Albuquerque Academy

The Medicine Wheel Memorial, designed by architect Ronnie Di Cappo, is located just east of the Music Building on the Academy campus.

Albuquerque Academy sponsors a wide variety of academic extracurricular programs, as well as a great number of other clubs and activities. From the Science Bowl and drum line to the SPACE team and theater, the range of possibilities offers something for everyone.

The number of options provides for meaningful and transformational experiences, and students are encouraged both to participate and to be encouraging of fellow participants. Because academic studies are given the highest priority, students must choose their activities and time commitments wisely. Students who are interested can also form a new club or organization.

The purpose of the Senior Projects program is to provide seniors with a guided transitional learning opportunity to experiment with independent planning, study, work, and personal responsibility off-campus with continued guidance and support from the school. Senior Projects is an opportunity for students to experiment with different learning and working environments while benefitting from the guidance of faculty and off-campus sponsors.

Senior Projects is a required program that takes place during the final five weeks of the senior year. Students study an area of particular interest within one of four options: internship, mentorship, seminar, and self-directed project. The first four weeks are for the project itself, and the last week is reserved for Presentations of Learning�student presentations to their peers. Continuance in regular classes varies depending upon the option a student chooses. Many students are enrolled in AP courses during the spring semester and are able to continue in them and/or review during the project month. Students also have the opportunity to continue in extracurricular and co-curricular activities.

For more information, e-mail or call the Coordinator of Senior Projects, Jeremy Johnson, or 828-3256.

Academy Seniors: For more information on project resources, guidelines, and specific seminars that are being offered, log in to the community pages and click on "Profile".

Internship

Most students are encouraged to choose some form of this option. An internship is an arrangement with an off-campus business or individual in which a student serves as an apprentice or intern, learning a specific trade, profession, or avocation. The purpose of a student's choice of internship may be to assist in the selection of an appropriate major field of study in college, to explore an occupation of interest, or to pursue a program of formalized instruction that is not offered at the Academy.

30 hour internship. Thirty hours per week and/or six hours of internship participation per weekday is required. This option is considered full-time, and students generally do not take classes on the Academy campus in this option, though it is allowed.

20 hour internship. Twenty hours per week and/or four hours per day of internship participation per weekday is required. Students remain enrolled and participate in at least one or two on-campus courses/AP's.

With either of these two options, the following applies:

School activity is limited to continuing in up to two courses.
An on-campus sponsor and an off-campus sponsor/supervisor are required.
A one-hour weekly on-campus meeting with the on-campus sponsor is required.
No monetary compensation is allowed for student's work.
Since the value of an internship experience diminishes with fewer hours, students are encouraged to take on as many hours as possible to receive full value, with no less than 20 hours per week.
If a student is taking a course or class off-campus, 75 to 100 hours of instructional time are required.

Mentorship

A mentorship is focused work, one-on-one with a faculty member in a discipline of interest or particular expertise for the student. Work and supervision occurs on the Academy campus. A student may want to continue work in progress or advance in a field of study beyond what the regular curriculum has offered. The mentorship option is not for students who want to begin work in a new area of interest.

20/1 mentorship

Students must have 20 hours per week and/or four hours per day of project work including three hours per week of direct instruction/supervision by the mentor
Students must stay enrolled in at least one on-campus course/AP.

15/2 mentorship

Students must have 15 hours per week and/or 3 hours per day of project work including three hours per week of direct instruction/supervision by the mentor.
Students must stay enrolled in at least two on-campus courses/AP.

Self-directed Project

It is rare that a student is granted the opportunity to work independently. Individual students who have an idea for truly exceptional independent work may submit a proposal for a self-directed project. The application process is rigorous�a student must establish very clear goals, objectives, and assessment mechanisms, submit a detailed calendar and bibliography, and employ the research and techniques generally accepted by scholars or professionals in the chosen field of inquiry. The application process and timeline for self-directed work are separate and unique from the general application process.

Examples of past independent work similar to what might be approved again include:

"The Urban Condition: A Look Into Girls' Issues Through the Lenses of Evolution" (a 30 page research paper)
"3-D Dynamic Modeling of Mixing Tank Using Velocity Encoded NMR" (a publishable quality research paper written in conjunction with medical lab research detailing the use of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance in the study of fluid dynamics)
Claymation film-making (employed ten hours a day, every day of project for one minute of film)
"A Sociological Assessment of Homosexuals in Film" (research paper)

Seminar

Seminars will be offered by Academy faculty on-campus, generally with groups of three to eight students. The purpose of a seminar is to explore an idea or topic in depth with one or more faculty as co-learners�to form a "community of inquiry" around a topic that holds the enthusiasm of everyone involved. Topics fall under the general headings of arts, humanities, and sciences, though inter-disciplinary seminars are encouraged. Each seminar group will determine expectations and culminating projects.

Students must stay enrolled in at least two on-campus courses.
Participation in a seminar is for 6-8 hours per week.

