We believe that the high school years are crucial for young people. And we believe that we have created an environment that makes those high school years successful - an environment of trust - where each student's voice is heard and respected.
At Concord, there is no battleground, no competitive testing mill, no private sanctuary separate from the real world.
Concord is unique because it provides a demanding and challenging academic program within a supportive, social ambiance.
Concord is a place where students are able to learn who they are and what they can become.
By philosophy and design, Concord remains small, so that its success with students remains great.
If Concord is unique, it is because we are determined to stay small. Being small is not in itself a virtue, but staying small for the right reasons is: small enough for the two administrators to have time for every individual and to maintain a deep sense of personal responsibility.
If we are unique, it is because we are honest and direct with students and staff, and encourage this kind of behavior in them.
If we are unique, it is because we are also honest with parents and the community at large.
If we are unique, it is because each student's achievement and development is our concern. We are determined and creative in helping each of them to understand and realize a dream.
If we are unique, it is because our curriculum insists on full academic preparation for all students. There is no tracking system. There are no second-class citizens.
To this end, every classroom, though an island, must mirror the larger concerns of its discipline in society and must help to bring the world into the classroom, and the classroom, as a model, into the world.
The WASC Visiting Committee observes that "the small size of the school facilitates the collegial family atmosphere promoted by the administration. The {new} site enhances the opportunity for interaction and communication amongst the entire school community."
Give us your robust, eager, curious, intellectual, active, sensitive teenagers, and we will give them the environment, a remarkable staff, the tools, the experience, that will help them grow stronger, more knowledgeable, more sure of their opinions, more friendly to the world of all ages, closer to their peers, more accomplished, more courageous and finally independent enough to face the time beyond high school, and flourish at the university and in society. This is our moral stance; this is our academic promise. |