Meet Pacific Ridge School
Pacific Ridge School, located in Carlsbad, CA, opened in the fall of 2007 with the intention of enriching the educational opportunities – in particular for 7th through 12th grades – in San Diego’s North County. A handful of founding families spearheaded the movement to open the school based upon their desire to create an educational environment that embodied their mission statement: “In a community that fosters academic excellence, ethical responsibility and global engagement, Pacific Ridge School prepares students for college and a purposeful life.” The school’s tagline, Engaged in the classroom. Engaged in the world., sets the tone for the academic experience that they provide.
The school opened with students in 7th and 9th grades their first year and have added grade levels each subsequent year. They will complete their student body with the addition of 12th grade in 2010, with full enrollment reaching around 510 students.
I’ve enjoyed several visits to Pacific Ridge School over the past couple of years, and every time I step on campus I am impressed by new examples of ways that the school is growing and thriving. I’ve met both the head of school, Eileen Mullady, and the director of admissions, Jean Nassif, and they are both passionate about and proud of the school and program that they are building.
The school is located on 12 acres in the Bressi Ranch area of Carlsbad. While classes are currently housed in four temporary buildings, they recently broke ground on a new 35,000 square foot high school building that will house 19 classrooms, four laboratories and two study areas. They expect the building to be completed over the summer. They also expect that the building will earn gold or platinum LEED accreditation for its energy efficiency.
Engaged in the Classroom
The curriculum at Pacific Ridge School is designed to provide rigorous academics as well as artistic, athletic, service learning and extracurricular activities. The faculty integrate topics across subject areas to create more meaningful learning. According to the Pacific Ridge website:
Study will respect academic disciplines so that students may learn to distinguish the different ways in which an historian, scientist, writer, literary critic, mathematician or artist views the world. But the program of study in all disciplines — in history and science, or in science and literature, or language and art — will align, intersect, and cross over in a well-designed curriculum throughout each trimester of each year so that students may recognize thematic patterns and ask and answer big questions about what makes us human. The integrated curriculum works because teachers participate in related service programs and in each other’s classes, allowing them to see the full picture of what each student is learning.
A unique feature in many of the classrooms at Pacific Ridge is that the teaching is centered around seminar-style tables. Each student truly has a front-row seat and is expected to be an active participant in discussions.
Engaged in the World
Pacific Ridge takes their commitment to develop global citizens seriously. Last year a group of 42 ninth-grade students and their teachers traveled to China to study the culture, and even got to stay with host families from their sister school in Shanghai. In addition, some students travel as part of their service learning, visiting and working in places such as Costa Rica and Kenya. Teachers and staff model a global outlook as well. For example, a married couple who are teachers at Pacific Ridge traveled to Bangladesh to help open a school for women.
If you are looking for a middle or high school for your child, and you desire an environment that offers a well-rounded, top-notch education, I encourage you to visit Pacific Ridge School and find out how they are changing the face of education in San Diego County.
Learn more
Website
http://www.pacificridge.org/
Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/#/PacificRidgeSchool
Twitter
http://twitter.com/prs_carlsbad
Contact
Pacific Ridge School
6269 El Fuerte Street
Carlsbad, CA 92009
Phone: (760) 448-9820
Email: info@pacificridge.org
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