Participation in a different geographical, educational, linguistic, or cultural setting can provide excellent opportunities for personal and intellectual growth. During a student�s sophomore and junior years, opportunities exist for both domestic and international exchanges. Because seniors must be in residence at the Academy, they are not eligible for either domestic or international exchanges or programs.

Domestic Exchange
Sophomores and juniors may spend up to a semester at another school that offers a unique program. Such programs are considered on an individual basis, and generally no more than two students are approved each year. Students interested in domestic exchange should talk to David Kim, dean of students, 10-12 Division.

International Exchange
Albuquerque Academy enjoys association with or membership in the American Secondary Schools for International Students and Teachers (ASSIST), American Field Service (AFS), School Year Abroad (SYA), the Council on Standards for International Educational travel (CSIET), the German-American Partnership Program (GAPP), Youth For Understanding (YFU), and Language and Friendship.

Students interested in study abroad, usually during their junior year, should talk to Cathy Lydon, director of international exchanges, by October 30 of their sophomore year.

Albuquerque Academy students who have had at least one year of German and who are fifteen years old or older may participate in the German American Partnership Program (GAPP). GAPP is sponsored by a faculty member.

Academy students are matched with selected German families for three weeks and are expected to join in the normal activities of their partner family and their host brothers or sisters. During their three weeks in Germany, students attend Gymnasium Petershagen, a regionally renowned college preparatory school of roughly 1,000 students in grades 5 through 13. In addition, the schools and parents plan one major excursion for the visiting students and chaperones. Several smaller trips to local points of interest are also planned. The stay in Petershagen includes short trips to such places as Hanover, Bremen, Hamburg or Paderborn.

Participating American families agree to house the German host-students in their homes in Albuquerque and to include them in regular family activities for three weeks. The German students attend the Academy on the weekdays during their stay. The Academy plans a similar number and variety of excursions for German guests in our own local region during their stay. Recent trips have included a three-day visit to the Grand Canyon and weekend tour of the Jem�z, Bandelier and Santa Fe.

GAPP is listed as a participating member of the Council of Standards for International Exchange and Travel. The program has offered high-quality, reasonably priced, in-country immersion experiences for over twenty years. It has helped over 7,000 American young people from over 800 schools across the United States engage in meaningful, on-site interaction with comparable students and schools in Germany.

A longstanding tradition at the Academy, each year the school hosts Diversity Day. The event celebrates the multiplicity of voices, perspectives, talents, cultures, religions, ideas, and traditions comprising the Academy community. On this day, students, faculty and staff, parents, and members of the larger community gather on the Academy campus to present and participate in a variety of workshops, a school-wide forum, performances, and informational booths that examine and celebrate issues surrounding diversity.

Albuquerque Academy prides itself on its student publications:

The Advocate

An award-winning newspaper, The Advocate is a student-run publication, published entirely as an extracurricular activity. In the absence of a journalism class, staff training is based on workshops presented by writers from local newspapers, conventions, and summer sessions offered by professional press associations. The editors and more experienced staff mentor newer staff members. Over the years, many editors have pursued college and professional journalism careers.

The newspaper has adopted a pre-Hazelwood free speech policy; there is no prior review, and only the sponsor sees the copy before it goes to press. The editor-in-chief makes all decisions concerning content. The faculty sponsor reserves the right to pull material that violates the school's concerns for libel, confidentiality, obscenity, and disruption. Students work with the Student Press Law Center when appropriate.

The newspaper is generally published three times a semester. Advertising rates are based on $7.00 per column inch with discounts for larger ads, prepayment, and annual contracts. For more information on advertising, call the business manager at 828-3251. Letters to the editor are welcome.

To read the latest issue of The Advocate, log in to the community pages of the Academy web site and click on the link found on the School Portal page.

The Charger

The Academy�s yearbook is the Charger, an annual publication containing photos of the student body, faculty and staff, and school activities. The Charger staff includes close to 40 students from all grades, overseen by a faculty sponsor. The Academy�s collection of yearbooks, dating back to the first edition in 1961, is located in the library and provides a visual representation of the school�s history.

Other Voices

Other Voices is the Academy�s literary magazine, produced by a staff of approximately ten students and a faculty sponsor. This annual publication includes prose, poetry, art, and photography. Students, faculty, staff, and alumni are invited to submit entries, which are reviewed by editorial staff for possible publication. Other Voices provides a glimpse into the literary and artistic talents of the Academy community.

Pulp, Pith, and Zest

One of the few student-run high school journals of nonfiction in the country, Pulp, Pith, and Zest publishes student essays and photo-essays. The words "pulp," "pith," and "zest" might more commonly be used when describing an orange, but they grace this journal because well-written prose is equally refreshing. The orange is part of a healthy diet and a complete breakfast; the written thoughts and feelings of individual Academy community members are as nutritionally satisfying. Pulp, Pith, and Zest is now entering its third year of publication.