
Students, Families, & Staff
I think Avalon has always done an excellent job of empowering students to do the things they really care about and be themselves. During my time at Avalon I was able to truly explore what it meant to be myself and even do projects and get school credit for that work.
Avalon and its staff were excellent at preparing me for the independent learning and work output environment that students should expect in higher education and most professional settings. They pushed me to reach my potential by guiding to me areas where I could excel and be recognized for that achievement.
The small size allows for a lot of personal connection with and support from staff and for our son to have developed a solid group of friends, which he didn't have in his old school. I like the way academics are explored and how students are encouraged to think for themselves and take responsibility for their own learning to a good extent. The school feels like a real community, involving families in the school culture.
During my time at Avalon I was always encouraged to learn in a way that was most interesting to me. The focus on independent learning and the guiding of advisors on what could be an interesting approach to learning subjects made Avalon the best school that I have attended. Avalon was a great mixture of structured and independent learning that allowed me to take interesting courses on historical fiction, but also let me take topics into my own hands such as spending a year learning college math and working on making guides to help teach math to my peers in my advisory.
I was given a tremendous amount of freedom and flexibility, both in organizing my time during the day, and in pursuing the core standards in the way I found most interesting. As a student, I was treated as though I was capable of being independent and making my own decisions
My education at Avalon didn't just encourage, but required me to be thoughtful in planning our projects and holding myself accountable for deadlines and deliverables while also stoking the fires of general curiosity.
My advisors encouraged me to actively engage in the political process rather than sit on the sidelines just because I was too young to vote. As a result, I spent part of my sophomore year working on a political campaign with another student and utilized that volunteer experience towards meeting civic & government standards. One of the candidates we helped to elect won by only a small handful of votes. Avalon empowered us to get involved with our community and helped us to be the change we wanted to see in the world.
We absolutely love Avalon and it has been a wonderful experience for my kiddo. They love the teachers and interesting topics they get to learn about, we both love the wonderful support they receive for their special education needs, they appreciate the inclusive culture of the whole school and have a great group of friends, and they have enjoyed engaging in extra curricular activities such as after school credit make up, ultimate frisbee, and robotics.
Helpful with accommodating and being supportive of needs that I would not have been able to succeed without. Avalon was willing to accommodate me in ways that allowed me to succeed and have an equal education when I otherwise would not.