PACE HIGH SCHOOL MISSION STATEMENT

The PACE High School mission is to create a college-oriented, student-centered environment where high expectations of serious work are anticipated for every student. Central to our role as a small high school is that every student is known well and is appreciated for his/her unique talents and contributions to our learning community. To this end, our school curriculum and programs are tailored to the individual needs of our students to the maximum extent possible, enabling all of our students to reach the ambitious goals set for them. Working in close collaboration with PACE University’s School of Education and its faculty, the school shares the extensive resources of the entire university with significant access to classes, libraries, computer labs and recreational facilities providing extraordinary learning opportunities for our students. At PACE High School, we seek to ensure that all of our students leave us with a résumé of quality experiences that will prepare them to resolve challenges they will face in college and beyond.

PACE HIGH SCHOOL CORE BELIEFS

BELIEF #1: Everyone can learn given adequate time, opportunities, supports and resources. We believe that it is our duty not only to have high expectations but also to design, budget and implement programs that allow all our students to reach the same level of excellence and achievement. We believe that allocation of additional time and resources should follow a needs-based approach allowing for success to be achieved by all.

BELIEF #2: We believe in a holistic and nonlinear approach to learning and teaching. Education at PACE High School is NOT didactic or lecture-driven but student-driven and projects-based. We believe in students learning the needed skills to be able to find, sort, prioritize and present answers or their findings on questions they ask about the world around them. We believe that teaching the process of inquiry and problem-solving skills are more important than teaching discrete information. Students will ask in-depth questions; strive for understanding by designing and conducting experiments or researching, and presenting their conclusions to others in a meaningful way. We believe teaching “how” is more important than teaching “what.” We believe that through collaboration and a commitment to allocating time for in-depth discussions, we can facilitate the development of deeper understanding in all learners.

BELIEF #3: We believe that PACE High School is a conduit for developing life-long learners. We believe that all citizens of our community, from students, parents/care givers and teachers should have the opportunity to learn. To this end, PACE High School seeks to design and implement learning opportunities that include all constituencies.

BELIEF #4: We believe that attending PACE High School is a choice taken by the student and their parents and caregivers. By doing so, they have entered into a “contract” for learning with the school. This contract binds them to commit all the time and effort required to help all our students succeed.

The school’s core beliefs are briefly expressed in our school slogan:

”Keeping P.A.C.E. with your future and the world.”

Perpetuating excellence, Accountable to oneself and others, Collaborative, and Empathetic to all