Getting to Know Eagle Rock
- An initiative of the American Honda Education Corporation, a 501(c)3, a nonprofit subsidiary of the American Honda Motor Company
- A full-scholarship high school for students and a low-cost professional development center for secondary school educators
- Located in the mountain resort community of Estes Park, Colorado, gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park
- Opened in the fall of 1993
- Admits and graduates students three times a year
- Year-round (three trimesters) and residential
- Purposefully small, full enrollment of 72 students
Students
- Have not experienced success in traditional academic programs
- Did not expect to graduate from high school
- Are passionate about changing their lives
- Are admitted between the ages of 15 and 17
- Graduate when they can demonstrate mastery of Eagle Rock’s requirements
- Choose to enroll; choose to stay
- Come from across the United States
- Are equally represented, male and female
- Comprise a purposefully diverse community
The Professional Development Center — Linking Eagle Rock with Educators
- Consulting services at school sites around the United States in order to facilitate learning. Our facilitative approach emphasizes the modeling of effective practices, leading staff development efforts, and coaching leadership.
- Teacher Licensure
- Visits to Eagle Rock’s Professional Development Center
- Public Allies Teacher Fellowships, Internships, Pre-Student Teaching Practicums, Student Teaching, Graduate Practicums, Residencies, Research opportunities,
- Publications and Presentations
Focal Points of the Eagle Rock Program and Curriculum
- Creating a community of learners
- A set of guiding principles — “8 themes + 5 expectations = 10 commitments”
- Challenging new students with a wilderness trip
- Personal growth as well as academic growth
- Service, being of “use”
- Standards-based education with high expectations
- Documentation of learning to prove mastery or proficiency
- Active, interactive, interdisciplinary, and project-based experiential learning
- Orientation toward application of learning
- Courses regarded as vehicles for learning and documenting proficiency
- No grades for courses and, therefore, no failure
- Learning in a variety of modes, including times and spaces
- Performance assessment that enhances learning