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Dreamers and Planners - Maximizing the Proctor Experience

Scott Allenby

A mission statement will never capture the whole of an organization’s charge. It is impossible, in a paragraph or two, to capture the entirety of a complex learning community like Proctor, but our mission statement, nonetheless, provides our North Star as we walk through each day with our students, specifically this line: we recognize the potential of each member of the community to stretch beyond what had been thought possible.

Proctor Academy Arts

Each year, we witness students experience academic growth, begin to see themselves in a new light, and embrace the freedom to expand their identity. We also see them struggle at times. We see them fumble their way into routine and bump into our rules and structures. All of this is part of the learning process, and we excel in the messiness of adolescence as we guide students through these complicated, wonderful years. 

Proctor Academy Academics

By its very nature, the Proctor model requires students to evolve. If a student walks across the graduation stage the same as they arrived on campus for registration day, we have failed. Most adolescents eagerly embrace this evolution of identity, but each approaches it slightly differently. Some dream and wander, while others plan and execute. One tendency is not necessarily better than the other, students are simply predisposed, or trained through prior experiences, to take a certain approach to new opportunities. Our role as educators is to help those who are dreamers understand the importance of a plan, and to help those who are planners begin to dream just a little bit more. 

Proctor Academy Academics

During Fall Family Weekend (October 11-12), parents will meet with advisors and teachers for a mid-term check-in. We will talk through the ups and downs of the past six weeks of academic coursework, and share feedback, often positive, sometimes negative, but always constructive. With our advisees, we will discuss Proctor’s four year academic planning process; a critical exercise as we help students weave 135 academic courses, five academic concentrations, five off-campus programs, summer service experiences, and more than 30 different art courses into their Proctor experience. Partnering with students and parents to map out a Proctor experience that is right for that individual student is one of the most important responsibilities we have as advisors. 

Proctor Academy

No two students will craft the same path through Proctor. That is the beauty of this place. Each will have a unique four year academic plan, and each year it will evolve as that student discovers new interests and gains confidence. Families often choose Proctor because of a single feature - our ski program, the recording studio, study abroad programs, the nation’s leading integrated academic support program - but over time everyone who experiences Proctor realizes they really chose Proctor because they believe deeply in that one little phrase in our mission statement: the potential to stretch beyond what was thought possible. 

Proctor Academy Arts

As we start to welcome prospective families to campus for tours this fall, we encourage them to understand Proctor as the school that will evolve alongside their child. We know when to push, when to pull, when to support, and when to simply listen. We help the dreamers plan, and the planners dream knowing the beauty of a student’s high school years lies in the “what could be”, not the what is. 

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