership of their growth while also learning how their actions can positively affect others.
What Is a Landmark Project?
At New Summit Academy, Landmark Projects invite students to connect with what is within them and contribute to the world beyond them. Each project is student-driven and built around individual strengths, whether through music, service, craftsmanship, or entrepreneurship.
In a small boarding school setting, students receive the structure and support needed to take ideas from concept to completion. Wells’ concert reflected not only his musical ability, but also his capacity for leadership, organization, and follow-through.
These projects are a core part of life at a supportive boarding school like New Summit Academy. They help students build confidence, develop accountability, and strengthen their sense of purpose during their time on campus.
In a small boarding school setting, students receive the structure and support needed to take ideas from concept to completion. Wells’ concert reflected not only his musical ability, but also his capacity for leadership, organization, and follow-through.
These projects are a core part of life at a supportive boarding school like New Summit Academy. They help students build confidence, develop accountability, and strengthen their sense of purpose during their time on campus.
A Lasting Impact
Wells’ benefit concert demonstrated what can happen when students are given the space and support to lead. The $5,600 raised will have a direct and lasting impact on a family’s daily life, while the experience itself will continue to shape Wells’ growth moving forward.
At New Summit Academy, student-led experiences like this are part of a broader commitment to helping young people become capable, engaged, and contributing members of their communities.
At New Summit Academy, student-led experiences like this are part of a broader commitment to helping young people become capable, engaged, and contributing members of their communities.
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At New Summit Academy, a small boarding school rooted in personalized support, we are always looking for ways to strengthen student growth and community culture. Last week, our Academic Director, Yannick Pilgrim, and Strategic Enrollment Director, Adam Beeson, joined educators from across the United States at the Small Boarding School Association (SBSA) conference at Wayland Academy.
During the conference, Adam co-facilitated a session on “Strategic Novelty,” exploring how immersive, real-world experiences can serve as powerful developmental accelerators. In a world where students often feel pressure to constantly perform and stay digitally connected, creating space for reflection, curiosity, and authentic engagement is essential.
During the conference, Adam co-facilitated a session on “Strategic Novelty,” exploring how immersive, real-world experiences can serve as powerful developmental accelerators. In a world where students often feel pressure to constantly perform and stay digitally connected, creating space for reflection, curiosity, and authentic engagement is essential.
As a supportive boarding school, New Summit Academy integrates these principles into daily life. Research and experience both show that when students step into new environments, they build resilience, deepen relationships, and return with stronger academic focus and a clearer sense of purpose.
We are grateful to be part of a community of small boarding schools committed to thoughtful, student-centered growth.
We are grateful to be part of a community of small boarding schools committed to thoughtful, student-centered growth.
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What happens when learning is rooted in purpose, connection, and real-world experience? Our Executive Director, Dr. Heather Tracy, joined Lori Boll on the SENIA International Podcast this week to share insights from our work at New Summit Academy and The Bridge Costa Rica!
During the episode, Dr. Tracy explores the philosophy behind New Summit Academy's model of Supportive Immersion, an approach that blends experiential learning, cultural immersion, and strong relational support. By stepping outside traditional academic environments and into meaningful real-world experiences, students have the opportunity to reconnect with their strengths, build resilience, and rediscover a sense of purpose.
The conversation also highlights the importance of redefining success. Rather than measuring achievement through a narrow lens, New Summit encourages students to better understand themselves, develop confidence in their abilities, and discover what they uniquely have to offer the world.
We’re grateful to SENIA International for hosting this inspiring conversation and helping share the possibilities of inclusive education.
The conversation also highlights the importance of redefining success. Rather than measuring achievement through a narrow lens, New Summit encourages students to better understand themselves, develop confidence in their abilities, and discover what they uniquely have to offer the world.
We’re grateful to SENIA International for hosting this inspiring conversation and helping share the possibilities of inclusive education.
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For 40 years, The Good Schools Guide has helped parents with every aspect of choosing the best education for their children. Currently, the Guide offers more than 1,300 reviews of UK schools along with nearly 300 international school reviews covering 40 countries across the globe.
