There are many different ways by which local families find themselves at our door in search of the right educational environment for their children. Some families know without a doubt that they want to send their children to private school. For them, the choice is easy, and they never look back. Other families come to us in search of a better solution after they’ve already tried public school and didn’t find what they were looking for. If that sounds like you, we’ve compiled a list of factors many parents have listed as reasons St. Barnabas Episcopal School and other private education institutions like it are a better fit for their children.
High Academic Standards
The word rigor doesn’t sound like much fun, but it’s integral to a child’s education. Children not held to high enough academic standards often find themselves bored or uninterested in school. At St. Barnabas, we believe in pushing each of our students to perform in the best manner possible for them. Holding high academic standards for students isn’t about them getting the best grades. It’s about pushing them to be enthusiastic learners and keeping them motivated and excited daily.
Smaller Classes
One of the reasons that we can hold our students to higher academic standards than some of our public school peers is our commitment to maintaining small class sizes. When teachers in public environments have 30 or more children in the classroom at a given time, there’s no way that they can meet the individual needs of each child in the room. To know children is to see that they are all uniquely different and require an individualized approach. Our commitment to small class sizes ensures that students get the academic, emotional, and spiritual nurturing our campus is known for.
Access To Extracurriculars
In addition to our strong academic program, we also have committed ourselves to offering students a well-rounded education through extracurricular activities, the arts, and athletics. We know that succeeding in the world requires more than rote memorization of facts. Our students leave our private education institution with a wide breadth of experiences and interests. We are proud to provide nurturing opportunities for them to try new things and experiment with their interests.
Commitment To Values
Not all schools that fall under the private education category are founded on specific values. At St. Barnabas, our spiritual values are central to everything we do. Just as faith is woven through the lives of our teachers, administrators, and parents, we weave spiritual practice and personal values through everything that takes place on our campus. Values-based education is a benefit available to private education that isn’t an option for other types of schools. If you’d like your children to receive an education connected with your spiritual values, private education is probably the best option for you.
Safe Campus
We know that sending students to school these days can fill parents with anxiety. The anger and violence that permeates our world has made its way into schools across the country in devastating ways. No teacher or school administrator is unconcerned about this issue, but many schools don’t have the resources or capacity to keep their students as safe as they would like. At St. Barnabas, our small community environment enables us to carefully track who comes on and off our campus and keep our students safe in ways other schools can’t.
None of the parents in our community take their children’s education lightly. It’s one of the characteristics of St. Barnabas families that we admire the most. If you’re thinking hard about how to find the right educational environment for your children, you may have found your place here with us. Give us a call for more information about the unique and valuable education we provide. We’d love to help you find the right place for your family.
