Like the highest performing public and private schools in Los Angeles and across the U.S., Vox Collegiate knows that all of our students have the ability to succeed in college, and that such success lies in the quality of the education they receive at each level of their K-12 course of study. When Vox Collegiate students matriculate from the eighth grade to our high school academy, they will be gritty, self-motivated, independent learners, confident in their own potential, with the ability to advocate for their personal and academic needs; and they will have the measurable content knowledge and skills to tackle a college preparatory course of study in grades nine through twelve. In order to get our students to this point, we must provide a meaningful, high quality middle school education that holds them to high expectations and is clear on the action steps required for academic success.
We will do this through -
Prioritized Focus on Literacy
Safe and Structured Learning Environment
Extended School Day
Parental Involvement and Investment
The teachers that we recruit and hire will be qualified and capable individuals, appropriately licensed and credentialed, and aligned with our mission - individuals who believe that all children can succeed and who have committed their professional capacity to ensuring that they do. Our teachers will be team-oriented people with an internal desire to grow as experts in their profession. They will be critical of themselves and their professional performance, embracing feedback, training, observations, and growth as they seek to improve their practice and student outcomes every day. They will be individuals who pride themselves on not just imparting knowledge but inspiring students to be self-motivated learners by connecting classroom experiences to life ambitions. We do not expect teachers to come to us perfect – great teachers are grown, not born - but we will require that they be receptive to coaching and practicing their craft for the betterment of our students.
All of the decisions related to the planning and operation of Vox Collegiate are guided by our mission and goal of ensuring that all students excel in college and beyond. We will be held accountable to the goals we set for students at Vox Collegiate. Staff, parents, board members, and students will regularly receive and review data in order to identify areas of strength and growth and to plan for ways to improve the education provided to students at Vox Collegiate. The Leadership Team and teachers will regularly and systematically analyze student data to serve as the basis for conversations with all of our stakeholders. All elements of our school design are geared toward the goal that, regardless of entry point, at the end of each school year all students are proficient or advanced in their respective grade level standards. Regular and systematic analysis of student data ensures that Vox Collegiate can correct course in a timely manner to ensure students are being effectively educated and are measurably on course for academic success at their grade level.
Guided innovation can lead to remarkable breakthroughs in any field, including education. One of the legislative intents in enacting the Charter School Act of 1992 was to “encourage the use of different and innovative teaching.” In alignment with California’s goal of innovation, and in addition to core content areas, we dedicate a full fifty-minute class period to speech and debate instruction each day from sixth through ninth grade. Through our innovative speech and debate program, each of our students will find confidence in their voice and grow as advocates for themselves and their communities. They will develop the research and logical reasoning skills to form clear and persuasive arguments and the confidence and performance and rhetorical skills to effectively communicate their messages.
“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character - that is the goal of true education.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
Preparing students for success in college and beyond requires more than academic support. We build within each of our students a unique voice and a resolute character – a voice and character about which they will be confident as they enter the world outside of the protective walls of our school. Vox Collegiate will ensure that each of our students develops an independent and confident voice of their own so that they will enter college and the workplace as leaders, guided by a strong and ethical code. Strong character and strong academics are inextricably linked. Through explicit teaching and the living model of our staff and Board, our students will embody the Vox Collegiate ART values which underpin life success:
Ambition
Respect
Team