New Summit Academy's recent "What the School Says" contribution highlights those elements of our supportive boarding school that help it stand apart from any other school in the world.
Here is an inside look at the feature:
New Summit Academy's recent "What the School Says" contribution highlights those elements of our supportive boarding school that help it stand apart from any other school in the world.
Here is an inside look at the feature:
Tucked into the hills of one of Costa Rica’s sunniest small towns, New Summit Academy is a short-term boarding school where students typically enrol for one academic year. It offers something rare in the world of independent education: a supportive boarding experience combined with the adventure of studying abroad. The result is a school that feels both transformative and deeply grounding for bright young men who need a fresh start, a confidence boost or simply a different kind of educational journey.
Serving boys aged 14-18, New Summit Academy remains intentionally small, with only 26 students on campus at a time. Young men come from around the world seeking a place where they can be understood, challenged and supported in equal measure. Many arrive with anxiety, perfectionism, ADHD, executive functioning challenges or the weight of stress from competitive or mismatched school environments. What they share are strengths: curiosity, empathy, creativity and a desire to reconnect with their own potential.
Serving boys aged 14-18, New Summit Academy remains intentionally small, with only 26 students on campus at a time. Young men come from around the world seeking a place where they can be understood, challenged and supported in equal measure. Many arrive with anxiety, perfectionism, ADHD, executive functioning challenges or the weight of stress from competitive or mismatched school environments. What they share are strengths: curiosity, empathy, creativity and a desire to reconnect with their own potential.
The school’s academic programme blends university-preparatory coursework with experiential learning and cultural immersion. Classes are small and relational, giving students the structure they need while allowing them to work closely with teachers who really know how they learn. It’s not unusual to see students conducting field science in the rainforest, practising Spanish with local community partners or building interdisciplinary projects that connect academic subjects with the world around them. Learning feels alive and personal.
Therapeutic coaching is woven seamlessly into everyday life. Students meet regularly with on-campus therapists who help them build healthy coping strategies, manage stress, strengthen executive functioning skills and understand themselves more fully. This is not a clinical environment; it’s a school with intensive social-emotional support. The atmosphere is warm, conversational and growth-oriented.
Life outside the classroom is one of New Summit Academy’s greatest strengths. Students explore Costa Rica’s national parks, volcanoes, cloud forests and coastlines through carefully planned adventures that build confidence and resilience. Weekends may include hiking, white-water rafting, service projects, cultural trips, surfing on the Pacific coast or pursuing creative passions like music, photography and filmmaking. These shared experiences create strong friendships and a steady sense of belonging.
Therapeutic coaching is woven seamlessly into everyday life. Students meet regularly with on-campus therapists who help them build healthy coping strategies, manage stress, strengthen executive functioning skills and understand themselves more fully. This is not a clinical environment; it’s a school with intensive social-emotional support. The atmosphere is warm, conversational and growth-oriented.
Life outside the classroom is one of New Summit Academy’s greatest strengths. Students explore Costa Rica’s national parks, volcanoes, cloud forests and coastlines through carefully planned adventures that build confidence and resilience. Weekends may include hiking, white-water rafting, service projects, cultural trips, surfing on the Pacific coast or pursuing creative passions like music, photography and filmmaking. These shared experiences create strong friendships and a steady sense of belonging.
The school emphasises independence within structure. Students learn to manage responsibilities, handle real-world tasks, collaborate with peers and contribute to community life. Staff describe it as 'guided independence', the right balance of autonomy, accountability and encouragement.
Families choose New Summit Academy because it offers space to reset without losing momentum. On average, students enrol for one academic year, though some remain through graduation. After Costa Rica, many students transition successfully into more traditional boarding schools, while others return home with renewed confidence or move directly on to university. Whatever the next step, they leave Costa Rica more resilient, more self-aware and more capable young men.
In a world full of independent schools, New Summit Academy stands apart. It is adventurous, relational, grounded in wellbeing and unmistakably student-centred – a place where young men can rediscover joy in learning, in connection and in themselves.
