The 2019 school year has just begun and Noozhawk’s Private & Independent School Guide is sure to make things easy when planning for your child’s education! Our school guide provides you and your child with all the necessary information about private schools in Santa Barbara County.
To give parents the tools to help make informed decisions about which school is the best fit for their kids in Santa Barbara, Noozhawk has conducted a series of interviews with representatives of local private & independent schools for this year’s school guide.
In this interview, Noozhawk spoke with Kito Cetrulo, Assistant Head of School at Anacapa School to learn more about what they offer at their school.
Anacapa School
Question: What is the mission or vision for your school?
Answer: Anacapa School is an independent, co-educational school for grades 7-12. Founded in 1981, Anacapa empowers students to excel at critical thinking, creativity, integrity and compassion through academic and experiential learning.
Q: How is your school operated or governed?
A: Anacapa School has an active Board of Trustees comprised of local strategists focused on advancing the school’s unique mission and enduring goals.
Q: What curriculum is available and taught at your school?
A: Anacapa School offers a 7th-12th grade academic experience for students and families who opt for a rigorous and innovative learning environment. We deliver an education designed to emphasize and celebrate ingenuity.
Q: What extracurricular activities does your school offer?
A: At Anacapa our afternoons are dedicated to passions that extend beyond the traditional classroom. Semester-long elective courses are crafted based on student interest, for which students receive both credit and a corresponding grade.
Q: Describe the typical day in the life of a student at your school.
A: We spend our mornings and early afternoons engaged in traditional academic instruction. The afternoons are abundant with electives customized for our student community. Our school day begins at 8:30am and wraps by 3:30pm. On Wednesday mornings we host Breakfast Club, an experience where speakers from across the community join us to share their stories. Our cooking elective prepares gourmet breakfast treats for the morning event. Students prepare quiche, donuts, frittatas, muffins, and other delectable items – all from scratch. Students also engage in “works” for 10 minutes each day. The Anacapa community breaks into clusters assigned to various parts of the campus, to clean, collaborate and team-build.
Q: How does your school select/hire teachers?
A: The Anacapa teachers are our stars. We seek individuals who are deeply committed to the philosophy of education, and who are practitioners beyond the classroom. We hire professionals with varied interests, and who share the common goal of supporting students in and out of the classroom. Our teachers are given the autonomy to design their classes in ways that celebrate their personal strengths and experience.
Q: What professional development opportunities do teachers have? In what ways do teachers collaborate?
A: Our teachers are entrepreneurial in their approach to education. We encourage every teacher to seek professional growth experiences aligned with their classroom mission.
Our teachers collaborate in both formal and informal ways. Through intensive all-day trainings, weekly faculty deep-dives, and social gatherings, our faculty are actively connected. They also share a rose-colored historic house in the back of campus, where their offices are situated to invite conversation and interaction.
Q: What metrics do you use to measure and track your student progress?
A: At Anacapa we support a growth mindset. We encourage our students to thrive academically, socially and emotionally. We have a semester-based system with both grades and narrative reports for each student. Grade point averages (GPAs) are based on a 4-point scale, with the scale capped at 4.0. However, we also assess our student progress with respect to the following skills:
Synthesis: The synthesis of often disparate ideas, talents, and information
Passion: The enthusiasm to dive deep
Innovation: The confidence to pursue a path yet forged
Creativity: The harnessing of creative inspiration
Collaboration: The recognition that multiple and often different perspectives generate phenomenal outcomes
Q: How can parents get involved at your school?
A: Anacapa is a family, and parents play a meaningful role in their student’s success. Our philosophy is that parents, students and faculty must work in close partnership to ensure a rewarding academic experience. We also encourage students to self-advocate at school.
In addition, Anacapa’s Parent Leadership Team (PLT) is an exceptional team of families who support the student and faculty experience. Parents are involved with volunteer events, school pot-lucks, and holiday celebrations, among other things. Our Anacapa families provide a wonderful and warm presence that endures throughout the year.
Q: What are your schools greatest accomplishments?
A: Our greatest accomplishment is the daily connection between our students and the faculty who support them. The defining word that WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges) used to describe us during our recent re-accreditation was “family.” Continuing to live up to that standard is our most significant accomplishment and our greatest joy.
Q: What challenges has your school faced or currently face? How did you overcome these?
A: Over the past 2 years Anacapa School has re-engineered our mission, our curriculum strategy, and our cultural experience. We have shifted leadership, hired new faculty and revisited our student admissions approach. We are embarking on an exciting and bold path forward. It is a new chapter in the Anacapa story.
Q: How does your school support students who have academic, social, or emotional difficulties?
A: Anacapa School empowers all students to excel at critical thinking, creativity, integrity and compassion. We recognize that students arrive with varied academic strengths, areas for academic growth, executive functioning skills and social tools. We meet students where they are.
We do not have a psychiatrist on staff, we do not provide instructional aids in the classroom, and our staff is not special education certified.
Q: What is the cost or tuition to attend your school? Do you offer financial aid or scholarship programs?
A: Tuition is set at $26,000 for 7th-8th grade and $27,100 for 9th-12th grade. Anacapa offers financial aid to qualified parents based on both family need and student merit.
Click here for more information about Anacapa School.