Our Mission and Vision

We believe that we are all better citizens and human beings when working, dialoguing, and learning with adults, youth, and children who have different perspectives. We intentionally welcome families and staff with differing ethnicities, family structures, gender identities, races, religions, sexual orientations, and socioeconomic backgrounds. We hold school culture, policy, curriculum, and pedagogy decisions up to a lens of justice and equity for those who have been systemically oppressed. 

We consider the garden, playground, woods, local parks, libraries, museums, and other cultural and natural landmarks to be our external classroom where students are exposed to and engaged in the activities of the local community and the greater world. We teach and empower our children and youth to have a voice and agency in the world. 

A cooperative educational model is based on the premise that both parents and children are integral parts of a school community of lifelong learners. By incorporating parents into the school day, students place a higher value on their education, family bonds are strengthened, and a true community is fostered. To this end, parent involvement is not only encouraged in the cooperative model, but also required.

As a progressive school, ACE Academy follows in the footsteps of educators who embrace hands-on learning, critical thinking, and a belief that education should prepare children to become active citizens in a democracy. For that reason, social justice is an important value to the ACE Academy community. 

Our classrooms provide learning environments that are physically and emotionally safe, inclusive, and collaborative where individuality is honored. Our school strives to help each child attain their full potential in mental, physical, and social/emotional development, recognizing that each child has unique gifts and challenges. Our classrooms include mixed-age groupings to allow flexibility in the academic and social development of children. Our student to teacher ratios are deliberately kept low to allow for personal relationships between teachers and each student. 

Our curriculum reflects a conscious effort to find union between our inner world and outer world. Our students engage in a variety of supplemental curriculum meant to grow their emotional and mental health.