Families choose New Summit Academy because it offers space to reset without losing momentum. On average, students enrol for one academic year, though some remain through graduation. After Costa Rica, many students transition successfully into more traditional boarding schools, while others return home with renewed confidence or move directly on to university. Whatever the next step, they leave Costa Rica more resilient, more self-aware and more capable young men.
In a world full of independent schools, New Summit Academy stands apart. It is adventurous, relational, grounded in wellbeing and unmistakably student-centred – a place where young men can rediscover joy in learning, in connection and in themselves.
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When a teen is struggling with anxiety or depression, school is often where it shows first.
Mornings become harder. Grades drop despite ability. Social situations feel overwhelming. Motivation fades. Families try therapy, tutoring, accommodations, yet the overall pattern remains the same.
If traditional school isn’t working, it may not be about effort. It may be about environment.
Mornings become harder. Grades drop despite ability. Social situations feel overwhelming. Motivation fades. Families try therapy, tutoring, accommodations, yet the overall pattern remains the same.
If traditional school isn’t working, it may not be about effort. It may be about environment.
Why Environment Matters
Large, fast-paced schools can unintentionally intensify anxiety. Students may feel overstimulated, socially exposed, or constantly behind. For teens experiencing depression, the pressure to “push through” can deepen withdrawal and self-doubt.
A small, supportive boarding environment offers something fundamentally different:
Structure reduces uncertainty. Relationship reduces isolation. Together, they create the foundation for growth.
A small, supportive boarding environment offers something fundamentally different:
- Predictable daily structure
- Small class sizes
- Close relationships with adults
- Personalized academics
- Built-in residential community
Structure reduces uncertainty. Relationship reduces isolation. Together, they create the foundation for growth.
What is a Supportive Boarding School?
A supportive, therapeutic boarding school blends accredited academics with integrated emotional support. Therapy is not separate from school life; it is woven into advising, residential routines, and mentoring relationships.
At New Summit Academy, enrollment is intentionally small so each student is known deeply. Faculty and residential staff understand not just academic performance, but the full picture of a student’s emotional and social experience.
Support may include:
This layered approach allows students to practice coping skills in real time — not just talk about them in an office once a week.
At New Summit Academy, enrollment is intentionally small so each student is known deeply. Faculty and residential staff understand not just academic performance, but the full picture of a student’s emotional and social experience.
Support may include:
- Individual and group therapy
- Integrated executive functioning coaching
- Structured study halls
- Regular advisor check-ins
- Experiential and outdoor learning
- Cultural immersion and travel
This layered approach allows students to practice coping skills in real time — not just talk about them in an office once a week.
Rebuilding Confidence
Anxiety and depression often erode a teen’s sense of competence. Over time, capable students begin to see themselves as incapable.
Confidence is rarely restored through pressure. It returns through small, consistent wins:
Structure creates safety. Safety allows risk. Risk builds resilience.
For many families, distance also creates space to reset family dynamics. Parents step out of the role of daily academic enforcer, allowing relationships to soften and rebuild.
Confidence is rarely restored through pressure. It returns through small, consistent wins:
- Completing assignments on time
- Participating in class
- Navigating peer relationships
- Contributing meaningfully to the community
Structure creates safety. Safety allows risk. Risk builds resilience.
For many families, distance also creates space to reset family dynamics. Parents step out of the role of daily academic enforcer, allowing relationships to soften and rebuild.
When Might a Supportive Boarding School Be Worth Exploring?
A supportive, therapeutic boarding school may be appropriate if:
It is not the right setting for teens who require acute psychiatric stabilization; a small, supportive boarding school like New Summit Academy is not a residential treatment center. But for students who are capable but struggling, boarding school can provide steady, relational accountability.
When anxiety or depression begins to define your teen’s school experience, it can feel discouraging. In the right environment (one grounded in structure, connection, and individualized support) many students rediscover confidence, belonging, and renewed academic momentum.
- School avoidance is increasing
- Academic performance has significantly declined
- Anxiety is interfering with daily functioning
- Depression is leading to isolation and disengagement
- Outpatient therapy alone has not shifted the pattern
It is not the right setting for teens who require acute psychiatric stabilization; a small, supportive boarding school like New Summit Academy is not a residential treatment center. But for students who are capable but struggling, boarding school can provide steady, relational accountability.
When anxiety or depression begins to define your teen’s school experience, it can feel discouraging. In the right environment (one grounded in structure, connection, and individualized support) many students rediscover confidence, belonging, and renewed academic momentum.
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At New Summit Academy, we serve capable, thoughtful adolescent males whose progress has slowed due to anxiety, depression, executive functioning challenges, or social stress. These students are bright, creative, empathetic, and open. And they're also stuck.
Think of New Summit when a student needs time, structure, and therapeutic support — but also real school, real relationships, and a clear path forward.
Think of New Summit when a student needs time, structure, and therapeutic support — but also real school, real relationships, and a clear path forward.
What makes New Summit Academy different from many programs is that personal growth support, college prep academics, and experiential education are fully integrated. Therapy isn’t something students leave class to attend; it’s woven into the rhythm of daily life. Therapists are active members of the community, working alongside academic advisors and student life mentors to help students build insight, skills, and momentum.
Place matters, too. Costa Rica’s pace and culture naturally support regulation, reflection, and reconnection, offering students space to reset and build confidence while moving forward academically. Studying abroad in Costa Rica, learning a new language, and leading service and cultural exchange initiatives foster positive identity development.
Place matters, too. Costa Rica’s pace and culture naturally support regulation, reflection, and reconnection, offering students space to reset and build confidence while moving forward academically. Studying abroad in Costa Rica, learning a new language, and leading service and cultural exchange initiatives foster positive identity development.
New Summit Academy isn’t about getting students “back on track.” It’s about helping them build a stronger one so they can transition with confidence to traditional boarding schools, day schools, universities, trade schools or gap year programs.
For a student who might benefit from a different pace, a different place, and a deeply supportive boarding community, New Summit Academy could be the right next step.
For a student who might benefit from a different pace, a different place, and a deeply supportive boarding community, New Summit Academy could be the right next step.
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January often arrives with pressure for teens and parents alike to start over, fix everything, and become someone entirely new.
At New Summit Academy, we take a different approach. Real growth doesn’t require reinvention. It requires support, structure, and the space to make steady, meaningful progress.
At New Summit Academy, we take a different approach. Real growth doesn’t require reinvention. It requires support, structure, and the space to make steady, meaningful progress.
Many of the adolescents who come to our supportive boarding school arrive exhausted by academic, social, emotional, and internal expectations. They are not “broken,” and they don’t need to be replaced by a new version of themselves. What they need is a reset rooted in consistency, accountability, and connection.
Growth happens when students feel safe enough to be honest, regulated enough to reflect, and supported enough to try again.
Our year-round boarding school in Costa Rica is intentionally designed to reduce noise and increase clarity. Through small class sizes, daily structure, therapy, experiential learning, and cultural immersion, students begin to understand themselves better, not as a list of problems to solve, but as capable young people learning new skills. Progress might look like improved emotional regulation, healthier peer interactions, or renewed academic engagement.
These changes are often subtle at first, but they compound over time.
Growth happens when students feel safe enough to be honest, regulated enough to reflect, and supported enough to try again.
Our year-round boarding school in Costa Rica is intentionally designed to reduce noise and increase clarity. Through small class sizes, daily structure, therapy, experiential learning, and cultural immersion, students begin to understand themselves better, not as a list of problems to solve, but as capable young people learning new skills. Progress might look like improved emotional regulation, healthier peer interactions, or renewed academic engagement.
These changes are often subtle at first, but they compound over time.
For families considering supportive boarding school, especially at the start of a new year, it’s important to know that success is not defined by perfection or dramatic overnight change. At New Summit Academy, success is forward motion. It’s helping students build momentum they can carry with them long after they leave our campus.
A new year doesn’t require a new kid. It simply requires the right environment for growth to take root.
A new year doesn’t require a new kid. It simply requires the right environment for growth to take root.